Thursday, November 03, 2011

Memory jars, Christening gowns and slugs.....

Day 3: For memories which make me smile, and for dreams which may become my memories too one day.

I started a memory jar a while back. I saw the idea on Pinterest, and basically it is a glass jar with a lid in the living room. I write down a simple word or line of a particular memory and pop it in the jar, and on New Year's Eve, the idea is to take them all out and read them aloud. The whole family is supposed to be joining in, but SEEM TO BE SLUGS AND HAVE DONE NOTHING YET. Oh well, they have a few more weeks to get their act together and join in. I, on the other hand, have kept popping papers in. It will be fun. And I am the Keeper of Memories around here anyway, aren't I??

My garden is going crazy, people. It is November. It is also 14C today, which is warm for this time of the year. (Yay! No heating on yet!) And so help me, my pots are starting to sprout summer seedlings. And the daffodil and tulip bulbs are all shooting up through the soil. I may have to break out the compost and cover the lot up again in the next day or so, because soon the Arctic winds are supposed to be arriving from Siberia, so they will die. Wrong season, plants! Go back to sleep!

Some of my summer plants are still flowering merrily on, which is great, and the roses - well, they keep growing buds. So many this year. Over and over again. Beautiful. The slugs are out in force. I hate slugs. I squished one this morning. {{Shudder}}

For all the high-ish temperatures today, it is grey and damp and dark. Having lights on in the middle of the day just seems all wrong, but one does need to see. Especially if you are my mother and sewing up navy squares into yet another blanket for the church/homeless/people in need. Navy and dark do not go well together when you are trying to see.

The quilting is getting there, albeit slowly. It is the falling asleep thing, you see. Stitch 4 stitches, and head drops and Linds is off to the Land of Nod. Then I wake at midnight or later, and, with a sudden burst of energy, sew for half an hour till I remember that I should be in bed at 1am, and not listening to CNS News and sewing.

Did I mention that I found quilted when I was sorting through the most recent boxes hauled down from the loft? A Christmas one, in green and red, a panel Christmas one, and then an alphabet one too. I had completely forgotten all three. They are washed and drying as I speak. My kitchen looks like a Chinese laundry. Not that I have any experience of what a Chinese laundry looks like, of course.

I also found the baby clothes I kept. There are teeny tiny little outfits for all 3 of them, and oh, did it take me back to see the tiny sizes. My baby era was so long ago. And the little dresses - there are also some which Marge and I wore as babies. And the silk christening gown which my mother once wore. Then me, Marge, Andrew, Diana. David, no. I nearly forgot to have him christened, and so he was 15 months old, it was the night before we left South Africa, and I have told you that story before.

Does anyone know how to get brown marks off pure silk christening gowns which are 86 + years old??? There has to be a way. I googled it, but I am far more comfortable trying out something already proven to work before I start playing with denture tablets and such like. Mother is already hyperventilating at the thought of it disintegrating. It has with it, a circular baby shawl which was knitted when I was born. So soft and oh, so beautiful. I must haul out the camera.

So, we are back to boxes piled all over the place. Mother's vast collection of dolls from around the world (in national dress - 3 boxes), my oldest son's belongings, toys from my children's youth, which Missy will be delighted to see, I am sure. And assorted paintings, and other paraphernalia. Sigh. My efforts to cast a spell and get the walls to shift outwards have failed. So we are back to boxes. Toss out. Charity shop. Auction. Kids. But in the mean time, they are occupying my kitchen.

I am a world-class decorator. Boxes are a speciality.

8 comments:

  1. http://www.vintagetextilesoak.com/

    I am not spamming you, I promise.

    I have my mother's little silk coat hanging in my sewing room. If I had all the treasures you have, they'd all be up on the wall.

    Lately, I've been conking out about now, which is why I'm here visting you instead... Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

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  2. I would love to see the pictures of the gown and shawl. There is a cleaner for gentle things called "Grandma's Attic" or something like that. I read on a blog a few weeks ago where someone tried it and loved it.

    It sounds like the garden is really going to be in for a shock soon. Slugs...ick! Do you have snails too? I hate those things.

    I like the idea of the thankful pot. Keep on nagging them.

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  3. What treasures you found today! I use Avon Bubble Bath for stain removal - do you have Avon in England? It's marvelous stuff in the laundry room. Just be sure to use a white one on white garments. I once used a pink peppermint kind on Bob's white dress shirt - not so cute afterwards!

    It's supposed to go to -11 tonight so I just finished washing all the outside windows - first time in a very long time! I'm thinking of quickly putting up the outside Christmas lights before I haul the ladder away. Best get off the computer then - -

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  4. Attic treasures are the best! I also kept a lot of my girls' baby things, some of which were used for my little grandson and others which have now emerged for my new little granddaughter - so sweet to see her wearing her mother's and auntie's clothes!!!
    We also have a family christening robe, made by his mother for my great uncle in 191213 and worn by all 8 children that followed and the children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren and even great-great-grandchildren of the two eldest of that family: my granny was the 2nd child to wear it and is alive to see her great-great-granddaughter, little Mireille, wear it!
    Last year my middle daughter wore her great-great auntie's wedding veil when she married; that was lace made in 1950 with love-knots on, so pretty.

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  5. I love the idea of the memory jar, think I might start something like that when the boys are a little older and have some more memories to draw from

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  6. I have my christening gown in a hope chest that my gave me. Thank you for sharing.

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  7. I wish I knew more about what would take stains out of a communion dress, my daughter spilled something all over hers.

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  8. These family treasures are priceless. My mother and I made my wedding veil, and it has been worn by every bride in our family since then. Each bride carries the same white Bible my mama carried on her wedding day. Jeana has it now in her cedar chest, awaiting her girls' wedding days.

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