She Stitched, She Waited

At just 17 years of age, Dora knew her own mind. She would marry Charles Gilbert just as soon as he returned from Europe from that "war to end all wars."

While waiting for Charles' return, Dora stitched and painted. She threaded needles and with each stitch new dreams were born. She applied brown fabric paint, just a little, to the house, blushing a little as she imagined her life there with Charles. She envisioned herself standing at the door, welcoming him home from a day's work with a soft kiss. She brushed on green paint to represent grass, carefully feathering out the edges, and thought of the garden she would create together with Charles. She took special care with the flag, precisely applying paint and thread to honour both Canada and the Home Country, England. With joy she stitched the bright gold tassel on the flag pole, dreaming of the golden future ahead.

Great was her joy on the day of Charles' return in 1917. Such bliss to have his arms once more around her, to feel, under the rough wool army coat, his thin frame. Oh, she was shocked and horrified to learn that he had lost a leg in the fighting and for this reason had been sent home early. But what did a leg matter? She loved him even more and would marry him as soon as decently possible.

"No," said her father. "No daughter of mine will marry a cripple." 

Her brothers added their objections. No amount of pleading on Dora's part could sway them. No reassurances from Charles that he would be able to provide for Dora altered their opinion.

Desolate, Dora said farewell to Charles. They would not marry. She laid her stitchery, intended for a cushion, in the bottom of her trunk, covered in darkness as black as her future now seemed. It lay there for more than 70 years.

Ten years later, Dora married another man, Harold Orr, my husband's grandfather, also against the wishes of her family because he was a labourer and not a land owner. But then, at the age of 27, she was of legal age to do as she pleased. Dora showed the stitchery to her daughter-in-law, my mother-in-law, in 1987, just eleven months before Dora died. When Ruth asked her why she had never finished the cushion, Dora nodded towards the other room where her husband sat, and said, "I never made it for him." 

Ruth framed the piece and wrote the story on the back. I took the (poor) photo this summer, while visiting in Alberta. Ruth had the piece evaluated. The expert told her that many similar pieces were stitched and painted during the First World War, but that few survived the years as they had been used as originally intended, as cushion covers. 

edited to add in 2021 - This stitched piece now hangs in the guest room. I see it everyday from the hallway. I was able to do a little research on Charles and discovered that he became a baker and moved to Ontario, married and raised a family. I thought it appropriate to re-publish this post as Remembrance Day (November 11) approaches, and we remember those who fought for the freedoms we enjoy today. 

Mug Rug Swap

Kim, from Camp and Cottage Living, organized a fun mug rug swap recently. Kim and I were partners and we both received our swap packages in the mail on the same day. Canada Post is consistent going from east to west and west to east!

Isn't that little reindeer the cutest thing? I'll enjoy using the mug rug and thinking of Kim as I drink my cocoa. But that's not all - she included a fun ornament and a jingly pin in the package....and

A tea towel trimmed to match the mug rug, personalized for my own kitchen. 

You'll notice that I didn't iron my tea towel before hanging it up. Do you ever iron tea towels? I learned to iron on tea towels, pillow cases and my father's handkerchiefs. Nice, flat things. There are a few tea towels I still iron, but not most of them. Same with pillowcases. How about you? 

And here's the mug rug that went east. After I looked at the photo on my computer, I realized that I hadn't stitched the cardinal's eye, so I did that before popping it into the mail.

Thanks, Kim, for organizing such a fun swap!

I'm sitting by the fire writing this blog, drinking my tea. As soon as I click "publish" I'll be up and running. Decorating the house (at least a beginning), cleaning, and preparing for a dinner party this evening are what's on my list. On my husband's list is settling on light fixtures and tile for the bathrooms. So I'll make room for that in my day, too.  

Frosty outdoors, Cozy indoors

It's my first week-day morning at home in at least a month. The 8:30 a.m. class I've been teaching has been turned over to the regular teacher and I'm back to my usual afternoons. It's delightful. 

Yesterday morning was frosty. Before dashing to school, I zipped out to the garden with my camera. Rosebuds shiver, but still stand straight and pretty. 

The fig leaves have all dropped. The late crop of tiny figs is still on the tree, but they will soon fall, too, unable to flourish in these conditions. We rarely get to enjoy the second crop here.

I mentioned bathroom renos in my last post. We still haven't chosen the tile, but I did get something done. I had two of my photos printed onto canvas. These are 9 inch canvases because our ensuite is very small, and they fit perfectly. The shadows are awful, but that's the weather these days. When the work is complete, I'll show before and after photos of the rooms. But don't hold your breath. It might be awhile. I'm just glad everything is functional. 

I've been puttering away at some Christmas projects. These silk, beaded hearts are one of them. I have so many sewing supplies and am trying to use what I have. The beads and silk are leftovers from weddings. The hardest part of this project was threading the beading needle. Wow! That eye seems to have shrunk since the last time I beaded! All that's left is attaching thread loops for hangers. For that I can use a regular needle.

There are other projects in the works. I'm enjoying the handwork while sitting by a cozy fire with a cup of tea beside me. Time to get back to the stitching.

Are you working on any seasonal projects? 

Five on Friday

1.  A recent project - linen coasters with hexagons for a gift. These were fun to make. Hexies can be addicting. I have a growing basket of them that will one day, I hope, turn into a quilt or coverlet. The handwork is good for evenings, and I thought that they would be good to take on the boat, should I feel like doing something other than gazing at the scenery. 

