Memory Lane Monday - Where It All Started...

Brynwood Needleworks - The Budding Seamstress

 

Although I don't write Memory Lane Monday posts any longer, I came across this photograph over the weekend. I'm going through closets in preparation for our eventual move, and found this in an old, falling apart photo album. I just had to share it with you.

  This is me at twelve years old.  

Yes, I know. I was a real fashion plate, right? My dress was dark green velvet, and although it seems a bit short to me now, twelve year old me loved it. It was my Christmas dress in 1966.

I'm sure you're wondering why I chose to share this particular image with you. I mean, why would I want to post a photo of this short-haired, classes-wearing, awkward girl-I-used-to-be? The real reason is that piece of furniture next to me. That early-American piece is a sewing cabinet, and inside is a 1965 era Elna sewing machine. 

My best friend, Cyd's dad, Don, used to sell sewing machines. In 1965, he sold the Elna to my mother. It came with six free sewing lessons. When he tried to schedule her for her first lesson, she pointed toward me and told him, "Teach her." She never learned how to use it, but man, I sure did! I took to it like an otter to water.

I would go to the sewing machine store where Uncle Don (that's how many Brits teach their children to refer to adults who are family friends), taught me how to sew. I learned straight and zigzag lines, and how to use the included cams to create decorative stitches. I don't remember my first project, or the model number of that machine, but I think I'd recognize it if I ever saw one again.

This photograph was taken fifty years ago in December. In the ensuing years, I've created many articles of clothing for myself and others - and everything from pillow cases to wedding dresses. All because the person who purchased this machine never really wanted to use it. (Maybe she just liked the cabinet?) No matter the reason, I'll always be grateful to Don for persisting until there was a sewing machine in our house. Little did he know (or perhaps he did), that it would forge a love for a pastime that would last a lifetime.

Memory Lane Monday - Saving The Best For Last...

Darrel and Grace's wedding photo. circa mid-1940s

This is going to be my last Memory Lane Monday, and believe me, I've save the best for last. I've often written about Grace, but it only seemed appropriate that I should tell you a little more about the one person who has had the greatest effect on the woman I have become.

1974

When I try to explain my relationship to Grace, I've often called her my "almost mother-in-law". I met her son a month after I graduated from high school in 1973. She and Dad had two sons and two daughters...Deb, Damon, Dion and Deirdre...a "Donna" fit right in!

There was even a period of time when I lived with them. It started on a snowy Wisconsin night when her son had come to pick me up from my parents' house. The weather got worse, and Grace called my parents to let them know that I could stay with them that evening so they wouldn't have to worry about my safety. My father told her (and me) that if I didn't come home that night, I didn't have to come home at all. (There was an insult to Grace in there, too, but I won't repeat it.) After she hung up the phone, Grace turned and looked at me. She gave me a hug and said that I could stay with them as long as I needed to. Our safety was more important than the fifteen mile drive back out into the country. I lived there for six weeks until I found a a nice apartment with two of my girlfriends.

Her son and I dated for many years, and we were engaged to marry. I spent a lot of time with his mother through those years and I learned a lot from her. Although I've always loved and respected her, I knew that marrying her son wasn't the right decision for me, and she respected and supported my decision.

When I opened my needlework shop, Grace came and worked for me. In the ensuing years, Grace became "Mom", and she (and Dad) always referred to me as their third daughter. (Although her son and I have been friends all these years, I'm quite sure he thinks of me as an "ex". lol) Sadly, Dad passed a few years ago after a brief stint in a nursing home and Mom has been living on her own since.

A Thursday Night Trio 2009

When we still lived in Wisconsin, every Thursday night was our night together for dinner. We would take turns planning the meal, but Mom, Deb (her elder daugher) and I would always gather at Mom's house. When he was still alive, Dad even enjoyed our dinner nights. We still continue this tradition whenever I'm back to visit.

Over the past forty years, Mom taught me to do embroidery, crochet and knitting. I hadn't knit anything in years when our first grandchild was born, so I went to Mom and we sat down together so that she could show me how to cast on, complete the knitting stitches and read patterns. Thanks to her mentoring, I've created many beautiful and unique sweaters and hats for our three grandchildren.

