One of my earliest childhood memories is of a warm summer day spent sitting with my great-grandmother at a table
outside her Florida home. In my hands was a hole punch, and I was making "beads" from those brightly colored
styrofoam cartons storebought eggs used to come in. Her name was Lily and she and I made long necklaces from
those beads that we wrapped around our necks and proudly wore to dinner.
As I grew older, her daughter, my grandma, continued the tradition of inspiring me to do things myself instead
of relying on the storebought. I thought she was magic because she could turn an icky cucumber into something
as spectacular as a pickle!
My mother understood my frustration with off-the-rack "fashions", and taught me to sew—helping me make more
than one (now) embarrassing high-school party dress. She helped me launch my first business, sewing jumpers for
my classmates. She also didn't flinch when I stole the best of her 60's vintage, and is still my treasure-hunting
partner-in-crime.
Today, I'm all grown up (ha!) and live with my husband and entirely too many cats in a little house in Atlanta
that is undergoing perpetual renovation. I look forward to the day when we have all our walls so I can paint
them to my heart's content, but until then I'll just have my tea parties in the garden!