the crafter and the mill. a true story.

Besides the playhouse*, my favorite place at my grandma Edie's to snoop spend time in was the beadroom. Actually, it was an entire building immediately behind her workroom. At least 3/4 of its walls were lined with shelves from ceiling to floor. On the top shelf, lightweight items like yarn was stored. Down at the bottom, fabrics were stuffed into boxes and tubs. Everything in between...beads. Recycled soda bottles, mason jars - you name it - filled to the brim with beads. For a kid like me - it was the jackpot at the end of a rainbow.

So this past Saturday, my mom & I sifted through some of this fabric. I mentioned in an earlier post that there was a story behind the fabric...and there you go, that's my story. Haha - no, just goofing. and yes, I realize I'm not funny. just a nerd, but I'm okay with that.

Okay. Here's the actual story behind the fabric.

When my mother was a toddler, the family lived in the Aiken, SC area. At the time, the nearby mills + workrooms would load up the day's fabric scraps and put them outside the doors at closing. The scraps were free for anyone to come by and take home.

Notice how the pieces of fabric are all cut the same? That's because they were stacked & cut from a pattern press all at the same time. 

My grandmother used the scraps in her various projects. A personal favorite of my mom & me...her quilts.

Those scraps that I brought home Saturday are from the same stock that I learned & practiced sewing on when I was a little girl. Now, I'll work on turning them into something that others will enjoy too. Awe...& there's my gush quota for the day =)

♥ - Kat.

*playhouse - by the time I was a little girl, the playhouse was basically another storage building. However, it's shelves were lined with puzzles, books & games. Almost everything in there had belonged to either my grandparents, my mom, my aunt or perhaps one of my 4 uncles...

a melancholy christmas.

In my various profiles, I mention that my grandmother, Edie, is the one responsible for my venturing into jewelry, etc after helping her when I was a child with her craft business. When she passed away a hair over *gasp* 12 years ago - my mother & aunt divided up all of her supplies. I've ended up with a good amount over the years too because, in all, that was about 3 buildings & 1 school bus* worth of supplies + her shop filled to the brim with finished goods for sale + all of her sample designs in yet another workroom. I'm serious when I write that she truly ran her own business, that we toured the SE doing craft shows & walking into manufacturer showrooms [many of which she knew the owners by their first names].

Right, the point.

My mother & kid sis will be moving back down to Florida soon (from Atlanta). At least for now, mom's decided to let me take all of her share of Edie's beads & halve her share of the old fabrics. >She knows that if she finds a project to use ANY of it that I'll be happy to send it to her right away< So we spent the majority of Saturday going through beads & fabric, all the while reminiscing.

Today, I'm going through the stuff that I brought back home with me. It's silly, really. It's like Christmas going through all of this bounty, but I keep tearing up.So many memories.

My aunt, mom & I have sort of a pact between us regarding Edie's supplies. We can use any of it up in a design & sell, but not solely as supplies for sale. In that way, we hope that she's proud & pleased from afar that her collection is still making others happy. So that's why you won't see any of these fabrics or beads up for sale as supplies in my shop. (Sorry quilters!)

For now, I'm simply overwhelmed. I still have another carload of beads to bring home. And while I'm positively itching to play with the fabrics...I think that I'm going to set them aside for the moment. They all have to be laundered, that's for sure. I mean, they're in the 40+ age range & there's a history behind them [that I know & will share later in a separate post]. That, & I'm too close to them just now. Some of them would do well as flowers, but for others it would be an injustice to hide their charming prints.

Edie, we forever love & miss you.

♥ - Kat.

*school bus storage - no joke. my grandparents had a retired Escambia County school system bus out by the greenhouse & Edie used it as storage. When I was little, I used to climb up on the hood in the evenings, lay back against the windshield & look at the stars. 100% true.

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A peek at some of the vintage fabrics: