I had a mother that sewed for me.
For as long as I can remember she made my clothes.
For many years after I was grown and married, I longed to go to the fabric stores in early fall to pick out material and patterns for new school clothes.
It was part of the rhythm of my life.
She made clothes for my dolls when I was little, and fancy party dresses for my ballroom dance classes.
Every day of the last week of high school, I came home to find a new dress laying on my bed. If I admired a blouse in Seventeen magazine, she'd make it for me, without a pattern. And just like Scarlett, she once made a dress for me out of the
drapes curtains!
When she was just 22 years old, she left Oklahoma, along with her best friend, and headed to California. They aimed at Hollywood, like so many starry-eyed young women do, but not to be in the movies; they wanted to make clothes for the stars. They landed jobs with the Designer to the Starlets, Howard Greer. She fitted and sewed for the likes of Susan Hayward and Rita Hayworth.
In Los Angeles, they met and married their husbands, and raised their families ~ and they remained best friends all their lives.
She was quite beautiful, in my eyes; a refined lady. She was proud of her English heritage, and her father who was a preacher. Her family came first above everything else, and we knew it ~ a legacy that few too many enjoy.
A special keepsake that my sis made for me, is a
piece of vintage ribbon that has our mother's picture on it and a small gathering of buttons from her button boxes.
I spent hours of my childhood dumping the buttons out on her bed and playing with them while she sewed. Nothing could be more fitting or significant.
It hangs on my dresser mirror, where I see it every day.
She remains the single greatest influence in my life; and the one
that lavished on me unconditional love.
Wishing you all a very happy Mother's Day.
Counting My Blessings,
xo Susy
