A Few Sewing Themed Gifts I Have Received

Although she claims she has ben traumatized for life by having to stand in line with me in fabric stores as I waited  to have my fabric cut ,my daughter, MissMeliss has sent me some thoughtful sewing related gifts  (as have friends).

 And now that I live in Mexico, and she lives in the great shopping mall in the sky: the US of A, she is willing to venture into fabric stores on my behalf. On a trip to Minnesota, she willingly went to an Amish quilt store and purchased 15 fat quarters for me. They are on their way south of the border as we speak.

 During her high school years , and after she married and lived nearby, we would have coffee dates.  If I mentioned I had to stop at the fabric store “just for a minute” she would groan and say:  ” I’ll wait in the car.” Or she would ask:
“Are you  going to have fabric cut?” If I wasn’t buying fabric, she would deign to come in.

If I was going to be  buying fabric to make something for her, then her whole attitude was cheerful, helpful and excited. Well, she was a teenager.

 Once when  there was a big  thread sale, I had two coupons for thread. The coupon clearly said “Limited to one coupon per customer.” I handed her a coupon and some money and asked her to get in line behind me. “That’s not honest, you are the customer, not me!”, she so aptly pointed out. I do not remember my response, but she did agree to stand in line and buy the thread. There was something about new purple shoes as the trade-off.  I am not 100% sure on that, she was 15 at the time. She is 39 right now. (Funny how she is now OLDER than me. I am a young 35).

Hey so I am a fabric/sewingaholic, I am not proud of the depths I will stoop to to get a litle extra thread.

Sew back to the point!

 The sewing related gifts:

 The golden stork embroidery scissors were a  gift years ago when she was in high school. I talked about them for  weeks, and that Mother’s Day, she presented me with them. I love them for their beauty, and because she gave them to me. They are dull now and cannot be sharpened, but they will always be with me.

 And the dress form:

 We spent Christmas 2001 in France. We had agreed no gifts since we were having a BIG gif:t three weeks in France.

 On Christmas morning I presented her with a purple pashmimi I bought in the market in Perpignon, she presentd me with the miniature dress form.

The patchwork pillow:

 I was visiting  Missmeliss in Dallas and she gave me a lovley set of  nine fish patches from Bali. She also gave me a copy of the quilt show brochure which I have kept. She actually went to a Quilt show. She has overcome her youthful trauma. I made the pillow and it is in my living room.

The cigar box full of buttons:

 On my 50th birthday in 2000 ( Ok so I am not 35) MissMeliss threw a black-tie party for me. Everyone was asked to bring a sewing button.
 Some people got confused and brought political buttons. And my friend Kiki Yamamoto walked in with this vintage cigar box with Japanese 
hand-printing on it, and said ” I could not pick just one.” So he handed over his mother’s button box! It still makes me tear up>

The antique bobbin:

 Another of Miss Meliss’s gifts, she knows I love old sewing implements. And I sold most of what I had when I came to Mexico.

The little hatbox:
 A gift from my friend Andrea.

And the seal skin thimble:

 My sister Patricia was the writer in residence in Sitka Alaska, she found the thimble and knew I would love it.
 I actually used it when I was sewing all the buttons on the yellow sundress.

The rubber stamp:

 Another birthday present from MissMeliss: if you look closely you will see the seamstress stitching her finger and her tongue is out .The blue language is implied, though I never curse while sewing , really. When I am concentrating, I stick out my tongue, or so I am told.
MissMeliss had actually made  a set of business cards for me using two rubber stamps one with the sewist and one with my name. I cherished them for years.

The Button Book:

 She used it for quotes on the photo montage at my 50th birthday party.
 And then she gave it to me.

 I wonder now that she is older, if I kept talking about the Janome 11000 she’ll get it for me for Christmas?

I do know that she is willing to brave the fabric stores again, I sent her my wishlist of fabrics and she is going to get me a bunch!

How blessed to have a daughter…with a paycheck!

And here is a beach picture:

Me after a hard day of shell collecting!