Skirting Issues

Tuesday, April 07, 2020

The huge setting moon is round and bright, the weather is getting warmer. Maybe spring is arriving.

I hemmed a skirt that’s been coming together over the last month, tried it on, and it fits! While working on this skirt, I’ve wondered where to wear it. It’s a sewing project that arose from playing with possibilities for staying busy and with purpose. The ensuring weeks have been endless days of going nowhere. My sewing slam should have been to create sweats.

It’s spring and I’m in an optimistic mind frame. On the good side, sewing again after many years has forced me to re-learn how to work a sewing machine. This has future possibilities. My current machine, an inexpensive Brother model from Costco, is modern and computerized. It’s been a bummer to figure out threading and stitches.

I remember those big old black-bodied Singers, they were easy. One could arrange, almost blindfolded, a top thread and fill a bobbin. Then easily pop that bobbin into its space under the needle. The Singer allowed for sewing thick fabrics, and of course required learning, but a project moved along without having to interpret instructions originating from China and symbols related to computerized stitches.

The one item I’m sorry for not having taken from my sister’s home while giving it a final cleaning was her old post-treadle-model Singer, a heavy-duty machine. My sister, a do-it-yourselfer, was a whiz. On that machine she sewed fabrics of all sorts, from clothing materials to upholstery leathers. I decided to walk away from it and now could kick myself.

Here we are, in a coronavirus period that’s brought days of going nowhere, self-isolating, mask-wearing. These times force us to continue thinking creatively. So, I’m still thinking about my pretty skirt. I’ll wear it while out feeding horses, goats, and chickens, and accessorize it with a pair of sturdy cowboy boots.

Dear Friends: These days need our slowing to “one-step-at-a-time”, no need to rush. Diana