 |
Idle Hands Beget The Devils Work
As a southern girl, sewing was a rite of passage. You never
questioned if you should learn, it was a matter of when. Though I
possess the skill, it was rarely put to use. One day, while
shopping for a quilt, I went back to my roots.
Searching for a quilt with an ethnic feel, I went to several
department stores. I found nothing that appealed to my sense of
color, style and culture - nothing that spoke to my soul. So, I
gave up, went to an African fabric store, selected fabrics, and
made my own.
As a child in rural Alabama, this routine restored memories of
the first quilt I ever made. I was nine and in fourth grade.
Around this time, my grandmother made a quilt for each of her
grandchildren as a Christmas gift. Now, my nephew of nine sleeps
on that same quilt. Tattered and re-stitched in several places,
it remains a familial favorite.
While making my most recent quilt, I rediscovered that
quilting is more than sewing, it's a bond from generation to
generation. Wrapped in my grandmother's gift, I feel her
presence. Hair askew, laughing in her lap, I'm nine again, with
all its incumbent joys.
Cutting and stitching, there is a powerful rebirthing of a
time gone by - the smell of honeysuckle on a fence, the clang of
cow bells heard from the field, watermelon juice circling the
curve of a sticky, ashy elbow.
I am convinced that if today's youth were taught to occupy
their hands with more than buttons on a video game, they would
learn patience, pride, and develop confidence. And just maybe, we
would have fewer troubled youth today. As Grandma used to say,
"Idle hands beget the devil's work."
At nine, you don't relate to that sentiment. But as I
designed, cut, and sewed, the hours zoomed by. I felt as if I was
lost in a good book, only I decided the characters, the plot, the
ending.
Now that Zola (my sewing machine) has unleashed her magical
powers, she refuses to occupy her once familiar place in the
bottom of my old college trunk. She sits atop her new
surroundings proudly, beckoning me, as if to admonish my idle
hands.
There are days when I tell Zola to leave me alone, but in no
time at all the fabrics in all their fanciful colors and patterns
beckon, and we are one again, creating in unison, literally
sewing the seeds of our destiny.
This article courtesy of http://www.timelessquilting.com.
You may freely reprint this article on your website or in your
newsletter provided this courtesy notice and the author name and
URL remain intact.
Yuwanda & Cassandra Black are the owners of EthnicHomeDecor.com. Ethnic
Home Decor offers soft home furnishings with ethnic themes at
affordable prices.
 MORE RESOURCES updated Wed. October / 23 / 2019
|
|
|
Related Hobbies - Crafts articles:
Make Your Own Citronella
Candles
Need a cost effective way to get rid of mosquitoes? Try
making your own citronella candles and eliminate mosquitoes
while providing a romantic, outdoor setting. Making
citronella candles is easy and can cost as little as $0.
Starting Your Own
Scrapbook Club
Before I discovered the world of scrapbooking, I was
inexplicably drawn to my local office supply store. I loved
to stand in an aisle surrounded by the different colors of
copy paper.
When It Comes To RC
Airplanes You Can Choose From Ready to Fly, Almost Ready to
Fly or Scratch Built
Soaring through the air, watching the clouds and the birds
fly by. No, you are not flying your own private plane, but
you are doing the next best thing.
How to Make Gel Candles
- 11 Easy Steps
Do you love burning beautiful, scented candles? And do you
know that you can easily make them yourself? It is exciting
and not at all difficult. Here are 12 easy steps to
creating unique candles that you can burn at home, give as
gifts, or even sell.
Decorative Metal Work
Techniques From The Early 1900s
Today's Metal Craft workers should truly appreciate the
artistic skills & techniques used exclusively by the
highly skilled metal artisans from almost one hundred years
ago. Decorative metalworking is undergoing a new renaissance
as more & more people become involved in hobby metal
craft.
How to Make Quilted
Silver Beads
After making the leaf bead, I was impressed with the detail
made possible by the metal clay. Therefore, I decided to
use the same technique but create a different look.
A Look At Cigar
Humidors
Cigar humidors are storage units designed to hold, preserve
and display a collection of cigars. They come in varying
shapes and sizes, and can typically be custom made to suit
the tastes of the owner.
Rubber Stamping: From
Maya Indians to Scrapbooking
Who would have thought that your scrapbooking and card
making had a connection to the Maya Indians? Rubber
Stamping is certainly one of the fastest growing hobbies
today, and for good reason. With its inexpensive materials
and creative versatility, rubber stamping provides millions
with hours of fun and creativity.
A Brief History Of
Reverse Painting On Glass
Reverse painting on glass has been a form of
art expression since extremely ancient times. It is
difficult to precisely date a number of much more
ancient artworks.
Woodworking Tools: Right
Selection And Care Will Save You Money, Part 5
Woodworking: Tools Of The Trade, Part 5 - Tools For
AssemblyA civilization's maturity and intelligence is
judged, in part, by the diversity and sophistication of its
tools. When it comes to woodworking, the human race is
quite advanced.
Marking Tools and Laser
Marking Machines for Marking on Metals
Marking tools are used for marking metals and non-metal
surfaces. Mark can be a company logo designed with
alphabets, numeric pattern or any graphical shape.
Treasure Hunting - The
Unusual Ways
When you think of treasure hunting, maybe gold coins and
precious stones come to mind, but it doesn't end there. You
can start in your own attic to see what treasures you find.
Family Album In The
Digital Age
Back then it was simple - you take the picture, you print
it and put it in your family album. But now you have a
digital camera.
Preservation and Making
Copies of Your Scrapbook
You put a great deal of time, thought, and effort into your
scrapbook pages. Scrapbooks often are very personalized
creative works that are very meaningful to the creator.
A Playtime Project: The
Memory Quilt
A friend recently suggested a use for my daughter's first
wardrobe, which I've dutifully saved in the back of the
closet, and lugged on two long distance relocations. Turns
out she's done the same thing with her daughter's first
clothes, and we've decided to make memory quilts.
Make A Stunning Dried
Hydrangea Wreath
Dried hydrangea wreaths are so beautiful and versatile in a
home, and a lot of fun to make as well. You can either
purchase already dried hydrangea flowers from your local
craft store, or you can dry your own.
Essentials of Genealogy
- Getting Started with Your Family Tree
Since genealogy is my hobby, my profession, and my passion,
many people ask me how to get started. What are the
essentials to doing a family search? Here are some tips
that should help you discover your family under the best
possible conditions.
4 Fun Ways to Display
Photos
From baby pictures to vacation pictures, images of family
and friends are treasures that are kept for a lifetime.
They make great gifts and add cheer and warmth to the
interiors of our homes.
Jewelry Making:
Measuring for Bracelets Without a Tape
Your cousin's friend in Saskatchewan has asked you to
design a custom bracelet for her. You have all the beads,
materials, and tools, but you're stumped about the length.
Making a Living Making
Soap-Questions to Ask Before You Begin
Soap making can be a wonderful hobby but if you've ever
thought of turning your hobby into a business you know how
overwhelming the idea can be. Here are some questions to
help you think through your decision:*How much of a
business do you want to be? Do you really want to this to
be a full-time job? Or would you rather just make a couple
hundred bars a year for your church fundraiser? Your answer
to this question will determine your next steps.
|
|