If it weren't for Mom, I never would have learned to make a crocheted granny square. I couldn't (and still can't) read crochet patterns, so she had me stand behind her chair to watch her make one. I wrote the directions as I watched her and that's how I know how to make a granny to this day.

Mom and Deb

Grace is aptly named. Her name means "favor or blessing", and I know that she's been a true blessing in my life. She taught me about patience, forgiveness and unconditional love. She knows everything about me and has always been one of my greatest cheerleaders. She's laughed with me, and we've shared many tears...happy and sad. This woman knows my heart even better than my own mother or father.

Mom with her granddaughter, Katy. Fall 2011.

In the beginning of 2012, Mom had health problems that made it impossible for her to live in her own home any longer. You might remember that I drove to Wisconsin in March. We were worried and I couldn't wait to see her.

I stayed in her home while she was in the hospital, and then her three daughters went out together to interview care facilities for her. Before I went home to Florida, I saw the place that would become her new home. It was a bittersweet visit.

Mom's settled and comfortable now in her new apartment and she has people there to care for her as she needs it. She has her sewing machine and spends hours sewing or crocheting. The kids frequently "spring" her from her digs to make sure she doesn't feel too cooped up. I'm looking forward to our next visit when I can take her out, too.

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I'm so glad that she's doing well and she's being cared for. No one deserves happiness more than Mom. She's lived an unselfish and loving life and I'm blessed that God made sure that she and I were written into each others books. My story is so much richer because she's in it. I love you, Mom.

Thank you for joining me for my last Memory Lane Monday. 

I'll be planning something new for 2013, but this is the closing 

chapter for our monthly strolls. I'm so happy you joined me!

If you have a memory to share, please link up with me below.

I'll be over to visit and leave a comment on your story, too.

When I last spoke with Mom, she asked me to do a favor for her. Apparently, after all those years of making granny squares, it seems she's forgotten how to start one. (She can't remember how to chain 5, join, triple crochet, two double crochets into the circle, repeat three more times.) She asked me to get some Red Heart yarn (4-ply) in any color and crochet a box of "centers" for her.  She uses a "K" hook. I'd love it if any of you would like to help. Just let me know and you can send them to me. I'll put them all together in a box to send out to her in the next few weeks. Thanks!

UPDATE: Mom passed away on November 25, 2014. You can click here to read my blog post written the day after. Although she has left earth, I know she will watch over me until God decides we should be together again. Until then, Mom...

Lovers Alway...

 If you've been a friend of my blog for a while, you may have learned that

symbolism is a huge thing to me. I find great pleasure in creating symbolism

 in my projects, especially in the garments I design for special occasions. 

Knowing that, it should come as no surprise to you that I was sure to

incorporate touches of symbolism (through family history) into 

our wedding ceremony when Handsome and I tied the knot.

 When I walked down the aisle to marry my Prince Charming, I carried 

this beautiful, little book in my hands, under my wedding bouquet of 

red and white roses. I had covered it in white lace to match my gown.

 The book was copyrighted in 1902, and contains verses of love, fealty 

and wedded bliss. There are also vows contained within its covers.

Are you wondering where the symbolism fits into this picture?

 This book was originally carried by Handsome's maternal grandmother,

Daisy when she married Charles in April, 1905. The dedication page was

completed by the "clergyman" (Floyd Eugene Doms) who performed 

their ceremony in Los Angeles, California all those years before ours.

It was as though all the generations before us were there on our wedding day.

It wasn't just a matter of "something old, something new, something borrowed, 

or something blue". We were enveloped in all the love and promise of a 

happy future embodied in the symbol carried by Daisy, and again by me.

I don't know if Handsome's mom, Evelyn also carried this book, but I've

added a note to stay within it's covers to tell future Liljegren brides that

I also held this book in my hands as I repeated my vows to my husband.

I hope that the next bride to carry it will continue the tradition of adding

their name, and perhaps a few reflections of their wedding day for

other generations to read. I hope that the symbolism of the act is not

lost, and perhaps our grandson's bride or our granddaughters will choose

to carry this little book - long in the future! - when they make their promises.
We'd really like that.

Although this is a lovely and happy memory for me, it's not my next post
for Memory Lane Monday. (After all, it's not even Monday yet!)

