Ode to Home Economics and Stitching

 

I learned to machine sew in my ninth grade of High School.  I already knew some basics like threading a needle and sewing on a button or stitching together a small tear, but I wanted to learn more.

When it was time to pick our classes going into the ninth grade, I decided to take Home Economics.  I didn’t know what all I would learn but my mom said it would be a good idea for me to learn how to cook and sew.  She didn’t have a lot the time or the patience to teach me.

I loved it!  I learned how to sew, embroidery, cross-stitch, macrame, cook, and a lot of things I would end up needing during my lifetime as a wife and mother. 

I remember when we first learned to sew and how funny it felt sewing on a piece of notebook paper.  Yep, you read that correctly. 

The first thing we learned to do was to put a needle in the sewing machine and Mrs. Bryant, our teacher, had us take out a piece of notebook paper and sew along the lines, up and down the page. 

It was a good lesson though.  It helped us learn how to sew straight lines and the longer we did it the better we became. I remember thinking to myself, “this is so silly,” and I was ready to get to the real thing.  But in time we did get down to the nitty-gritty.

We learned how to lay out a pattern and cut out our first project. The first thing we made was an apron (which we ended up using in our cooking classes).

I still have that little blue gingham apron.  Of course, it no longer fits but hey it’s the memory that counts. I’ll have to find it and post a picture. 

The next thing we made was a tote bag.  I used blue denim and learned to embroider my name on it.  I still have that bag, although my husband absconded with it to use for his shoe polish supplies.  It sits in his closet to this day and has moved from place to place with us for over 39 years.

We learned to cross-stitch little samplers and embroider other things, which I probably still have somewhere (because I’m a sentimentalist and keep all those little things).

I loved Home Economics so much that I ended up taking Home Economics 101, 201, 301, and 401. 

It seems I could not get enough of that class or all the things I was learning.  I can honestly say I have put much of what I learned to good use over the years as a wife and mother.

I’ve had fun making all kinds of things over the years from curtains, bedspreads, dresses, pants, Christmas ornaments, costumes, wall hangings, and much more.  I have cross-stitched, embroidered, and sewn across the country, from Alabama to Alaska.

When traveling to and from Alaska I always had crafty things to do.  Since high school, I learned to crochet, and I keep busy. Even now I’m working on an Afghan while I watch TV with the family.

So, here’s to my Home Economics teacher of four years. 

Thank you, Mrs. Bryant!!