Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Just Sew! Studio

The world we live in moves at such a fast pace. Instant this, drive through that, and I have to have it now! One thing that seems to have been lost in recent years is the ability, or desire, to make something yourself. But if the blogs I’ve been reading lately are a sign of things to come, crafting and sewing might just be making a comeback.

Sewing used to be a skill that was passed down from mother to daughter –teaching her to make her own clothes and things for her home. Boys were taught to build things with their hands – furniture, barns and houses. These were things that my parents were taught. My Dad built my parents first home with the help of his uncles. He filled that house with pieces of furniture that he built by hand – a cradle, a dining room table, a hutch, a desk, a Grandfather clock. My Mom and Grandmother learned how to sew and quilt. My Mom has made quilts for each of her children, grandchildren, and siblings. One of my most prized possessions is a quilt my Mom made and gave to me when I was about to leave home to attend college in another state. That quilt was made with leftover scraps of fabric from the many outfits she sewed for me as I was growing up. You can’t buy that in a store!

When I was about 12 or 13 years old, my Mom signed me up for sewing lessons at the local Singer store and I haven’t stopped sewing since. Barbie doll and baby doll clothes, blouses, pants, shorts, skirts, dresses, curtains, pillows, my wedding veil and the suit I wore as my “going away” outfit at my wedding are all things I’ve sewn. I remember being so proud when I modeled something I had sewn for my Dad and he would ask me, “Did you build that yourself?”. Or if I started sewing something on Saturday to wear to church on Sunday he might ask, “What are you building?”. If you think about it, sewing is very similar to building. You are taking individual pieces and connecting them to make a finished product.

My daughters have encouraged me this past year and a half as I’ve started Francie Beth Boutique and sold handmade signs and picture frames. Even my husband and son have pitched in and cut and sanded signs and slapped on a few coats of paint. Now, I hope to share my love and knowledge of sewing with others who might want to learn to sew with Just Sew! Studio. If your mom tried to teach you to sew, but ran out of patience after threading the machine for you for the 10th time in 10 minutes or if the pattern instructions were too confusing, give sewing another try. In March I will be offering two classes teaching you how to make a decorative pillow. The class will be about 3 hours long and you will leave with a finished pillow. It’s a cute project, you’ll learn a few basic things you need to know about sewing, and you’ll go home with a pillow that you can tell everyone, “I made it myself!” and no one else will have one exactly like yours! For more information please visit here.

Saturday, February 19, 2011

We Interrupt This Marriage For . . .

We hadn't been married very long in the early 80's when I realized that occasionally football came before me. Not all the time; just Saturday, Sunday, and Monday nights. Now back in the day I still had a good bit of free time (meaning no children!) and enjoyed cross stitching. Does anyone still do that? Anyways, while Dan watched football, I cross stitched (or did laundry, or the dishes, sewed, cleaned or went shopping).

There aren't a whole lot of things you can cross stitch for an outdoors kind of guy, but I found something that fit him perfect. A small cross stitch sampler that had a football goal, football, and heads of the people in the stands with the saying, "We interrupt this Marriage for the Football Season!". Perfect!! So I cross stitched away and gave him his gift. He was impressed.

Now almost 30 years later, I have come to realize that simple saying, "We interrupt this Marriage for . . . " is a powerful piece of advice. In the last 29+ years, our marriage has been interrupted for any number of activities - football, fishing, camping, hunting, 4-wheeling, time with the guys, and now the most recent . . . a boat - a fixer upper no less! He boasts to his buddies that when we were first married, and he would head off with some friends for a day (or weekend) I was so sad to see him go. Now I tell him to go and have fun! I now welcome the time alone to go off and do the things I enjoy or to stay at home and relish the peace and quiet. If you know my husband, you know that we are total opposites. He is the outgoing, always talking, never met a stranger kind of person who falls asleep and wakes up talking while I am much more introverted and quiet. I love my peace and quiet!

All of this to say that these interruptions have been good for us and I think we are both happier for the time apart, but we also enjoy our time together more!