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I have an ongoing class that I teach in paper piecing at Crazy Quilters.
Some students are "regulars", who have already learned the technique, but they
return twice a month to pick up new foundations from me. They have become
friends, and they stay to sew up a block or two while we visit with each other.
Others are new students who have come to learn how to do paper piecing. I
teach them how to think in mirror-image and shepherd them through their first
block to be sure they understand the technique. Then, I supervise as they tackle
one on their own. I always enjoy seeing the "light go on", and knowing that they
now have a new skill to add to their quilting/sewing/needlework repertoire.
Yesterday was such a day. My newest student was dropped off by her husband
with her sewing machine and a great deal of enthusiasm. She was ready to learn.
She set up her antique Singer 221, while I set up a cutting station for her and
we began our session. I explained how to place and sew the fabrics to the
paper foundation and then my student commenced to piece her block. When
she was ready to sew her first seam, she took it to the flatbed of her 221 and
I was immediately taken by the sweet "ticka ticka ticka ticka ticka" of her
machine. We all actually talked about her little Singer's's quaint sounds.
I told her they brought to mind our life in farm country in Wisconsin.
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One of the local farmers had an old two-cylinder John Deere tractor. They
were nicknamed "Poppin' Johnnies" because of their distinctive sound. I well
remember warm fall days with all our doors and windows open, the sounds of
that old tractor lifting on the breezes that cooled our home. The slow, steady
"chocka...chocka...chocka...", rhymthically moving across the hillside behind
our woods. I'd always stop what I was doing, just to listen to that old tractor.
Hearing the sound my student's 221 yesterday brought those memories back
to life. In a day when many of us use computerized sewing machines, with
all their useful bells and whistles, it was so nice to see that sturdy, old machine
still serving a seamstress eager to learn. It created perfect, tiny stitches on
her reproduction fabric - and for just a moment - it became a time machine,
transporting all of us to years gone by. It was a lovely day indeed.
