I was very fortunate to have had a mother who taught me to crochet when I was a very small child. She was patient and taught me how to do different stitches and to make clothes for my Barbie doll. I made dresses and little berets for them to wear. They were so FLY!
I would sit and watch my mother as she worked on her projects. I was soaking in everything she did. I'd ask her what she was making and about the stitches she was using. Sometimes I'd ask her if I could try a few stitches, and she'd let me do a few of them. I learned to do Tunisian, Hairpin, Broomstick and more from her back then. Who knew all those techniques would become so popular again?
I remember my mother made these red and white striped ponchos for me and my sister. You COULD NOT tell us we weren't "bad." We wore them with white clogs with wooden heels in the summer, and in the fall we wore them with these black Go Go Boots that we begged to get. It didn't matter that the boys told us our boots didn't fit and made our skinny legs look like toothpicks. (The boys sure love the legs now, though. LOL) We wore those ponchos until they couldn't be worn anymore.
My mother was so talented with anything involving creating with her hands. Besides crochet, she was a skilled seamstress, a fantastic cook and did hair better than any hairdresser. I learned everything from her. If my mother was still alive, I'm sure she would be designing crochet garments that would rival anything out here.
But I titled this post "Legacy," didn't I? So that means things didn't start with my mother. My grandmother's also a skilled crocheter, and I spent time watching her, leafing through her patterns, and asking questions. Of course, my grandmother excelled at cooking, sewing and she was also a licensed hairdresser.
So from grandmother to my mother to me, the gift of crocheting along with many other gifts have been passed down. My sister had no interest in learning from my mother and other sisters were very young when my mother died so they never learned. I am blessed to have been the recipient of these gifts.
I guess it is my duty to pass things on in the family. So far, my daughter has not been interested in learning anything, but I'm hoping that this will change now that she will be giving birth to her daughter in a few days. I'm still going to try to get my daughter interested in learning, and I look forward to the day I can teach my granddaughter to crochet.
I've already started teaching some of my nieces, and I'm going to have a crochet party later this year and give the girls more lessons. I still haven't written off my sisters either. I'm hoping that one day they might just want to pick up a hook and give it a try.
Happy Mothers' Day
