The Peeler Playbook: Just call me Martha Stewart

When I was a teenager my momma (HI MOM!) taught me how to sew. I really enjoy sewing, well some times not so much the actually job of sewing but I love the ability to know how to make things- esp house things such as pillows and quilts, curtains, etc. Now don't get me wrong these aren't fancy things, some times they look "mammy made" as we call it, but other times my projects turn out quite nicely. Now I feel it is time to dip into something a little different....

Growing up my mom used to smock us all kinds of outfits, and I would love to be able to do that for my kids. You know, not just buy a smocked outfit in a store where is was made in China, but really put MY hard work and MY love into a piece of clothing my kids can wear. Now don't get me wrong, I don't live in some fantasy world. I know they will care less whether I made it or not, it will probably be itchy and hot so I will have to fight them to get it on, and if I win and get it on them- they will probably spill juice all down the front of it. But I still want to... ok?

So one weekend back in March when I was in Memphis my mom and I sat down one Saturday and she taught me how to smock. She told me I picked it up pretty quick, and I was good at it (but moms have to say that). Whether I was good or not, when the design (and by design I mean straight line) started coming together I was really quite proud... Then it was on to the next lesson- how to make a zigzag line. Our lesson continued until I had the jest of how to create different designs and how those designs can turn in to pictures. Here is a picture of my work in progress

Some Day I will be able to make a cool design with picture on it, but right now I am sticking to lines :)

Since I "caught on so quick" mom also wanted to teach me how to knit "Ninny Dish Rags." My Ninny used to knit these dish rags and they are the best! Ninny taught mom, now mom is passing the legacy on the me :). Mom said it was easy, but I looked so uncoordinated trying to knit. Mom had to keep a careful eye on me, otherwise I would mess it up. At first it was really tightly knitted then it got really loosely knitted, then I was skipping knots all together. Needless to say it was not "easy" for me. After MUCH practice I finally thought I had the hang of it enough (and great youtube videos to watch) to keep practicing back home. After about 2 weeks of working on ONE stinkin' dish rag I finally got to the end. I was about to call mom to get her to walk me through how to "cast off" when I realized my dish rag looked more like a holy kite then a square dish rag.