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Tuesday, December 18, 2007

babies, buttons, bananas

It truly has been a good day today. The highlight of the morning as I donned my jacket with the hood because it was finally pouring buckets of rain outside began with very wet bangs as I came into my office to start seeing clients. I was grateful that the heat was already on, my office warm and my hair dried quickly. I neglected to use the hood. I'm glad it was warm because my first client came with her new baby in tow. I swear I was waiting to hold that baby. It would be the third visit with the new baby and the second time I was asked if I wanted to hold her. Is there anything better, anything that feels more wonderful than the warm circle of a new born curled up on your belly and chest? I don't think so. If so I do not know what it is. Awesome, wonderful, beautiful warmth. Tiny mouth folded into a tiny pink rose. Big black eyes starring into mine...what is going on in that tiny brain? Her mom and I talk and baby falls asleep on my breast and I am in Heaven. The hours ends too soon. At noon I went to lunch, planning to eat big so I wouldn't need dinner tonight before going to my last drawing class. After eating big (Mexican, lots of beans, lots of chips, one chicken enchilada) I went next door to the "scrapbook" store. Wow...I'd been there before, once a long time ago, must have been making something, decorating something, but today I was looking for buttons. Did they even have buttons? They did have buttons. I made a slow walk around the room, going up each aisle, looking at each and every display of tiny pictures, parts, pins, things that could be used for scrap booking, and I found buttons. Buttons in a bag for $5, buttons in smaller containers for $3, buttons, buttons, and finally a table of open containers of buttons for $1 a scoop, and finally, finally buttons for 10 cents a piece. And these buttons? These ten cent buttons were VINTAGE BUTTONS. And they were in deep red and off white and tan. Just the colors I needed, wanted for Ella quilt. I slowly picked over them, took out all the cool ones, all the ones I thought I could use on Ella. Just want she needed. Remember when I was a young girl I loved to sit in my grandma Ella's sewing room on the floor and open her big tin of buttons and sift through them. Looking at them carefully. They mesmerized me. I loved those buttons. So, Ella had to have buttons, and she definitely needed more third dimensional texture to her. More pizazz. And the buttons would give her that. I went to drawing class (#3 of 3) and sketched a large display of fresh fruit and a bowl and candle sticks. The fruit made me aware that I did not have dinner. So at one point I suggested one banana be opened. The teacher obligingly peeled back the skin of said banana. Then someone suggested someone take a bite out of the banana, that might have been me. I was hungry, not having had dinner, just a big lunch. She did. The banana was now giving off it's delicious banana smell. My stomach was churning. I could not draw another line. I reached up and took another big bite out of that banana. At the end of the class the teacher offered me the rest of that banana and I ate it before going home. I also signed up for two more classes (five sessions) in January. One in sketching and one in acrylic painting on canvas, both with the same teacher. Finally I got home and got to sew on the buttons. Ella now I think is officially done. I will sleep on this statement. Look at her in the morning and then decide for sure. And then I will photograph her in all her splendor and post her for all to see. She shines!

4 comments:

  1. YOu are very funny Lynn. Big lunch so no dinner then starving at dinner. Yup. YOu know I think creativity and eating sort of go together. A person burns up so much energy being creative they need fuel. Great about the buttons. Can't wait to see the final glory of Ella. Love the way you name your quilts. Be well, Suki

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  2. Well you had quite a day yesterday. How sweet about the baby and cool about the buttons and WHERE IS THE PICTURE OF THE DRAWING??? Grin
    I cant wait to see the quilt all done. I bet she does shine.
    Have another wonderful day today like yesterday. It is pouring out right now. More to come they say.

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  3. What is it about buttons? My mother has a drawer devoted to buttons and that drawer is practically sacred to me. I've already told my brother "I get the button drawer". He didn't argue. I love buttons, especially vintage one.

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  4. Mim that is a good question about buttons. I wonder if anyone has done a study on this. Did you mother sew or did she just collect buttons for the heck of it? I thought my fascination with them derived from my childhood love of grandma's sewing room, but who knows? I do find myself gravitating to them in yarn shops and fabric stores now; at thrift stores...my DH even brought me home some recently he found in a thrift store.

    I wonder if anyone has written about this: Button Collectors of the World...Button Fanciers.

    Maybe we should write this book?

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Thanks for leaving your comments as I love hearing from you. Your words of encouragement are why I continue to draw!