Sewing Room Awards

Description

I imagine the next part of the contest as a sort of award ceremony. I walk into the sewing room and every tool perks up, hushed tones of “pick me” can be felt. I look around and say “hey, whatever happened to the saying that it’s an honor just being nominated?” Each and every one of you have value. Each time I reach for you, I am thankful. Let’s step back and acknowledge the unsung heroes before announcing the winner. The FAN. Now living in a world of no air conditioning, in a room of windows, allowing the natural sunlight (raining about 100 inches a year means not much) and heating up the room to over 80 degrees. How many times have I turned my face, towards your breeze, to catch some relief? How many hot flashes could I survived without your help and support? Stored away, out of sight but never out of mind, you remain one of my best sources of support. Hand lotion, greaseless, you know who you are. How many hours of working with paper, fabric, etc. only to find that specialty fabrics catch, drag and snag on my skin? You exist to smooth my cuticles, and keep my skin from ruining my projects. Hair clips. Oh heck, clips of any kind! Quilt clips, paper clips; all of you will do in a pinch! How many times have I rotary cutter-trimmed my own hair? How many times have I had to make appointments with hair dressers to fix another scissor accident before I reached for you? Not only have clips held my material together, assisted hemming and binding but took the place of extra hands? Clips have held my hair, pinned my clothes out of the way, kept me sane, organized and allowed my hair to grow long…although shorter around the front. Ironing Board and Iron. Really, what more needs to be said? You, Iron, warm up my life in the winter. You are always there to support my pressing needs. The pair of you…always there if I need an extra table, holding down the Fort, a pile of material or a length of binding. Oh yes Iron, sometimes you spit, fuss and sputter, but you’re still an important part of my creative process. (Note to self: In retrospect, that sound very sad). Snack Box. What more can I say to a box that endlessly offers me Chocolate? The comfort of your organic, healthy and some unhealthy choices remind me that we are all on this journey of life together. And the choices are all on me. The highs (everything is going exceptionally well) of granola and multi-grain chips and the lows (see Bargello post) of self-soothing chocolate, you remain my comfort. A final nod to my First-aid box; bandages and ointment with Lidocaine. In my 50+ years of sewing, I have nicked, sliced, stabbed, pricked, and pinched, etc. just about every appendage. Who knew that the scissors were going to land point down on my foot? Old rotary blades should not be that sharp! And the always embarrassing…I can’t believe I sewed my finger to another quilt. Although just about everything that I make contains a long strand of hair bound somewhere, no one wants the stain of blood. Thank you, bandages for sticking around all these years. I don’t remember when the companies started adding lidocaine in their products, but essentially it numbs the pain. Lidocaine keeps me sewing and ointment encourages healing. Remember to treat yourself first and best so you can be there for others! So I look around the room and a hush descends (Note: I turned down the music). The winner of this tool contest? My sewing machines. The years between learning to use a sewing machine and owning one brings the memory of owning one pair of scissors, package of needles and a couple of spools of thread. Every straight pin, every seam ripper, every type of thread, every style of material cutter, every measuring tape, every ruler, etc. was purchased because I have a sewing machine and needed them to hone my craft. With every completed project; I wanted to do more, learn more, and to be better…more accurate, more efficient, and more precise. My sewing machines make me a better person; setting goals, taking classes and the joy of completing projects. I started out on my old Bernina 830 (retired), sewing children’s clothing…starting out with summer clothes, Halloween costumes and formal dresses. There were years of curtains, kitchen items, quilts or comforters. Now its grandchildren clothes, quilts of every size and lots of embroidery projects. Sewing keeps me centered, sane and keeps my brain active as my body grows old. Along with this post, I am sending a couple of pictures of my retired, but well-loved Bernina 830. Hope you all enjoyed my story!