my mother and godmother have been palling around just about their whole lives, but it hasn’t been all delta gamma tea dances, IBM cocktail parties and golf vacations, oh no. they’ve clocked in some serious hours just inventing clever. from knitted irish fisherman sweaters (with matching tam o’shanters, natch!) to the best halloween costumes ever, lollipop trees that magically grew overnight in painted pots to hand-tailored sunday school coats, they have sewn, painted, needlepointed, applique’d, knitted and kitted their daughters out in fine and creative style since we were born. (two notes: 1. these photos do not begin to do their work justice, and 2. my little sister, sara, always got the cute hats. but i’m okay with that now.)
aunt susie made this stocking for me a long time ago (probably not long after she invented felt and the applique technique.) it’s my favorite thing to bring out of the christmas decorations box each year. truly, if jan & susie were starting their careers now (instead of enjoying well-earned retired life in the naples and tucson sunshine) i believe they’d be keeping company with the likes of my faves amy butler, anna maria horner, emily martin, and natalie chanin, and possibly educating them on a thing or two, just as they’ve have inspired and influenced me all my life.