I'm a Sewist!

In a comment on Facebook today, I said I'm a "sewist." An old friend asked what a sewist is and where the term came from—she had never heard it before.

I've read it many times, as I read lots of sewing articles and blogs. No, it's not in the dictionary. I found this blog post where the writer had researched the term. The author, Ardeana Hamlin, said, "So call me seamstress, call me tailor, call me stitcher, call me needleworker, but please don’t call me 'sewist.'"

For many years I said I was an avid sewer, but that sounds like I'm a place where shit falls. And I prefer not to think of myself that way.

In the last five years of my first marriage, I made all my husband's suits. But I'm not a tailor. (In fact, after our divorce, he began having all his suits tailor-made. Hmmm.)

I do many sorts of things besides sewing seams. I don't want to be called a seamstress.

"Stitcher", to me, sounds like someone who holds a single threaded needle in her hand and runs it around and through fabric. I use both machine and hand techniques. I love doing handwork—sewing down bindings by hand with immaculate little stitches—but I don't think I'm a stitcher.

And "needleworker" sounds more like someone who does needlepoint or counted cross-stitch. I've done and enjoyed both those art/craft forms, but I don't think I'm a needleworker.

I love working with all sorts of fabrics. I love the whole process, from choosing the pattern to pairing it with the perfect fabric to struggling to determine the proper fit for a new pattern to sewing on the buttons and tying the final knot in the thread. I love wearing the new garment out to dinner the night after I finish it. I love seeing my granddaughter pull her favorite grandma-sewn nightgown out of her drawer and crawling into bed wearing it. I love hanging the new curtains or pleated shades at a window in my lovingly decorated home. And I love cleaning out my stash to share with other like-minded people. I am a sewist. We are sewists.

As I mentioned in yesterday's post, one of the things I routinely thank my mother for is signing me up for a Singer sewing class out on West Colonial Drive a thousand years ago (well, 1963). She enjoyed sewing and wisely wanted to pass that on to me. I'm so glad.

So don't call me any of those terms that Ardeana Hamlin prefers. Bully for her, but call me a sewist.

Two Words

I like doing things for people. And I shun praise, notoriety and general pedestal-standing. My sons will quickly tell you that I like being in the background. I like being in the chorus and providing support to my children. I like being an accompanist rather than a soloist. And I like the feeling of sharing things with people whom I believe will appreciate them.

My cyber-fiber-friend Lynne, a truly amazing woman, wrote a blog post today that resonated with me. The buyer of the cups wisely knew she'd appreciate these cups more than those young women, then she generously shared them with the people who meant the most to her.

Edit: The blog where Lynne wrote her post no longer exists. I have no idea what that was all about. Sorry.

Lynne is someone I love sharing my things with, because she, in turn, shares them with others. She uses my neglected fabric to make quilts for kids in foster care; she uses my abandoned jewelry-making supplies to foster artistic desires in women who are beating substance addiction. Lynne is truly a loaves-and-fishes kinda gal. She impacts scores of people, who will in turn impact generations to come. To me, upon receiving my packages, she says Thank You and warms my heart.

Long-time visitors to this site know that I'm not close to my mother. Saying "I love you" is grudgingly done in response to her infrequent "I love you"s. I feel no love for her. But I am grateful. Whenever we spend time together, I tell her thank you—thank you for taking me to piano lessons, for signing me up for my first Singer sewing class, for making my recital dresses, for attending all those interminable piano recitals, for schlepping me here and there without complaint or comment.

It costs me nothing. And it makes a big difference. At least I think it does.

Generations of Comfort

In 1981, I became a noncustodial mother. That label is hard to say, hard to bear. When you state that fact, people look at you and you sense they're thinking, "What egregious thing did you do to lose your kids?" My egregious act was to divorce a husband who said one thing and did something else, and who worked very hard during the divorce process and afterwards to hurt me (in return, I suppose, for how I had hurt him during the marriage).

Eighteen months post-divorce, I moved from the Dallas/Fort Worth area to Washington, DC, to marry a fellow IBMer whom I had met through work. I went from seeing my sons every other weekend and all summer to only seeing them in the summers and on alternate holidays. You take what you can get.