I will be writing my last Memory Lane Monday post on New Year's Eve. I bet
you have a story just waiting to be shared with your blog friends, and I'd love
it if you'd write about it on your blog and then come back here to link up.
 If you prefer to just stop by, read my post and leave a note, that's cool, too.
 I've been planning a special dedication for my last MLM post and I hope you'll
 spend a few minutes with me before you ring in the new year with your loved ones.

Memory Lane Monday - My Uncle Dick...

Today is my birthday, but I'm going to save my birthday post for later this week. Instead, I'd like you to meet another dear family member.

My Uncle Dick, like my Uncle Johnny (who I've introduced you to before here), was also born in England. As a child, I always thought Uncle Johnny looked like Paul Anka, and Uncle Dick reminded me of Andy Williams. Look at those dreamy eyes! I think this picture was taken when he was in the service in England. (I'm guessing he must have been around eighteen.)

In July, 1962, he married my Aunty Margaret and in March of 1971, they brought their two children - a boy and a girl - to the United States. In those years, if you wanted to immigrate to America, you needed to have the promise of work and a place to live.

My uncle made an agreement with a local painting contractor to work for him, and my parents cleared out what had been the playroom in our home to make a place for them to live until they could get on their feet.

Their living quarters were at the back of our house, so they did have a small measure of privacy, but all four of them lived in that room. I can't remember their son's age, but I believe that he was around seven, and their daughter was around 5.

Looking back, I admire their commitment to start a new life in a strange country - sharing a house with my parents and their five children - in modest quarters at that. I know that they always appreciated that early start, but it had to have been difficult for two grown couples and their (seven) kids to live in the same house!

My uncle worked hard and my aunt (who also found work) saved and scrimped until they had put aside enough money to make a downpayment on a home about ten miles from my parents house. They still live in that same house, where they raised their children into loving adults and celebrated each subsequent year of their marriage.

When I think about how determined they were to make a life for themselves and their family, I'm filled with admiration and respect for them. Not everyone would have survived the stress and strain, but they certainly did - and they grew a beautiful family in the process.

This year, Uncle Dick and Aunty Margaret celebrated their Fiftieth Wedding Anniversary together. Friends and family gathered to celebrate their marriage - a true partnership. Handsome and I weren't able to attend, but we celebrate them, too. It's quite an accomplishment in this day and age to celebrate fifty years of hard work, compromise, family, commitment and love.

I especially like this photograph (all of the above pictures were shared with me by my aunt). It's their entire family...l-r: Grandson, Aunty Margaret, Son-in-Law, Son, Granddaughter, Uncle Dick and Daughter. My aunt is now retired, but my uncle goes out to work every day, still painting, in his seventies!

When Handsome and I were in Wisconsin in May of this year for my niece's college graduation, we attended her ceremony and picnic with my uncle and aunt. I took this picture of them as we sat across the table from each other. I really like it!

We had a wonderful time catching up and hearing about each others kids (not really kids anymore!) and grandchildren. We saw them again in October, and I know it won't be long until we see them again. Great times spent with family members. Does it get any better than that?

Thank you for sharing another Memory Lane Monday with me. There's only one more left (December 31st). If you have a story you'd like to share on your blog, just come back here and link below.
 

Stitching Queen...

Oh, gosh! That was fun. I had five students for the hand applique' class yesterday and everyone was anxious and ready to learn. Two of them had done machine applique' before, but never hand applique'. One of them joked that her husband said, "You mean, we spent all that money on your big sewing machine, and now you're taking a class to do handwork?" We all giggled at the irony.

Our class began at 10 am and with a half hour off for lunch, we worked right through until 2 pm. The time just flew by for me...and my students did really well.

They took home assignments and we'll get together in two weeks for our second session. I'm really looking forward to it.

In addition to repeating this class in the new year, I'm also going to be teaching "Hand Embroidery" and an ongoing "Paper Piecing The Farmer's Wife". I think I'd better wrap up our blog QAL first!

Now, for the important stuff. This is my BIRTHDAY weekend. You know what that means, right? Wearin' the crown, struttin' around like the Queen of our Castle (Oh, wait. I AM!), and enjoying every single second with Handsome. Monday is the Official Observation Day. I wonder if the Post Office will take a holiday? hee hee

Monday is also Memory Lane Monday, which I'm really happy about. Only two left. Monday and then December 31st. I promise they'll be interesting nostalgic jaunts. I'm going to share stories of my favorite people. See you then!

