Mom

This is a dress my mother made for me when I was about 2 years old. It is one of many. She didn't own a sewing machine at the time, so it is made entirely by hand--tiny stitches, french seams and hand embroidery. Here are Mom and me on Easter Sunday. I am wearing the dress.
My mother always said she didn't enjoy sewing. (even after she got a sewing machine) She found it "nerve-wracking." But she sewed so many clothes for me and my sister, including costumes and formal dresses, and each was beautifully made and fit perfectly. I think her perfectionist personality prevented her from really enjoying sewing. She fretted over minor irregularities and ripped out stitches and redid them when they didn't meet her high standards. And she was never completely satisfied with her work. She was very hard on herself, but not on anyone else. When my sister and I began to sew our own clothes she was a patient and encouraging teacher and she loved everything we ever made. She was my biggest supporter as a quilter and artist.

Mom died seven years ago this week. It is hard to believe she has been gone that long because she is so present in my thoughts, especially as I cut and sew and design my work. I wish she had enjoyed doing it as much as I do, but I remember, with great pleasure, how much she enjoyed seeing what I did.