To set the scene for today's post: At a baby shower given by our church while I was pregnant with Tyler (son #2), I received a beautiful bunting (like a sack you slip the baby into, if you're unfamiliar with the term) that unzipped to make a blanket. The blanket was white flannel on the inside and a silky white printed with yellow ducks on the outside. Tyler had stomach problems and a lot of discomfort as an infant, and that blanket became a source of great comfort to him. After we moved to Ft. Worth, when he was about 4, the blanket came in contact with an oil-fueled space heater and one end of the silky fabric melted. I took the blanket apart and remade it into a pillow, which he then loved for several years to come until it totally wore out and disintegrated.

On one of his visits to Washington shortly after my relocation, Tyler asked me if I could make him another blanket like the one he no longer had. A mother doesn't refuse or ignore such a request!! Before his next visit, I went to the local fabric store and got flannel for the front, nylon tricot for the back, and quilt batting for the inside. I made a blanket the size of a twin bed top, and he used it on every Washington stay. When he turned 14 and I finally regained custody and he went away to arts high school, the blanket was tucked away with extra linens where it stayed for many years and marriages to come.

Fast forward to 2001. Beautiful grandson Boston was born. We were all living in Tucson. I was not working and spent lots and lots of quality time with Boston. We bonded early and strong. During one of my Scottsdale Nordstrom shopping trips before he was born, I got him a Barefoot Dreams Receiving Blanket. These blankets, which are now very hard to find, was flannel on one side and silky on the other. Oh, did he fall in love with this blanket! I also got him the travel size and his parents dared not get into the car without packing the travel blanket.

Note: I'm reading this and editing on Jun 29, 2026. The website has changed at the blanky store, so I fixed the link. They no longer sell those particular blankets, but here are some others that would make the perfect gift for a wee one in your life. You're welcome.

Two years later, my life situation changed and I bought a house a mile away from Boston and his parents and, now, baby sister Ridley. During that move, I uncovered Tyler's 30-year-old race car blanket. We had lots of sleepovers, and I would cover Boston with his daddy's old blanket.

Then the parents had an epiphany about their lifestyle, and prepared to move back to Youngstown. Sleepovers became more frequent as the babies and I steeled ourselves for the separation. About three weeks before they were to leave, Boston—now five years old—asked, "Grandma, can I take Daddy's blanket with me to Ohio?" Of course, I said yes. I'm not very good at denying these darlings anything.

Then he told me he wanted me to make a label to put on the blanket. When I asked him, what he wanted it to say, he dictated:

Boston's Sleepover with Grandma
This was Daddy's blanket when he was a little boy.

If you look at the photo above, you'll see that's exactly what I did.

Fast forward again. It's 2012. He's been in his new home and life in Youngstown for five years. He [still] sleeps with this blanket (and several others!) every night. But this is the one that always goes next to his body. He loves the silky fabric, just like his daddy did—so much so that he's worn a hole in it and the fabric has ripped.

Once again, Grandma comes to the rescue. Last night when I babysat, the blanket transferred hands, with its owner's hopes that it would return quickly. While waiting for the parents to get home from a movie, I cybersearched and cybershopped to order white nylon tricot yardage. While I wait for the fabric to arrive, I'll remove the torn backing, carefully remove and preserve the label, then replace the backing and the label.

And again be a hero to my offspring and off-offspring. Aren't I lucky?!

I'll finish with a little family lore. Tyler's blanket was referred to as his blanket. To Jaci, a blanket was a woobie - which is, I guess, a midwestern term. When Boston started talking, he translated "woobie" into ah-boo, which we wrote as "obu". He also translated "mama" into "rara", and—even today—she is known as Rara. And handsome, smart, and talented 10yo Boston will ask, at bedtime, "Rara, where's my obu?"

Makes you wonder what his kids will call their blankies, huh?

Thinking about gifting. Or, For Doug.

The adults in the Jazzman's family draw names every Thanksgiving for Christmas gifting. Financial limits are set, and the holiday becomes manageable in this economically horrific era.

One niece's significant other drew my name. And, to prevent trauma, I thought instead of just double-checking my Amazon wish list, I'd stop to think about the things I enjoy.

Many holiday gifters wrinkle their noses at gift cards. Not I!!! Whoever invented gift cards should receive the Nobel Peace Prize. With gift cards, everybody is happy. (Except those Scrooges who think they're not a real gift.)

So here's my list, which readers other than Doug might find interesting if they are interested in any of the pastimes I'm into. I hope you'll find some new treasure trove to feed your passion.

Doug - A gift card to any of these sites would be greatly welcomed (she wrote, smiling).
Or you can just visit my Amazon wish list.

