A Colorful Thread: October 2022
Weaving together my life as a maker and other spheres of life.
Best of Stitched in Color {October}
On My Mind
Experimenting:: with waxed canvas fabric. So far, so good. My regular needle is up to the task, probably thanks to the Juki 2010Q - it’s such a strong, sturdy sewing machine. I do find it distracting how the presser foot makes such marks on the fabric. I wonder if I will want to purposely “distress” it after I’m done so that there are marks more evenly all over?
Reading:: The Light in Hidden Places by Sharon Cameron. This historical fiction novel is based on a true story. It is set during World War II and told from the perspective of a young Polish girl who makes a series of small, incremental choices that add up to absolute heroism. The number of close-calls she experiences is incredible, even more so since the book is based on a her written recollections. It’s very well written.
Celebrating:: a beautiful work-in-progress from the Wild Oranges sew-along. Katie of @Wander_in_the_PNW has created a melody of purples, magenta and gray. Rather than working in quadrants, she’s put everything up on her design wall and is appliquéing the peels in small batches. What a treat!
Anticipating:: celebrating Thanksgiving. Since we moved to The Netherlands we’ve been celebrating Thanksgiving with friends. I think of it as a sort of Friendsgiving to express our thanks to the people who have welcomed us into their lives. Thanksgiving is a nice holiday to introduce to others, since it’s about gratitude, togetherness and - - - food! Last year would have been our first big gathering, but corona got in the way. This year it looks like we’ll have a good crowd. Fingers crossed!
In October Aria moved into a student house in Erlangen, Germany, where she’ll be studying physics in the years to come. What a strange thing it is to help one’s child move out! The time was ripe and the reasons were all good, but still it felt so unnatural. Of course, I had a few rather teary days, you understand.
We borrowed a friends car to drive Aria’s belongings into Germany. After unpacking her room and doing some good ol’ Ikea sprucing and organizing, she said it felt like her own space. Then, we spent a day in nearby Nuremberg together.
I am glad to report that Aria is adjusting well to college life, enjoying her independence and the academics. Elora snapped this photo of the three of us in Aria’s new room, before we said goodbye and drove back to The Netherlands. It’s a time capsule of this rite of passage.
The days and the moments are just as fleeting as everyone says. Isn’t it interesting that we look forward in anticipation to the next good thing, but ironically we also look back and see that the old, regular “nows” were something very special. Enjoy your “now” today.
xoxo,
Rachel
