One of the most wonderful things about having more stitching in my que than any human being could stitch in a lifetime is that I don’t have to stitch what I don’t want to.  I have no problem turning down invitations to stitch.  Now, I stitch what I want for whom I want and I am so aware that I find myself in a very rarified position.

Typically, the things that I most enjoy are thing that are heavily weighted with sentimentality, mine or somebody else’s.   Whether I am carefully laundering and repairing a 125-year-old heirloom, French handsewn christening gown, or constructing Christmas stockings in the style made meaningful by a long dead family matriarch, or embroidering initials on a treasured handkerchief the common ‘thread’ is that those items are infused with precious sentimentality.

Other than that, the things I stitch or make are things that I am curious about. 

‘How can I give these strange but lovely half dolls a new, updated look?’

‘Can I figure out how to make Bread & Butter pickles that taste like my grandmother’s?’

‘Can I take a pascal lamb painted behind the alter of my church and turn it into a piece of embroidery?’

‘How hard can it be to make a doll’s house with a mansard roof?’

Each project is equal part curiosity and engineering.  And, is tackled with love under the watchful eyes of my herd of Westies.