Pinks, Purples, Postcards, and Posies

I had a busy weekend which started shortly after work on Friday with the Holly Ball for my son’s Junior Cotillion. Cotillion, for those who may not be familiar. is a program designed to give young people instruction and practice in the courtesies that make life more pleasant for them and those around them; to give them thorough training in standard ballroom dance; and to provide opportunities to practice and enjoy these skills at memorable parties, balls, dinners and events, complete with decorations, refreshments, favors and prizes. Can you tell that description came from a publicity brochure? Cotillion has nothing to do with coming out in society or debutants, though I suppose it is good training if your social circle participates in such things. We tell my son it is preparation for the day he is invited to dinner at the White House. Which I just realized is what my mother told me when she corrected my manners. Oh no, another example of me turning into my mother!

Since the Holy Ball is a special event, we started off the evening with dinner at The Jefferson Hotel, a historic, 5 star establishment located in downtown Richmond. The holiday decorations were beautiful, the service and food were wonderful, and the boys, my 12 year old and 4 friends, comported themselves well. The ball includes fund raising for the Christmas Mother Fund and an opportunity for parents to dance with their children, boys with their mother, girls with their father. My son was asked to greet folks at the door with the contribution box, and later to present the contributions to the Christmas Mother, a person who represents the fund, which provides needy children and families with toys, clothing, food and other assistance during the holidays. It was a job well suited to his personality. He loved greeting his friends and their parents, and cajoling donations. He stood on the stage during the presentation with a big grin on his face the whole time. I wish I could say I was as successful in my dancing, but I never had training in ballroom dancing. My dancing was terrible, but we had a good time. The Governor of Virginia was there dancing with his daughter, and it was nice to see him just being a dad.

My weekend sewing was to make a bunch of fabric post cards that needed to be in the mail on Monday. The theme of my post card was “Stop and smell the flowers” because lately I wish the pace of my life was more relaxed, and in warmer months I do relax by futzing in my flower garden. The design for the postcard is an image I found on the Internet and the fabrics, with the exception of the white, were scraps from an Amish style wedding ring quilt I made about 10 years ago. I enjoyed working with the purple and pink fabrics used for the flowers. The flowers remind me of the dark purple ‘Thomas Edison” and pink, name unknown, dahlias I grow in my garden. While I don’t dislike making fabric post cards, I find I regret the time it takes away from my garment sewing. So I probably won’t participate in any more fabric post card exchanges.





The 2008 Timmel Fabric SWAP will start next month, and I am still ambivalent about it, for various reasons. I have several piles of coordinating fabrics I love, but I haven’t seen any fabric on the Timmel site that I want to purchase in order to qualify for the SWAP contest. I am not excited about making basic skirts and tops. They are actually cheaper for me to buy than to make. I may go with the SWAP option which includes 4 bottoms, 6 jackets and a coat. I enjoy making jackets, and I need a real winter coat, but they are quite a bit of work. Another option is to do an extension to my summer SWAP, which would give me lots of new clothes to wear in the spring. I have a month to work it out.