Knitting
Webs, America's Yarn Store
Jimmy Beans Wool
Yarn Paradise, my guilty getaway whenever I'm in Asheville (6/30/26 edit: no longer in business)

Sewing
Waechter's Fine Fabrics, my other Asheville guilty getaway (6/30/26 edit: very sadly, no longer in business
Marcy Tilton's Art Barn Marcy is one of my teachers/mentors, and she carries some fabulous fabric and silk screens that I love to use.
Thai Silks, in Los Altos, CA, carries the most affordable and highest quality silks I've ever found.

Fabric Dyeing
Pro Chemical and Dye carries the dyes I use on silks and wools.
And Dharma Trading carries the dyes as well as scarves and silks.

Beading & Jewelry Making
Rings & Things - I sat next to one of their employees in a class at Bead Fest Philly, and this store carries everything one could imagine for beading.

That's probably enough to confuse Doug and amuse other readers.

Ho, ho, ho.

Me, as Activist

Oh, stop laughing! I am well aware that I'm probably the most non-confrontational person you've ever known. But Jo-Ann's has pushed me over the edge, and I'm fighting back the only way I can.

A while back I discovered the iPhone app for Jo-Ann's. I was thrilled. The app would present the Jo-Ann's coupons to me and let me choose which ones I wanted to use and save them to my phone. Then, when checking out at Jo-Ann's, I could just show the cashier the code, which would be entered into the register and I'd get the discount on my purchase.

<Rant On>
Let me just say that Jo-Ann's coupons are frequently useless or good only for a small amount. The coupons state that they cannot be used on sale merchandise, so Jo-Ann's keeps most everything on sale, even for just 50 cents off, so the coupons are no good. It's a crock, really! Why can't all retailers just set a reasonable price and quit spending money on all the stupid coupons?!
<Rant Off>

I'm on Jo-Ann's hardcopy mail list, and their stinking flyers arrive in my mailbox once or twice a week. I don't care about the flyer itself, I just want the coupon. And I was so thrilled to find the app so I could get off their stinking mail list. I never can remember to take the flyers with me, or I'll pop in on a whim and not have a coupon with me.

So the app meant I didn't have to worry about that.

A flyer arrived last week offering 40% off a purchase, and I needed a hem marker, which cost about $35.00. When I was near Jo-Ann's running errands, I ran in, grabbed the only hem marker that was on the shelf, and proceeded to check-out. I pulled up the app and looked at the coupons, and the 40%-off coupon wasn't there!!!

There was a coupon for $5 off a purchase over $25. I opened it, and the dates on it said it was good from (for example) 9/15/2010-9/15/2011. Yea, I could use it. So I clicked on the coupon to bring it to the page where the cashier could see the code, and the date on it said it was good from 9/15/2011-9/15/2011. Huh?! (The date was the day after I was in the store.) I showed the cashier that discrepancy, but she said the only date that mattered was the one displayed on the final screen.

So I sighed and grumbled and paid the full price for the notion and went home. The next day I found an excuse to be in that area again (about 12 miles away from my home), grabbed the 40%-off coupon, took the notion back, returned it, then rebought it with the coupon.

And made a major life-changing resolution. I'm never going into Jo-Ann's again. NEVER.

Here are the issues:

• They have several sets of coupons;


• they insist on killing lots of trees to send these flyers to my physical mailbox;


• the crap they advertise in the flyers is of no interest to me, only the coupons;


• they have paid to have an app created, which includes coupons and the ability to save the coupons;


• they have the ability to include all coupons in the app, and refuse to do so.

I'm sick of their crap and I'm not going to stand for it any more.

The pattern companies and patternreview.com offer pattern sales that are better than Jo-Ann's coupons. I can shop on their sites and will have the pattern in three days or less.

I almost never buy fabric at Jo-Ann's anyway, as I prefer natural fabrics, and the only natural fabrics they offer are quilting cottons (that are, as a rule, of lower quality than the quilting cottons offered at Sew Much More, a mile down the street.

The primary reason I go to Jo-Ann's is for notions — zippers, thread, fasteners, and so on. But there are other suppliers. There's a dry cleaner's supply that offers zippers at ridiculously low prices. I can wait a few days, and pay $.32 for a zipper instead of $2.39. And Nancy's Notions has every other notion I could want, at competitive prices, and with selection bar none.

