Natalie Howard of Natalie’s Needlepoint, located at 144 N. Larchmont for 27 years. Photo from the book Larchmont, Images in America.
Natalie Anne Howard, owner of Natalie’s Needlepoint, a fixture of Larchmont Blvd. for 27 years in the 1970s, ’80s and ’90s, has passed away. She died on November 26, 2016 after a three-month long illness, according to an obituary in the Los Angeles Times and San Gabriel Valley Tribune. She was 85 years old.
A native of Pasadena, Howard made her store at 144 N. Larchmont (now the location of the Landis Labyrinth toy store) a focal point of social life in the neighborhood, attracting a loyal following of customers and friends from Hancock Park, Pasadena and the West Side. She decided to retire and close the shop in the 1990s.
In her retirement years, Natalie was constantly on the go. She traveled extensively to Europe and the east coast, and was a member of innumerable garden and cultural organizations. She was proud of her “white garden,” where her Iceberg roses and fragrant gardenias were always in abundance. Natalie was a member of The Town Club in Pasadena and The Beach Club in Santa Monica.
She is survived by her daughter Natalie Penn Hodges, granddaughter Lillie Grace Hodges and son-in-law Brett Hodges of Santa Barbara, and by her son Holmes Erwin Penn III and Dominga Valentino of Los Angeles. The family is extremely grateful to Marti Martin, Diana Perry Doyle and Dominga Valentino for their extraordinary care and organization during her illness. No service is planned. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to The Town Club, 378 South Madison Ave., Pasadena, CA. 91101-3376.
Patricia Lombard is the publisher of the Larchmont Buzz. Patty lives with her family in Fremont Place. She has been active in neighborhood issues since moving here in 1989. Her pictorial history, "Larchmont" for Arcadia Press is available at Chevalier's Books.
My heartfelt condolences to Natalie’s family and gratitude for helping to nature my life-long affinity for the needle-arts. As a kid in the late 1960s and 1970s, I always loved riding my bike to Natalie’s to look at the walls of painted canvas and skeins of Persian wool in an infinite array of colors. I loved needlepointing (starting in elementary school) and would buy blank canvas to paint my own designs. I also took dress-making classes from the store down the block (where Peet’s is now I think) — dress boutique was on the street level, and sewing studio upstairs. I learned to make a muslin and cut patterns. Good memories on Larchmont! Thank you, Mrs. Natalie Howard.
My heartfelt condolences to Natalie’s family and gratitude for helping to nature my life-long affinity for the needle-arts. As a kid in the late 1960s and 1970s, I always loved riding my bike to Natalie’s to look at the walls of painted canvas and skeins of Persian wool in an infinite array of colors. I loved needlepointing (starting in elementary school) and would buy blank canvas to paint my own designs. I also took dress-making classes from the store down the block (where Peet’s is now I think) — dress boutique was on the street level, and sewing studio upstairs. I learned to make a muslin and cut patterns. Good memories on Larchmont! Thank you, Mrs. Natalie Howard.