Red Ribbons

Receiving red ribbons at the 4-H County Fair are my last memories of sewing. Red is not the ribbon color that you want. It comes after blue, which follows purple. My outfit was a green flower-patterned top and a pair of black shorts, which are today tightly packed between other 4-H projects including a glittered Christmas-themed sweatshirt and a Pringle can that I artistically crafted into a bunny using felt, fabric and glue all to be found in a Native American-themed collage box.  

 


Last winter it was back to the Kenmore sewing machine for me. I wanted the handbags to reflect current styles and trends in the U.S. and I also felt that to truly understand and appreciate the work I was asking the women in Congo to do, I should experience it myself. Though I will take this opportunity to admit to using electricity, taking coffee breaks and messing up on material then buying more and starting over. (Luxuries)

 

Thankfully my grandma helped and it was not as painful. We worked diligently to keep the seams and stiches straight and stressed reinforced handles and emphasized the double-lining. It was important to have strong models that the women would feel confident to replicate. In the end, I sewed three (purchased one in Uganda) and asked for them to make twenty handbags of each model. In addition, I asked for them to design twenty of their own creation!