For years my sons and I talked about "delayed gratification" versus "instant gratification". Put off buying something that you don't really need today. It's all about planning ahead.

So if I know I have a project ahead, I simply need to plan a few days ahead, order my supplies from an online source, and to hell with the insane marketing practices of Jo-Ann's. I'm not going to play their silly game any more.

Now I will admit that my activistic decision flies in the face of my other resolution: buy local. When I can't buy local, I try to buy at the local bricks-and-mortar of a national chain. In this way, I'm supporting the job of a local worker.

But I feel I can no longer support Jo-Ann's or the local workers in their stores. Would I go back? Would their putting all available coupons on my app cause me to renege and shop at Jo-Ann's again? I don't know.

Probably, by the time they get around to wising up about the amount of money they're wasting on ink and paper, I'll be sewing in my columbarium chamber!

I rarely rant. I rarely speak out about things that really upset me, as I'm always afraid of hurting someone's feelings. But this time, Jo-Ann's has gone too far for me.

One less place I have to waste gas driving to.

Like a Madwoman!

I'm preparing for a little trip. (Sssh, I'm not supposed to talk about it online, as my guy is a little paranoid about someone reading my status and breaking into our house. Or something. Whatever. Just don't tell him I talked about our trip. Please?)

I've been sewing up a storm. New brown slacks from Marcy Tilton's Vogue 8712, which I've taken apart and resewn about four times to get them just right. The fabric is a fabulous lycra/cotton woven that feels like a knit. It came from Marcy's site. Then I started raiding my overabundant stash looking for T-shirts to go with the pants. I had purchased the Textile Studio Basic Top pattern about seven years ago and never sewn it. That's definitely my loss - this pattern is simply brilliant! I can sew it up almost faster than I can cut it out. I made it first in a hot pink midweight cotton/lycra knit, with jewel neck and cap sleeves. These sleeves are perfect, the jewel neck is not too tight, and the shirt fits like it was made for me. Oh, it was! Then I made the other view that's longer and closer-fitting out of a beautiful pale teal and brown graphic print rayon knit I picked up in Waechter's two trips-to-Asheville ago. I didn't have enough fabric to make the sleeves full-length, so just cut them off with as much fabric as I had. They're about 3/4 length, and the fit is fabulous!

Now you might remember that I told you about a pattern I was going to make for the wedding we attended a couple of weeks ago. I picked up a cotton jersey at Virginia Marti Fabrics in Cleveland for a first run of the dress so I could perfect the fit. If I liked the dress, I was going to get some silk jersey to make for the wedding. I HATED the dress! It made me look like I was seven months pregnant! Last week I picked up the almost complete dress and dumped it in the trash can. Then I got to feeling guilty, cut it apart, and made the third T-shirt from the Basic Top pattern. I cut the neck deeper and put a 1" self-binding around the neck and elbow-length sleeves (again, using all the fabric I have). The stretch on this knit was less than the rayon knit, so I gave it a scant 1/4" seam on the sides, and it's perfect.

I'm redoing the waist on the pants this morning (after repairing a couple of the Jazzman's pants for the trip) and then will cut out one more T from a rayon jersey graphic print in orange and brown that was given to me as a thank you gift about 8 years ago.

As much as I'm trying to destash, the quality and volume in my stash has been a gift to me in preparing for this trip.

So why am I telling you all of this? Because I'm driving myself crazy! I can't sleep at night for reviewing all the things I need/want to do before I leave. I won't take a laptop, so I have to detail for my boss all the tasks that must be done between my departure and return. I have most of my clothes laid out, but must get them in the suitcase, after I determine whether I have a suitable suitcase to take! Have to call Hertz to check on international insurance. Have to call bank to tell them I'll be using credit cards in Europe. Have to run to vet to get more cat food. And so on.

Have to stop obsessively sewing so I can get everything done!!! And sleep at night!

When I return, I'm making changes in the blog. I'll tell you about my trip last weekend with my D.C. friend, Risa, to BeadFest Philadelphia. I found some real focus during that time, and think I know the direction I want to go next. I think those of you who know me well or have sewn with me in the past will start applauding when I make the big reveal.

In the meantime, you can read from the archive to keep yourselves amused, and you can drink an Irish whiskey (hint, hint) or something.

See you in a while . . .

And How Do You Use Clothesline?

