13 January 2013

. . . distractions . . .

. . . my fresh new sewing room 
won't always look so fresh 
and/or so new . . .


. . . that's because 
there are two tables 
worth of stuff 
that i cleaned off the counters 
before the extreme makeover 
happened . . .
. . . and i am determined 
to avoid such pileups
in the future . . .
. . . but that means 
i've got to clean out 
all those cupboards 
to make room for the stuff 
i really want to keep . . .


. . . and cleaning out cupboards 
can be a sentimental journey . . .
. . . especially when 
i rediscover the pleating machine 
i used to put to really good use . . .
. . . back in the day . . .
. . . this handy gadget 
is used to mark tiny even pleats 
across a width of fabric 
in preparation 
for the art of english smocking . . .

{this one isn't mine, but mine does look just like this}

. . . something of which i used to do 
quite a bit . . .
. . . when i was dressing 
three little girls . . .
. . . it seems, though, 
that not all projects started
ever got finished . . .
. . . maybe because 
what in the world was i thinking? . ..
. . . turtles in baseball caps 
with roses in their teeth? . . .
{in fairness, i'm sure i was attracted to the pink and green color scheme. 
it was my favorite. i mean look at that cute fabric.}


. . . but this one is so pretty . . . 
. . . i remember it was supposed
 to be for amber . . .
. . . it's a little girl's size six . . . 


. . . amber is turning thirty-three 
this year . . .
. . . that window of opportunity
may have closed by now . . .
. . . it's still hard to let it go . . .


4 comments:

Carol said...

How about finishing it for a granddaughter?

life in red shoes said...

I absolutely love smocking, never learned it myself. I worked in a lovely childrens boutique for several years and would buy the darling dresses for my little girls.
The turtles, curious, but so cute :)

Nedra said...

What a talent to be able to smock. and I personally love the turtles. So hard to purge out our old hobbies. I gave stacks of things away before we moved.

Sherri said...

I am going through the same thing...seriously...UFO's from over 20 years ago!!!