Laurajbr

I have been trying to come up with a better sewing room set up, something with enough flat space to spread out, and keep baskets underneath like my mom did. So I asked my mom. She has trouble with her memory now, and talking about recent things can frustrate her, but we had a great conversation about this. We laughed and laughed, so I thought I would share it.

When I was a little girl my mom sewed on the dining table in our basement. This was the 70s, so think wood panel rumpus room with macrame owls, drip wax wine bottle candle holders.

When she quilted she would open the table, but not put in the leaves. She would crawl under the table and come up in the opening that this created. She sat on an old chair that she sawed the back off to make it into a stool. (She let me help sand it smooth and paint it to make it pretty. My mom's fearlessness about using power tools led to my sister and me being first girls Jr. High wood shop, and mom had to fight to get them to let us into that class.)

I was debating if yoga had given me enough flexibility to try this approach. She pointed out that back then, all phones had cords. Every time she was really getting going on sewing, the phone would ring, she would duck down, crawl out from under the table, run upstairs, through the kitchen to the phone. Her 70s version of an exercise class!

I am going to have to stick with sewing on my little table, which I purchased used, and cut down and rebuilt to hold my machine. Thanks mom, the power tools still make the job easier.

notmorecraft

Your mum sounds like quite a character, I was one of then first girls in my school to do woodworking too, explains why I have a DI Dont'r for a husband and I'm the one who owns the power tools. I hope you enjoy many more memories like this with her.

NJ Quilter

Mine was the first girls class of woodshop in HS as well. Our home ec teacher was a nasty old witch. I convinced the girls to take woodshop so as to not have to deal with her. They were all in. The school, of course, could not be bested so their answer was to then require the boys to take home ec! This was in 1968 in rural MD. Fun times.

lots2do

I can just see her ducking down and back up. What a wonderful story. If you have any old photos of that space, you could put the story with them in a memory page or collage to treasure.

Laurajbr

Sadly we were not well off, and photos were not wasted on anything but line ups of the entire family. If you look at our photo albums we seem a very dire group.
I would give anything for a photo of my mom sewing. Ah well I have great memories of an undocumented life. The reverse would be sad, so I think I got the better hand dealt to me!

Jackie Spencer

Love your story! What would we do without our memories!!

Onetomatoplant

Loved the imagery of your 70s basement! I was transported to our 70s basement (which sounds like the exact same room). Your mom sounds like a hoot - what a great memory to share!

Leslie333

Your description makes it easy to visualize the basement and your mom's set up...and phone answering. What a fun story!

tessagin

I used to go visit my girlfriend down the street. They live in a tiny house. 6 kids 2 bedrooms, one bath. She used to use the little toy table her dad made for her and her sisters and for their dolls. That was her table to sew on. would sometimes sit cross legged and use her knee on the foot controller. She eventually moved to the kitchen table. She taught her sisters to sew. She had one brother and he also sewed. I can still see her sitting at that little table. Her brother took shop and made her a sewing table. Last I knew she still had both when I saw her few years ago.

sparkys_mom

I love your attitude.