At Christmas I miss my Grandmother a lot. She was bossy and opinionated. But she loved us and she could make anything. Just from seeing a picture of it. As far as I know, she always worked in a dress factory. I do know she worked in a dress factory while I was growing up until she retired. Her last position there was as a pattern maker.
As an aside, during my whole life, my mom was a dressmaker and she worked out of our home. She made a ton of wedding dresses – just from magazine pictures.
Anyway, back to Grammy.
She taught me to crochet and knit and paint ceramics. She always wanted me to learn to quilt but quilting scared me. When you make a dress, everything has a place. The sleeve goes in the armhole and the collar goes at the neck. In quilting, I couldn’t figure out how you would know where to put all of the pieces that looked the same.
After I moved from Pennsylvania to Michigan in 1999 I took some quilting classes. When I came home and showed her the quilts I had made she was very dissappointed I had taken so long to get on the quilt bandwagon. But she was so proud and impressed when I learned to spin and started using my own yarn.
Grammy always told me that when you die the only thing you take with me is what you learn so it’s important to learn all you can. She continued to try things and learn new stuff into her 80’s.
I don’t have very many things that she made but when I was putting away the Christmas decorations I came across this little doll. Of course she didn’t make the doll but she did make the little dress. The dress and bonnet are crocheted right onto the doll. I remember watching her do it with some tiny crochet thread and a tiny crochet hook.
I have no idea how she did it. I was in awe. She gave me the doll and I’ve had her ever since.
This is the other thing I have that she made.
This was a styrofoam egg that she crocheted over. Again, I have no idea how it is done but I’ll keep it forever. Maybe someday I’ll learn how to do it.
My Grammy died 7 years ago on the day before my birthday. She was 85. She was always such a big part of my life and I expect I’ll always miss her and her bossy pants ways. I’m glad I have this tiny doll and Easter Egg from her.
Boulder Colorado
I found out yesterday that there are spots available in my Boulder Colorado classes. You don’t have to be a member of the Handweaver’s Guild to go! The classes are being held at Shuttles Spindles and Skeins. Here’s the link to register. http://www.handweaversofboulder.org/explore/forms/HGBBethSmithRegistration.pdf
Please come!