I'm off to celebrate with my girlfriends in our Saturday morning coffee group. I think I'll pick up cupcakes to share with them. After all...A Birthday Queen always celebrates with CAKE! Ta ta for now...

The Circle Is Unbroken...

I spent Wednesday preparing for a two-part applique' class that I'll be teaching at a local quilt shop on Friday. I've always enjoyed teaching, whether it be counted thread, needlepoint, embroidery, sewing, quilting or even outdoor skills (I know. Totally unrelated to the gentle arts, right?)

Being a teacher was something I always dreamed of as a child, and it seems that my path has followed my dreams for the past forty years or so. I've been blessed to be in a position to always follow my muse.

By the end of the day, I was ready to head to class. I have my outline and hand-outs ready; my finished samples are packed; and have readied my supplies. Kits are being assembled by the shop, so I don't have to concern myself with that. I've already discussed all those little "extras" related to applique' that the shop will want to have on hand, so the students will probably go on a spree after the class, too.

This will be my first teaching experience at this shop, but I've been asked to also teach two new class series there in the new year. I'll be planning my modules for classes in paper piecing (most likely using the Farmer's Wife book), as well as an embroidery class.

I wish Mom (Grace) lived closer. She loves that I'll be teaching classes in the first of the needlearts that she ever taught me. She'd be smiling all through the class if she could be here to go with me. She likes that the circle is unbroken, and she's always so proud of me. She's another blessing in my life. (Thanks, Mom!)

With all the excitement of having Marion and Doug visiting with us over the weekend, I just flat forgot to write my Memory Lane Monday post. So, I'm going to write two in December...the first on Monday, December 3rd, and my last post in my Memory Lane Monday on Monday, December 31st. I hope you'll join me - even sharing a story of your own if you'd like - as we close out the series together.

Memory Lane Monday - Halloweens Past...

This Memory Lane Monday is so close to Halloween that I thought I'd make it the theme for this month. Rather than focus on the spooky and mischievous aspects of the day, I'm going to share a few "dress up" memories. Perhaps they aren't specifically Halloween, but dress up is fun any time of the year, isn't it?

If you were a kid during the Baby Boomer era, you most likely had a cowboy or cowgirl outfit. Handsome and his little brother were no exception. I love this picture and I think they're adorable. Look at those smiles...and the boots!

Before we came to Florida, I was a Sales Director with Mary Kay Cosmetics. The last year I attended Seminar in Dallas, Texas, our party theme was "Fabulous Fifties". You aren't surprised to see that I dressed up as one of the Pink Girls, are you? My girlfriend, Wendi (not pictured) is a hairdresser, so she was all too happy to give me a bouffant hairdo for my long hair. We had a ball.

I looked to find the one photograph that was taken of Handsome and me early in our relationship when we went to a Halloween party. I made my own velvet cat costume, and a long, hooded robe for Handsome. He went as Merlin and I was his black cat. Sorry I couldn't locate the photograph to share with you, but I promise to look more throughout today. If I find it, I'll scan and include it here.

I'll close today with a photograph of Kessie dressed as a witch. I think I may have shared this picture with you before (a long time ago), but I can't share a Halloween memory without including her picture again.

I hope everyone has a fun and safe Halloween this year. I just can't imagine anything more fun than choosing a costume and getting dressed up. Be safe, take care of the children and don't eat too much candy.

Thanks for joining this Memory Lane Monday. If you have a memory to share, please write about it on your blog and link back here (below). If you don't have a blog, go ahead and share a memory in your comment so others can read it.

My "Life of Pi" Quilt...

In 2004, I received this book as a Christmas gift from one of our sons and his family. I opened the cover, and from the very first page I was pulled into this wonderful story. In fact, I enjoyed the book so much that I decided to make a quilt.

Now, understand that I only made my first real quilt in 2002, and I was quite happy to enjoy my first quilt for quite a while before making a second. So, designing, choosing and creating this quilt in 2004 was a real undertaking for  me. I was determined to "make it work", so I individually cut blocks, sewed (and frogged) and kept at it until I finished it.