This weekend's decrease-the-stash project began when I unearthed three pieces of fabric that I had hand-painted about ten years ago. I found a coordinating polka dot print stashed away that I loved with the three hand-paints. Then I started wrapping and stitching.

This is my third effort with this technique. Effort number one used up a yard-and-a-half total of two companion fabrics that have been sitting around for about eight years. The result was an oval basket with handles on each end that is being used to hold the current knitting project.

Number two was a sort of plate that was discussed here. I used up about a half-yard of fabric and—after I was very unhappy with the result—a bottle of dried-up fabric paint to which I kept adding water. The final result is in constant use.

Effort number three is a bowl. It's almost big enough for a very large cat to sleep in.

Almost.



His butt hangs over one end and his head the other, but he's happy. I finished the basket yesterday afternoon and took the pictures immediately afterward. This afternoon I glanced into the library and he was tucked into the basket again. I think he likes it.

And I like having four fewer pieces of fabric in my stash! Only about ten thousand to go!

[Not so] Random Acts of Kindness

I have a friend, Ypsi, whom I've mentioned here before. I met her, oddly enough, in the play space at the mall when I first arrived in Youngstown. Her daughter and my grandson hit it off, and she was over-the-top gracious to me, inviting me to join her book group and her knitting group. She became the first friend I made on my own in Y'town and, as such, is treasured.

She's been oohing and aahing over my mesh tote bags since she first saw one. Lately she's been thinking aloud that she wanted one to use as a knitting bag, and started proposing a swap—hand-knitted socks for a new knitting bag. Last fall while exploring and petting my stash of quilting-quality cottons, I found the perfect cat print for her, a fellow cat-lady. I posted a note on Facebook asking if she wanted to make good on that trade. At about the same time, her father became very ill in Texas and she had to make two quick trips down, preparing for his passing. Her mind was preoccupied and she didn't see my post. But our fellow knitting-group and book-group friend Nesha—who is a fellow native Orlandoan and works at the Montessori school where she sees my grandchildren every day—saw my post and jumped right in there.

Would I consider making the bag for her to gift to Ypsi, in exchange for a pair of socks that she had knit? Of course I would. Hand-knit socks from a friend are hand-knit socks from a friend, regardless of the identify of the friend. Right?

Last week I finally finished the bag and dropped it off at the school on Tuesday morning, where I picked up my new socks.

I'm betting you want the details. Cool cats, in purples and blues and a great coffee tone. Coordinating hand-paint-looking coffee, with some purples thrown in. The inside pocket is a double pocket—black denim for the front and back, purple cotton in the middle. Both pockets are zippered. The lower pocket has a lampwork bead and seed beads wire-wrapped onto the pull. The upper pocket has the most fab cat-head ceramic bead made by a clay artisan in Tucson. I picked it up at the Whole Bead Show in Tucson about ten years ago. To the right of the pocket(s) is a hanging hook to hold keys or whatever. And there's another separate bag sized to tuck in several circular knitting needles or credit cards and spare yarn money or …. From its zipper hangs a black tassel. Très chic! The big bag closes with an elasticized band and a big purple button, embellished with a couple of small beads. The bag base is in the coffee fabric and both bags and all their cotton pockets and embellishments are treated with Scotchgard™ to prevent stains.

The most fun of the entire transaction happened last week. As I was nearing the end of the project, I posted a photo of the bag on Facebook to alert Nesha to the fact that it was almost done. Ypsi saw it and immediately commented "WANT!". I smiled to myself, excited for how excited she would be when she realized it was hers. On Wednesday, Nesha delivered the bag to Ypsi, who immediately went back to my Facebook page and posted "GOT!!!!!!". I felt giddy with the joy of doing something nice for someone nice (meaning both Ypsi and Nesha!).

And now you really, really want to see the socks, don't you?

Here you go:

Thanks, Nesha!

---

Postscript Thoughts: I've been trying to come up with a header image for my Etsy page. I really like my white-painted-brick basement wall, which you see behind the bag in the first image, above. Wouldn't it be cool to use a picture of that as the background, with Jan Crews Designs superimposed? I don't have a niche, so it's kind of hard to use sewing or quilting or beading or knitting for the image. Wouldn't that wall work?

Hot Off the Sewing Machine

Yes, you're right. I've been absent lately.

My brain is overloaded with the anticipation of changes—job changes, money changes, life changes. (Relax, no changes re family or Significant Other.) As things settle down and become clearer, I'll tell you more. But as I'm weighing and balancing and considering all these changes, I haven't had much to say in this public forum.

