I've been bitten by the sewing bug again! Every time the season changes two things make me dig through fabric, patterns and get me to lugging my machine onto the table. The first is just wanting new outfits for my growing daughter and grandchilden and the second is when I go shopping and see the high prices for such flimsy, poorly constructed garments.
This year the sight of polyester and outfits that made you look 7 months pregnant or those that had the wildest 70's look in their patterns and color was a big push to the sewing machine!
Besides I keep thinking of the little baby girls and how fun it would be to design just one more little baby dress. I also look at Cierra's culottes and decide either she's growing or those culottes she's wearing are shrinking. Then there's those cute, cute skirt patterns I have that can be sewn up in a matter of a couple hours...and I'm off and planning the new clothes for this spring.
This spring I found a 1952 pattern that had been reprinted and I pulled out a lovely green fabric I had and cut Adalyn out a dress, bonnet, slip and bib. I had so much fun making this little dress. I love to embroider and so I hand-embroidered little flowers on each piece. Since I'm not much of a tv watcher the embroidery is a good way to be in the room with the family on the nights they decide to watch a movie but keeping my hands busy at the same time.
I've started on Cierra some new culottes out of cute seersucker patterns. I also made her the cutest skirt out of some scraps I had in my fabric stash. I bought her and I matching fabric to make skirts out of and today cut out the cutest bright knit fabric in another skirt. Each time they turn out so cute and prettier than anything in the store it motivates me to make just one more thing.
After digging through the patterns I'm in the mood to make just one more apron for my
apron collection I've been working on in my kitchen. I want to have aprons on the hooks in every size so that no matter who is with me in the kitchen there's an apron their size to wear.
(this includes my little granddaughters!)
Next week Niki will be here as Brian preaches our Redbud Bible Conference and her and I are designing beautiful little dresses for Halle out of bright prints with ric-rac roses on them. If you would like to see our inspiration look at the dress on the cover of Kari Mecca's book "Sewing with Whimsy". http://www.karimeaway.com/products/482 We're going to have a fun time sewing on this one!
Sewing is just one of the wonderful facets of being a homekeeper. There is no joy like being a designer/artist/seamstress. How thankful I am that my mother didn't listen to my moaning and foolish promises that I was going to marry a man that would buy everything we were going to wear! I also swore you'd never catch me tearing a seam out! As a teen at home I sure
wasn't a real good student or listener. So I got to spend money on long distance phone calls to my mother as I worked on sewing projects for my two little daughters. I'm sure she had to resist a little chuckle every time I called!
I have often told my daughters that being a keeper at home is the most beautiful and varied life. The Designer never makes a mistake in putting us to work in the place He designed for us.
Rather it's cooking, cleaning, sewing, laundering, decorating my home, preseving food or teaching school to my children the chosen path God has given me is a wonderful tapestry of life for me.
I hope that you find as much joy in being a "keeper at home" as He planned for you to! It's a path worth taking.