2. Little Miss S celebrated her second birthday last weekend. Grandpa had fun blowing bubbles with her. Eagles eyes might note the life jacket sitting on the chair behind her. 

3. In preparation for future boat trips, Grandpa wanted the Little Misses to try on their life jackets. Miss A agreed with alacrity and then wouldn't take it off. She wore it throughout the party. Miss S on the other hand, wouldn't hear of trying it on. Perhaps she didn't want to cover up her party dress. 

4.  My last post referred to school and hospital. On Thursday I assisted other teachers in chaperoning Grade 10 students to the P.A.R.T.Y. program at Victoria General. PARTY stands for Prevent Alcohol and Risk-related Trauma in Youth. In small groups we made the rounds through the hospital, from a crashed car from a real incident to the ER trauma room where a fellow classmate with simulated injuries lay on a bed, blood and bandages on the floor, tubes everywhere, to the morgue and former autopsy room, to rehabilitation where several brain injured victims told their stories, and more. It was graphic and rather hard-hitting. We hope it saves lives and health as students think now about how to handle risky behaviour.

 

5.  My bedside posy. A white Bolero rose with a few sprigs of lavender and some lemon balm. Subtly fragrant, it will surely be a great inducement to sweet dreams. The idea came from Jooles of Sew Sweet Violet who is sharing a monthly bedside posy. I do love flowers in the bedroom. And the living room and kitchen and dining room. But I don't want to denude my rosebushes entirely. 

Plans for the weekend? We hope to take the family boating on Sunday for Father's Day, so I'm planning a picnic. How about you?

A Full Moon, Stitching, and a Blog Reader

A couple of years ago I felted a number of wool sweaters. Each felted differently. I used much of the felt for various projects, but still had some left over. I've been making baby blocks from 4 inch squares. They are soft and squishy and just the thing for little hands to clutch. On each block I've appliqued a felt shape or letter. Then the blocks are assembled with blanket stitching. I completed the top one yesterday - as part of a gift for a new little one. 

These come together quickly and are easy enough to do while watching television. We're fond of the BBC dramas that come on to our public broadcasting network - shows like Midsomer Murders, Inspector Lewis, Doc Martin, Poirot, and others. We thoroughly enjoy watching without any commercials.

Tim and I often walk in the evenings. I could go by myself during the day, and often do, but it's enjoyable to walk together, too, and this way, Tim gets a little exercise, too. The full moon last night shone so round and bright, but all I had was my phone with me. Do you see the hawk on top of the dead tree? Seconds after I took the photo he took off and swooped over the bog, intent on some prey. 

I was unhappy when I heard of the intent of Google to shut down Google Reader. Although I always click into the blogs I read for the full experience, I found Reader very useful for letting me know when my favourite blogs had new posts. For the past couple of weeks I've been using both Bloglovin and Feedly. 

Feedly is winning. Do you use a Reader? Have you decided on which one you'll be using?

In other news, I had a haircut today. My hair is quite wavy/curly, with a lot of volume. Hairdressers always flatten and straighten it excessively. Tim walked in this evening, talking about something and stopped short when he saw me. The severe look is not what he's used to. My daughter told me I looked sophisticated. I feel like a pinhead. Tomorrow, all will be well after I do my own hair.

Some Down Time

I've not been teaching this week and have instead, used my time to run errands, work on some projects at home and stay satisfyingly busy. 

But just now, as I write, I'm tucked up on the couch with a heating pad at my back and warm rice bag on my shoulder. The skies outside are grey with the promise of rain. Wind is also in the forecast. A cup of tea to hand, and a square of dark chocolate add to the coziness. 

A physiotherapy treatment at noon eased my back pain but I'm always a little wiped out afterwards. No injury, just a fragile back that needs care once in awhile, due to mild scoliosis. A lot of walking and stretching exercises keep me mobile, but when the back spasms come, often in the night, a visit to my wonderful physiotherapist helps put me to rights.

Sarah Richardson, of HGTV fame (and a Canadian, to boot) posted this lovely video on her Facebook page. It's less than three minutes long. If you enjoy handwork, you'll love this. The accompanying music is lovely, too. I'm sure you'll find yourself relaxing as you watch.

 

Stitch by Stitch

Yesterday was a holiday, in honour of Remembrance Day. We spent a quiet day at home, mostly, other than a quick walk around Thetis Lake mid-afternoon. And it was delightful. Copious amounts of tea were consumed, laced with honey and lemon. 

I'm making some blank journals for an art show in a few weeks. Usually Tim drills the holes in the covers for me. Yesterday he taught me how to do it. Easy peasy. And quiet. I don't like really loud power tools. Not at all. So now these journals are ready to be stitched.
 

Much of my day was spent in my sewing room, pressing my foot pedal and seeing the satisfaction of stitches lining up along the seams of a variety of projects. And in the evening, some hand-stitching while sitting in a pool of light in the living room.

Since I was not called in to teach, today is much of the same, with a shopping trip thrown in this afternoon. A good way to spend a misty, quiet November day. A good way to get some projects finished.

And how are you spending your day?

Evening Stitches

Evenings around here have been spent doing some sewing. There's a shower next week for the newest member of our family who is due to arrive in about 6 weeks or so. I've been keeping most of my handwork off the blog, but couldn't resist showing you last night's effort.

I think this little piggy is adorable. I made her from a felted wool sweater found in a thrift shop from Martha Stewart's pattern, slightly adapted.

Things have been very quiet around here today - literally, as I've lost my voice. I don't feel too bad, but talking is frustrating. I hope my voice returns soon.