Like many, the pandemic got me back into sewing out of necessity. In the early days of the shutdown, masks, whether disposable or reusable, were very difficult to come by, yet in order to get groceries and hopefully, toilet paper, masks were required to enter any public establishment like grocery stores.
I had a small stash of fabric left over in my craft room from past projects that I could no longer remember for what they had been designated, but I no longer owned a sewing machine. The last several I had purchases over several years would get knocked out of timing, and when I would take them in for service, the cost to do so was more than double what I payed for the machine…so to the landfill they went. All I can say, is thank goodness for Amazon Prime, as I was able to order a new machine and get it delivered within less than 48 hours.
Once it arrived and after spraying the box down with Lysol to bring it into the house, I was able to sew up a couple of masks for my husband and myself. I also made a few for friends and mailed them using whatever stamps I already had laying around the house or stuffed in the pockets of my wallet.
Prior to this, it had been so long since I had sewn anything (I was a pretty avid crocheter and had made many clothing items, purses, blankets and baby items given as gifts, etc. over the years), I had forgotten how much I enjoyed it. Since we weren’t really able to go out and shop, plus being stuck at home, it seemed like a good idea to start making some clothes for the upcoming summer months.
We had lived in Hawaii for nearly a decade, and I was really missing it; after all, we else would you rather be remotely working than paradise (if only I hadn’t moved away). One of things I really missed was how vibrant and beautiful the fashion was there, so I started to peruse the internet and was able to find a couple of online fabric stores that specialized in Hawaiian and Polynesian designs. After ordering some fun fabrics (more like over ordering since I wasn’t sure exactly what I was going to make), and finding a few simple patterns on Amazon, I was in the business of making myself a few dresses, jumpers, blouses and shorts with matching masks. Whenever I was out, I would get so many compliments and questions where I got my matching mask-themed outfits.
This necessity of sewing had become my therapy for dealing with the pandemic and worries that this new world we entered would be end of the world we had known before it. When I was creating something and engrossed in what I was doing, I did not have time to think about anything else like worrying about the how I was going to switch from teaching chemistry in a classroom to teaching remotely on Zoom. Since then, sewing has become my primary hobby (more like obsession); I have upgraded my primary sewing machine a couple of times now, invested in a mid-arm, quilting frame and embroidery machine and sew nearly every day before I have to go to work. Sewing continues to be my therapy, my sewing room is my happy place and the friends that I have made on this journey are an invaluable part of my life.