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| Heartagram cable-knit scarf |
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| Child's fish hat |
Growing
up learning how to make things was important in my family. At a very
early age, I was taught to sew, cross-stitch, quilt, paint, tat (Not tattooing
but the making of fine lace), knit, crochet, and so on. I enjoyed the
creativity of it all. As a child, I learned how rewarding it could be to
successfully be able to make something, rather than go buy it. If we ran
out of ideas, a thing of rare occasion, but if we did happen to run out of
ideas, we would visit craft fairs and such for inspiration, and soon, we would
be well on our way to learning how to make something new.
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| Fairy Tale finger puppets |
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| Halloween finger puppets |
I
was in middle school, around the age of 13 or 14, when I first realized that no
one my age knew how to do these things, nor did they want to know. When a
classmate rather snottily asked me where I found time to do all that crafty
stuff, that her life was way too busy for such nonsense, then I understood that
being able to make things and taking the time to actually do that was a rare
thing in this day and time.
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| Cozy Ruffled Afghan |
Around
high school, I discovered through my friends that they wanted to participate in
the items I was making, so I began to show whoever whatever they wanted to
learn. In college, I made a little extra money by fixing torn/ripped
seams of clothing owned by other girls that lived in my dorm. My thread-filled
knowledge turned into a hot commodity. Now, I have inadvertently created
a knitting/crocheting circle. Over time, I have taught or inspired most
of my girlfriends to pick up yarn in their spare time, and somehow, they have
all, like me, stuck with it.
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| Child's penguin hat |
Our
knitting adventures are so common, I am always shocked when someone approaches
me after they have purchased something or they are about to purchase something
from my etsy shop SoftWarmandCosy to ask me where I find the time to be so
creative. Almost once a week, someone stops me to talk about knitting or
crocheting. Their eyes glaze over as they tell me about a grandmother or
an aunt who used to crochet blankets, or how they would watch their elder
relative sit and crochet when they were small children. Then, they shake
themselves out of their little daydream with the admission that they simply
could never get the hang of it.
This
always makes me glad that my own mother and grandmothers had the forethought to
share with me their knowledge of how to make handcrafted works. Being
creative was held as highly important a necessity as reading books. I am
also happy to be able to share it with my friends, and I love that I now have
the opportunity to make hand-knitted items for my friends who could never get
the hang of it.
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| Baby Blanket |
Do you know these sayings?
ReplyDelete“A stitch in time prevents nine?” or how about “Idle hands are the devil’s playground?” or my personal favorite, with some of the verses extricated which prove unnecessary to what I am trying to say in this comment…Proverbs 31:10-31
King James Version (KJV)
10 Who can find a virtuous woman? for her price is far above rubies.
13 She seeketh wool, and flax, and worketh willingly with her hands.
14 She is like the merchants' ships; she bringeth her food from afar.
15 She riseth also while it is yet night, and giveth meat to her household, and a portion to her maidens.
16 She considereth a field, and buyeth it: with the fruit of her hands she planteth a vineyard.
17 She girdeth her loins with strength, and strengtheneth her arms.
18 She perceiveth that her merchandise is good: her candle goeth not out by night.
19 She layeth her hands to the spindle, and her hands hold the distaff.
20 She stretcheth out her hand to the poor; yea, she reacheth forth her hands to the needy.
21 She is not afraid of the snow for her household: for all her household are clothed with scarlet.
22 She maketh herself coverings of tapestry; her clothing is silk and purple.
24 She maketh fine linen, and selleth it; and delivereth girdles unto the merchant.
25 Strength and honour are her clothing; and she shall rejoice in time to come.
26 She openeth her mouth with wisdom; and in her tongue is the law of kindness.
27 She looketh well to the ways of her household, and eateth not the bread of idleness.
28 Her children arise up, and call her blessed31 Give her of the fruit of her hands; and let her own works praise her in the gates.
If you actually took the time to read all this from Proverbs, then you can see that this particular Biblical lady is ever so busy. She also gets quite a lot done. She is depended on, revered, and it seems to me, pretty darn good at time management. I like that she has been recycling waaaay before that was even in vogue, saving pieces of this and that to turn them into that and this.
“Making do”, “getting by” were not terms I grew up with, we just automatically took ahold of whatever we had, and turned it into something useful, pretty, interesting or thoughtfully created a unique gift. That is the thinking of the women whom I grew up around. And all that thinking over the years turned me into a very creative person.
In the South, from whence I hail, it was more than just “a good thing” to know how to do a great many things, from cooking, cleaning, mending, planting, canning, ironing, and on and on in what is nowadays called the Home Arts. Not only are they necessary things to do, but they improve quality of life. Yes, it does take time to run and cut fresh flowers for the table, or make whipped crème from scratch, or write by hand a little note to a friend instead of sending a quicker email…..but, don’t you want to have a life filled with these special nuances? My mother taught me that I do. She was right. Every bit of skill and knowledge learned from everything you pick up and do with your own two hands will come in handy sooner or later.
What I find the most interesting is how, as women ..or men….we each have our own skill sets, the things we offer to our loved ones and to life. Somehow, they mingle with the things that others are doing, and help us to be well-rounded and surrounded by beauty and joy. So, there is one more thing I just have to learn how to do. My grandmother and my mother both have a gift something I have never been brave enough to try (would you try if you had two very fine artists in YOUR family??). One day, I will learn to paint. Mine may be a bit more like Bob Ross than Caravaggio.. Just some “Happy little trees, and clouds and honey bees.” Who knows? Could be a hidden skill or just more profit for Hobby Lobby. But, still, I am going to try.
I love all of your crochet artwork. I am esp fond of the 'Heartagram' scarf. ;-)
ReplyDeleteElizabella: I agree. I also find that making something or knowing how do something, etc...gives you a greater appreciation of those items in general. When you have taken the time to create something, you have more respect for all things made.
ReplyDeleteCin: Twas one of a kind. Although, I feel that fingerless gloves with a similar pattern could be in my near (before it gets cold) future. Maybe before the first hint of autumn in September...