Stitching Together Generations

My mother was always very crafty and in her spare time she would always be sewing, quilting, painting ceramics, rug hooking, needlepoint or knitting, I guess that is where I got my creative influence. The most rewarding, I thought, was sewing because you would get to wear what you sewed for the world to see. But mostly it was because she would sew me outfits too. I would dance around all day in my new outfit made just for me! I would especially love it when she would sew us matching outfits!

We would spend hours looking through patterns at the local fabric store. Then she would teach me how to sew and make an outfit. Some of my happiest memories are of us sewing together. Sadly, I have since lost that skill and I only sew straight lines now.

When I had my kids, I had high hopes of maybe sewing baby clothes for them. So I asked my mom for a new sewing machine for Christmas one year. She, of course, got me a fancy one that seemed very complicated. I never had the time or patience to sew clothing with little ones running around. However, whenever she would come and visit she would sew curtains and pillows for the kids..

For years the sewing machine collected dust until one day, while we were doing a market for Rarer, I realized we needed something to soften the display (this was when Rarer was only selling furniture). So I started sewing pillows because it’s only straight lines.

Then when Rarer rebranded and launched the Zodiac Collection, dish towels were as easy project because, again, they are just straight lines! So as I was sewing sample dish towels, I noticed that my sewing machine had a bunch of other stitches that looked fun to try. So I tested them all. I realize these stitches use up a lot more thread and take longer to sew but they help create such a fun decorative edge. Along with the multi-colored thread, I thought it would be worth the time to add a little flair to the dish towels!