This site requires Javascript to be turned on. Please enable Javascript and reload the page.

Granny's Box : The Story of Mollie Franklin Hensley (by Sandy Laws)

Perforated Pounce Patterns found in Granny's Box belonging to Mollie F. Hensley.

Enlarged photo of Perforated or Prick and Pounce Pattern of an pitcher found in Granny's Box belonging to Mollie F. Hensley. This method transferred designs to material using the pounce method which consists of a wheel, pad, and powder. The design is traced onto paper, pricked with the wheel, then the pad with powder is rubbed over the pricked paper. When the paper is lifted, the design will be transferred to the material. The original objects are the property of Jackie Rose in Jonesborough, TN. The Archives of Appalachia at East Tennessee State University has been granted a license to create, store, preserve, and distribute digital reproductions of these items at the discretion of the Archives without restriction and in perpetuity to further and support the educational, teaching, scholarship, and research mission of the Archives. Access is provided to these digital surrogates for the purposes of research and education, provided the proper citation is used (e.g. [identification of item], licensed to the Archives of Appalachia at East Tennessee State University by Jackie Rose). Any commercial uses of the materials or any uses that exceed the limits of fair use and other relevant statutory exceptions require the permission of the copyright holder(s). It is the user's obligation to determine and satisfy copyright or other use restrictions when publishing or otherwise distributing materials.

This page is referenced by:

Prick and Pounce Prick and pounce is a method of transferring a pattern to a surface using a wheel, pad, and powder.

The pounce perforation tool has a sharp steel pointed wheel on the end of a tapered handle.

Pounce is a fine powder that was originally made from cuttlefish, but today is made from charcoal and chalk powder.

The design to be transferred may be a commercial pattern or traced onto paper, which is secured in place onto the target surface. The wheel is pressed into the drawn outline to perforate the paper. A square pounce pad, or a handheld blotter, may be used to rub or blot the powder over the holes in the paper. When the paper is lifted, the design will be transferred to the material.

Granny’s box contained two prick and pounce pattern sheets which were about 36 inches wide and 12 inches long. Some of the designs have residual pounce powder. It is quite difficult to see the actual patterns in a photograph. Some of the pattern images have been enhanced and enlarged for a better visual.