A Blend of the Old and the New

At certain times in my life I've used the saying, "Out with the old and in with the new" to express the changes in life that deal with replacing old things or old people with new things or new people. On this last Thanksgiving trip home, I came to realize that this saying just isn't working for me anymore. I'm beginning to think that the personal changes in my life right now are a beautiful blend of old things and old people with new things and new people!

This is certainly true of many items that I've sewn in the past few years. For example, this apron is one of those old things that I look at and say, "wow, I think I could do that better," but why replace it? I mean, seriously...

Look at my sweet Polish grandmother, completely cheesin' in her "cheesy" colored apron! Would I make this color apron again, probably not, but does it even matter when I see that smile? Absolutely not.

Here's a family photo (cousin, grandmother, 2 uncles and brother) with a portion of the Chinderle Family. That pegasus mini quilt was quilted for my brother (he's the one with the hat on in the back) and it has my father's initials. Don't get me wrong, this pegasus quilt does not replace my father, but it is something new I can create to basically say what this sign says on his grave...

My Uncle Brian hung that sign. Uncle B is the next on the list to receive a pegasus. In fact, he even asked me about how he could get one...little did he know I already have the fabric cut for it! Ha! I love when things work out like that.

I also spotted my first 'Bettina DANGER' label! Totally forgot about this until I saw the apron. 

Not sure what I was thinking before, but I'm so glad I invested in new labels shortly after that! (I ordered them on Etsy from Worldwide Label...not sure if there is a local place that does this, but I won't need labels for 10 years because I keep discovering more layers of labels in the little box they came in.)

These last two photos crack me up. On the left, these were items that I brought home for gifts in 2011 when I first began sewing-before I had ever tried to sew a quilt or had this blog. The items on the right are creations I delivered home this last week. One thing is for certain, I've been introduced to some beautiful fabrics since 2011! I guess these two photos also show where I have arrived in my learning, making meaning from old projects and blending that learning into new projects.

With an abundance of inspiration in this world, I'm stoked to imagine what the next 5 years will bring to me as the last few years of sewing have brought an incredible amount of happiness to my life. As time is driving by, I'm going to appreciate every moment to learn from the old to create the new that will blend with the old...or something like that.

Pegasus Quilt Wall Hanging

This pegasus quilt wall hanging is in memory of my father, Stephen A. Chinderle, or as most people knew him by his nickname...SAC. It's hard to believe he has been gone 6 years today. I often wonder what he would ask me to sew him if he were still alive since I didn't sew back then. So, my wonderings led me to this project in his memory.

A few months before my father passed away, he asked my grandmother to make 30 of these ceramic pegasus figurines for the friends he worked with at Mobil Oil Corporation, actually now ExxonMobil. Unfortunately, he died before my grandmother could give them to him. You can imagine how heartbreaking this felt to look at all of these figurines and wonder exactly what my dad wanted to do with them.

Of course, he wanted one in his daughter's sewing room! ;-) My dad loved the pegasus image and the color red. I know he would have asked me to make something with those two elements.

So, here it is! A perfect (well maybe not totally perfect) pegasus quilt wall hanging! I had a great time reminiscing about my father while I sewed this together. I was reliving and appreciating the good times!

And I was smiling while working on my free-motion quilting!

Thank goodness for Skype! My family and friends who live back home helped design the format for the back. I'm positive that was my dad's touch. On a side note, this was the perfect application of a math standard (communicate mathematical ideas using multiple representations and language) as my family was forced to describe where and how to move the half-square triangles without touching them!

All in all, I'll probably always feel like my dad was taken from us too soon, but then again, I'll always appreciate the 23 years of life we did get to spend together.  I know he's smiling down from Heaven!