Just today I sent this sleeper off for Alastair. It’s really nothing special, but the truth of the matter is, not everything we sew is. Sometimes, it’s just what I call utility sewing, a mere notch above mending on the sewing fun chart. But even utility sewing is always done with love.
Alastair has outgrown most of his sleepers and I had this blank one in my overflowing drawer of Things to Embroider Someday. So yesterday seemed to be the day.
The design itself is from Anita Goodesign’s very sweet Baby Lullaby collection. The designs are beautifully shown in muted beige and blue, plaids and prints. But Alastair’s mother really likes bright colors and has declared, since before he was born, that babies do too. So bright it is for this little boy.
His family includes two cats, neither of whom spends any discretionary time with Alastair. Cats run really fast, and babies crawl relatively slowly. So I thought he might like the idea of a captive, slumbering cat on his sleeper.
I would really like to do some fun, “special” sewing this weekend. I’ve finished mending a pair of my pilot son’s pants–he frequently rips out the crotch when he climbs up onto the wing of his airplane. Then I mended the hole in my husband’s jacket pocket. A young friend has started his own home maintenance company so I’ve embroidered two shirts for him with his new company name. Laurel’s Snow White dress (earlier altered from a size 8 to a size 3) had to be lengthened and let out to a size 5 for a Renaissance Fair. My daughter-in-law has asked me to alter her new dress, so that sits atop my to-do stack.
Those matching Thanksgiving outfits for all three grandchildren are crying to be sewn up. But with a crowd coming to watch the Gator/SC Gamecock football game today, it’s looking unlikely that I will meet my earlier goal to finish the Turkey Day set by Monday.
For football fans, there is comfort in knowing that there is always next year. For sewing fans–or fanatics–there is always next week. I may be looking at some very long nights for the next two weeks. But I don’t begrudge or regret the time spent on utility sewing. I am grateful every day and every night for all the loved ones I have to sew for.
