a first

This post is dedicated to Kelly Keller, Allyson Nagle, Joanna McMahan, and all the other women who have sewed for me or created things out of fabric and thread. You are an inspiration.

For years, I have been in a prison of my own making. "I don't sew," I would state confidently, and then scurry off to a tailor for all my hemming needs. This became more and more inconvenient when I left Dubai/Kenya and tailoring was no longer as accessible or affordable. I began to wonder at all the things I could create if I could operate a sewing machine . . .

Moving into this last house sealed the deal. More specifically, walking into the kitchen and spotting this:

Dishes in the sink! Ack! And below that . . . the under-sink curtain. In red plaid.

This just had to go. And in its place, something had to be created. I actually tried the no-sew method first. I searched many stores for kitchen towels that I could clip and hang, similar to my clipped-up napkins I used as curtains in Kijabe. I've been dealing with this lack of sewing thing for years . . . But after my latest visit to Anthropologie in the city failed to produce some towels I could use, I decided I had to learn to make my own. The red had to go.

My friend Melissa dropped off her sewing machine earlier this week and gave me a quick lesson on how to load the thread and sew a seam. Friday a trip to Jo Ann fabrics provided everything I needed - a couple yards of fabric and an "I'm a newbie" sewing-kit. I rolled up my sleeves and jumped in.

My first seam was glorious! Straight, flat, and satisfying.

It went downhill from there, as I struggled to make three panels all the same length. Apparently when you don't cut in a straight line, it's hard to sew in a straight line, as evidenced by this pitiful seam . . .

It took me three hours, or the entire nap-time of a tired two-year-old, and one of the panels may or may not be upside-down. But the feeling of triumph at actually having made something! I was so proud.

If only those dishes were out of the sink . . .