So I'll share what's been going on in my sewing room.

My 84yo house shares many features with other houses of its vintage. One of these is an incinerator in the basement, in the room I have chosen to be my sewing room. The incinerator was vented out the basement wall. When I got my lovely new water heater six weeks ago, we asked the brilliant HandymanTom to seal off that vent in preparation for removing the incinerator. Two weeks ago I spent several hours moving the incinerator out of the sewing room and cleaning up 84 years of soot and dust and crud that had accumulated around it. Once I could see the floor again, I moved fabric containers into that space and made more room/less clutter.

I'm far from having a space that makes sense and fosters creativity, but I feel great encouragement about the space after all this work.

The first product of the new space is a bag for tomorrow night's gala benefiting the Montessori School of the Mahoning Valley. The bag will be offered in their "Chinese auction" and is, I believe, the nicest of these mesh bags I've ever made.

Instead of leaving the mesh showing on the outside, I have completely enclosed it. So you get a bag that looks like it's just crafted of beautiful, high-quality cottons, but that has the durability and stability of the vinyl-coated polyester mesh.




The main fabric is an African print in amber, burgundy, rust, green and teal. I bought the fabric at G Street Fabrics in 1996 to make a quilt for the third-floor guest room in my Washington home. I have several coordinating teal prints that I used to accent the main fabric. The bag front features an iPhone-sized pocket and an antique mother-of-pearl carved button. (Click on the pics to see a larger version.)




There's an interior zippered pocket that's padded with quilt batting, so it feels much more substantial than a single layer of cotton fabric. The zipper pull? African beads that I got at the Tucson Gem & Mineral Show about 8 years ago. They've been sitting in my bead stash, waiting for just such an opportunity as this. They're wire-wrapped with a sterling headpin onto a sterling clasp, hooked to the zipper pull.

The bag has been treated with Scotchgard™ to resist stains. The 18" handles are comfortable to hold, or will easily slip over one's shoulder for carrying. The bag folds flat to tuck in the bottom of a suitcase.

Yes, I am proud of my work! I'm hopeful that the bag's beauty will cause people to spend more on raffle tickets than they had planned, thus bringing in more money for our beloved Montessori School of the Mahoning Valley.

Weekend Activities

We are a family filled with a passion for the arts, both performing and visual, and with myriad artistic interests. We play musical instruments, sing, write, take pictures, and make things with our hands—all sorts of things in all kinds of mediums. We are artists. We create.

These passions have extended to the third generation. Ridley can hardly sit still without having a drawing pad and colored pencil in her hand. In her house and mine, she knows right where to go to find all her art supplies. And Boston is very interested in my fabric and buttons and thread.

I had the babes overnight on Friday, which became sewing and dyeing time. Boston has been wanting me to make him a snake that is hollow inside so he can feed it things. Friday night we ran to Jo-Ann's after supper at Panera and picked out some fleece and some silky lining. Once home, he decided the shape of the snake's head, and we cut and sewed. He had told me the snake would have a zippered mouth and a red tongue that rolled up into the mouth when you wanted to zip the zipper.

Two or three times on Friday night, I threaded my Bernina 1630 and each time said, "Over this, around that, up the right, down the left . . ." On Saturday morning while I was fixing breakfast, he decided he wanted a different color thread, so sat down and successfully threaded the machine. By himself. At eight-and-a-half years of age. With no help from me.

Anyone who sews will tell you that threading the machine is difficult. You must make sure you pass the thread through each of the eight or so nooks and crannies or the machine just won't sew. Well, he got all the nooks, crannies, and the tiny little eye in the needle. I was astonished!

Ridley spent time looking at all my bottles of fiber reactive dye, and chose "antique gold" (although she kept calling it an-tee-cue) and "lilac". Then we dug a silk scarf out of my stash and gave it a base bath of gold, then folded and clamped and finished our mini-shibori experiment with lilac. She said, "It's going to be cold today. I think I'll wear it to my soccer game to stay warm." I had to explain that a silk scarf is something you wear for dress-up, not for warmth.

I love that my grandkids think that I, with a needle and thread, can do everything there is to do. And I especially love that they want to learn to do everything I do.

I said to Ridley, "Do you know how you are like Grandma? Because we both have lots of interests and not enough time." She smiled.