Wednesday Whatabouts -- Sew Blue

I love these dresses. They're simple, and just right.

Today I hate myself for not really knowing how to sew. These dresses are just a sad reminder. Sure, I have a Singer, but most of the time it just sits in my craft room behind all of my card making and scrapbooking materials. It’s sad really. You would think a Southern girl would know how to sew, but I don’t. My husband is from the country and had to take home economics in high school, so he knows a little bit about sewing, and both of us come from long lines of professional seamstresses. Back in the day, both of my grandmothers made clothes, bedding, curtains etc. and sold them to help pay the bills while staying home with their children. I know that my husband’s Mema did the same. My Mom learned to sew at an early age, and she hated it, so she hasn’t sewn in my lifetime. By the time I became really interested, both of my grandmothers couldn’t see well enough to teach me. My Dad’s mom knows how much I cherish hand-made quilts and blankets and has given me many that she or my great-grandmother made. I’ve tried to ask questions over the years about how to make certain things, and she starts throwing out all of these words that I don’t have the slightest clue what they mean. So, I have given up on her helping me out. I read the instructions to my Singer several years ago, and I can do a basic stitch to do things like throw pillows, but that’s it. If someone gave me a pattern, I wouldn’t know what to do with it. The worst part of it is… I LOATHE sewing. I’m pretty sure it’s because I was never taught the right techniques for cutting and pinning. I hate that part so much and I’m so bad at it that by the time I get ready to actually sew, I’m violent. I suddenly become the 3 year old you see in the mall having a temper tantrum. I throw things, scream made up obscenities, and then once I’m “calm”, I mutter how much I hate what I’m doing under my breath. I’m pretty sure if anyone were around, I’d kick them. Yes. It’s really that bad. All of that having been said, I would love to know how to sew… the correct way. Every time I go shopping I think about how much money I could save if I could just make whatever I’m currently drooling over. I could have three times the clothes I have now, and all of my bedrooms would have different bedding that I could change out at different times during the year. I would have all sorts of beautiful pillows and curtains. (I’m sort of sounding like Ralphie when he’s imagining how glorious his life would be with the Red Rider BB Gun.) So maybe I wouldn’t be that extravagant, but I would have a lot more. I would find a way to justify it in the family budget. So much for that. I’m too chicken to take a class because I’ve heard that the “beginner” classes aren’t really for people who are completely new to sewing. Instead, I will just window shop, and continue to be jealous of those who sew.