I had so much fun choosing fabrics that represented images, places, and characters in the book. The book was teeming with images that came to life in my mind: fire coral, a zebra, a tiger, sea turtles and schools of fish. Every single fabric used was significant to the book.

When I was finished all the piecing, I added five photo blocks (and the label) to the quilt before it was machine quilted by a local long-arm quilter, Jane Schurr. The first time I washed my quilt, all the color bled out of the photos and I was the only one who knew what they represented. I could have cried! I've learned so much since then. The only image that stayed true was my quilt label.

The book has recently been made into a movie (which debuts in November), so this week I finally decided to grit my teeth and fix my Pi quilt.

Remember that all of my images were sewn to the quilt before it went to the long-arm, so all of the bobbin threads were between the front fabric and the batting. I also chose to sew them on using an intricate vine pattern, rather than a simple straight stitch, so, yeah...frogging these stitches took me the better part of one and a half days.

After I removed all the faded images, I went back to my printer and generated all new images that are represented in the book, but weren't represented in the fabric - a hyena...

and flying fish..

 ...meerkats, and

...a female orangutan. Of course, the center of my quilt, is the boat with the main character, adrift in a small boat on a vast ocean, which was a scanned image from the book's cover. (You can see it in the third photograph above.)

When my quilt is washed again, I'll treat it first with Retayne© to set the ink in the photo blocks. This isn't going to happen again! I can cuddle under this quilt when the movie hits PayPerView and know that my quilt will now last for a long, long time.

Before I close today, I just want to remind you that next Monday is Memory Lane Monday. I'm going to share images and stories of Halloweens past. I hope you'll come back to join me, and if you have a story to share on your own blog, feel free to link back here so we can read along.

Memory Lane Monday - October...

This time of year is always bittersweet for me. The weather starts to cool off in Florida, and my mind wanders to days spent in the field with our retrievers when we still lived in Wisconsin. I decided to share two particularly fun weekends with you.

For two years in a row, 1988 and 1989, Handsome and I packed up our Golden retriever, Liljegren's MacDuff (aka Duffer) and headed to Cainsville, Missouri for their First (and Second) Annual Pheasant Championship.

When we walked onto the grounds the first year, I carried the cased guns and Handsome held Duff's lead. As we headed to the registration area, I could hear comments from some of the folks saying, "Isn't that great that he gets that little lady to carry his guns for him?" Handsome and I chuckled because they didn't realize I was part of the two gun/one dog team. There were no other women shooting in the competition that year (or the next).

The rules were simple. Two guns, one dog, thirty minutes, six shells per gun. Points for every pheasant shot, points for birds delivered to hand, points for shells not used and points for minutes left under thirty.

The weather was nice. Not hot, but not chilly either. Perfect for a leisurely walk through the field with a talented - and wise - Golden. Duffer never failed.

I shot the first bird he put up, and from there our team brought in four birds, had shells left over and of course, Duff delivered every single bird to hand. We took Third Place our first year...and the spectators were duly impressed.

When we showed up the second year, they all remembered us. Duff was a year older and wise to the program. He almost didn't need us, except he can't shoot. (No thumbs! lol) In 1989, we finished "in the money" with a Second Place win, and let Duff hold the winnings for this photograph.

We had also purchased our first camper for this trip. We had remembered the tiny hotels in the area the first year and decided we'd bring our own accommodations. We paid $5.00 for each night of our stay - with full hook-ups. Ahh, yes. Those were the good old days!

I can't help but get a little tearful when I think back on those days in the field with our beloved retrievers. To watch their tails wag when they found scent and followed a bird trail; their delight at bringing back a shot bird...and that special look they gave us if we missed. It was almost as if they would say, "All that work, and you missed? Really?"

1997 - l-r: Bee, Samantha Rose, Kyra Morgan (in back) Bryn, Bannor and MacDuff.

I can remember the smells of Autumn; the colors of the trees; the rustle of the cover as we moved through it; the smell of fresh pheasant cooking in the pot for dinner. I miss Wisconsin the most this time of year...every year. And, I miss our hunting dogs - each and every one of them - Old Morgan, Bryn, MacDuff, Bee, Major, Samantha Rose, Bannor, Kyra, Morgan and Kes.

Thanks for joining me for another Memory Lane Monday. If you have a story to share, please write about it on your blog and then link back here. The link will stay open for one week.