Generation Stitch

A couple of weeks ago I had the incredible pleasure of having both my daughters home for a weekend. The younger one had to head out on Sunday afternoon, but Maggie stayed until Wednesday. We had the most wonderful, leisurely time: the weather was gorgeous and we walked to Home Ec and RSVP, had a ladies lunch, and bought a chocolate bar to share in the park. And we sewed!

Maggie's been taking classes at Stitch Lab in Austin and has really taken off on her sewing—she's done some bags and a skirt, but the accomplishment I'm most impressed by is a headboard she made for her guest room for which she had to piece three sections of a chevron-print material. The seams match perfectly.

She has several friends who are in a family way, and for one of them she wanted to make a playmat from a pattern she'd found in Lotta Jansdotter's Simple Sewing. We modified the pattern a bit to make it a little larger. In addition, rather than the recommended stitching in the ditch, Maggie went for echo-stitching each rectangle (and learned just how fabulous a walking foot is for quilting). The fabrics were stash-busters from my bulging closet...so happy they got used.

We spent Tuesday back-to-back at our respective sewing machines, catching up and listening to tunes. Most satisfying aspect: the entire playmat was completed and Maggie went home with a gift for her friend. Best part: spending time with my sweet girl.