Like many women of her time (and many of those who came before her), my grandmother could sew. She wasn't the best seamstress in the world, but she quite a lot of skill. In fact, she made my senior prom dress . . . a kindness on her part, as it's not that easy to find fat girl prom dresses. It was quite lovely, I might add.
One of Gran's GO TO patterns was a simple house dress. I've included a picture of how it worked so you understand the basic idea. Three arm holes, you wrap it around and get full coverage.
Gran had like dozens of these in just about every color and print you can imagine. She would wear them almost all Spring and Summer, and even sometimes into the Fall. The house dress had a lot of advantages to it. It was comfortable but quite fashionable at the same time. It felt like a nightgown, but served as a public outfit. It could look quite chic depending on the material, but was so easy that if something happened to it, you didn't worry too much.
But there was more to it than that, and I didn't really connect all the dots until just this morning when I was thinking about something Gran would do with this pattern. Whenever any woman around her had surgery or had a baby or any other situation where they were going to be in a kind of long recovery process, Gran would always make one of these dresses for them. The pattern, as I said, was a Go To for her, and she could make them very quickly.
See, the dress isn't just comfortable and easy to wear, it's really easy to get into. No lifting your arm, no difficult movements, no need for anyone go help you. You just slip it on and pull it around, boom. You're covered. You can handle guests. And whenever you're in a state of recovering from something, you always have guests. People stop by to check on you. They bring you stuff. They want to look at the new baby or make sure you're okay. Even in the midst of being in maybe the most pain you've been in during your whole life, you still have to play hostess.
Making one of these little wrap dresses was incredibly kind of her. It was a very practical gift that allowed the women to look presentable while dealing with their guests. And no, the guests probably did not care how they looked, but to the women themselves, even in the middle of the pain, it probably did matter. This was a gift of practicality, convenience, and dignity.
As I have mentioned before, Gran had a mastectomy when she was 42. I think a lot of the things she had to deal with during that time helped to shape the decision to give the gift of the dress. I know it was a really rough time for her and she was always grateful for all the kindness that the women of the neighborhood showed her. It really touched her that people could be so generous and loving to those around them. She knew she didn't cook well, but she could make the dress for others.
I'm really overwhelmed by this. I think the most beautiful thing about it is that she never really talked about it. She never sat around and said, "Oh look, I make these dresses for people. I'm so cool." I think maybe her Belle kicked in and she felt it wasn't appropriate to do so, either because it wasn't polite to brag about your good deeds or just because it wasn't nice to talk about what other people were going through.
Whatever the case, I am supremely proud of my grandmother for doing this. I think it's one of the most beautiful things she ever did and whenever I think about her accomplishments, making these dresses for women in need will always be on the list.
But there was more to it than that, and I didn't really connect all the dots until just this morning when I was thinking about something Gran would do with this pattern. Whenever any woman around her had surgery or had a baby or any other situation where they were going to be in a kind of long recovery process, Gran would always make one of these dresses for them. The pattern, as I said, was a Go To for her, and she could make them very quickly.
See, the dress isn't just comfortable and easy to wear, it's really easy to get into. No lifting your arm, no difficult movements, no need for anyone go help you. You just slip it on and pull it around, boom. You're covered. You can handle guests. And whenever you're in a state of recovering from something, you always have guests. People stop by to check on you. They bring you stuff. They want to look at the new baby or make sure you're okay. Even in the midst of being in maybe the most pain you've been in during your whole life, you still have to play hostess.
Making one of these little wrap dresses was incredibly kind of her. It was a very practical gift that allowed the women to look presentable while dealing with their guests. And no, the guests probably did not care how they looked, but to the women themselves, even in the middle of the pain, it probably did matter. This was a gift of practicality, convenience, and dignity.
As I have mentioned before, Gran had a mastectomy when she was 42. I think a lot of the things she had to deal with during that time helped to shape the decision to give the gift of the dress. I know it was a really rough time for her and she was always grateful for all the kindness that the women of the neighborhood showed her. It really touched her that people could be so generous and loving to those around them. She knew she didn't cook well, but she could make the dress for others.
I'm really overwhelmed by this. I think the most beautiful thing about it is that she never really talked about it. She never sat around and said, "Oh look, I make these dresses for people. I'm so cool." I think maybe her Belle kicked in and she felt it wasn't appropriate to do so, either because it wasn't polite to brag about your good deeds or just because it wasn't nice to talk about what other people were going through.
Whatever the case, I am supremely proud of my grandmother for doing this. I think it's one of the most beautiful things she ever did and whenever I think about her accomplishments, making these dresses for women in need will always be on the list.
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