Sewing with Molly

14. Learn to use a sewing machine. 2/26/12

My list is getting shorter and shorter!

When I was little my dad gave my mom a sewing machine for Christmas.  More than a decade later the sewing machine was still  in its original packaging and being sold at our garage sale.  My mom has many talents and her thoughtful handwritten notes, hilarious song parodies and authentic gift wrapping all prove her creativity.  She keeps a lovely, clean and uncluttered house and has devoted her live to loving and caring for her family.  That being said, she wouldn’t disagree with with the following statements: my mom doesn’t like to cook.  My mom doesn’t knit or crochet or scrapbook. My mom would NEVER use a sewing machine.  This unused Christmas gift has become a long running joke in the Winter household.  My poor father can’t give a large wrapped box to my mom for Christmas without someone saying, “is it another sewing machine?”  In short, my mom has taught me many things in life, but using a sewing machine is not one of them.

Molly and her dog, Lucy, live above me and have been my neighbors since I moved into this building in 2007.  I’m sure most dog owners will agree that you tend to befriend the other dog owners in the building.  Essie and I quickly befriended Molly and Lucy and such excitements as “Dogs and Beer” (aka – happy hour in the back while the dogs play) were born.  When I learned that Molly had a sewing machine and was super crafty I mentioned item number 14 on my list and asked if she’d be willing to teach me.  In true Molly fashion, she responded with the above invitation tucked into the pile of mail she kept for me while I was in Mexico.  Adorable.

I had two sewing lessons with Molly and she had a project all ready for me.  I made an apron.  I got to pick the colors and since we started our lessons on the Sunday after the Super Bowl and my Sundays now feel empty without football, I chose to make my apron in Chicago Bears colors.  First Molly taught me all of the parts of the sewing machine and took it apart only to ask me to put it back together.  We did some sample stitches on scrap fabric before we got to work on the apron.

I quickly learned that using a sewing machine is a lot of cutting and pinning and ironing.  Prep work.  Molly showed me tricks along the way and by the end I was (almost) flying solo.

Now I’m all ready to bake cookies!  (And by that, I mean slicing from those dough rolls because the whole not cooking thing is something I did inherit from my mom.)