One Hundred and Five

That is how many memories that little box holds. I'm not entirely sure why, but I have been thinking a lot about my mom's box of iron-on transfers lately. Since they have been on my mind so much, I decided to pull the box out of storage and take a look through them. It's been many years since I've even looked at this box. It's one of those things that just sits in a closet, taking up space. I know at some point, I'm going to need to sell or give them away, but for now, they can just sit.

I don't really know when my mom started doing hand embroidery. It was long before I was born, but I always remember her using iron-on transfers. Every trip to Ben Franklin (yes, I'm that old), we would dig through the racks of iron-on transfers just in case they got new designs in. Even if I drew a pattern for her, she always had to go over it with a transfer pencil. I was an adult before I even realized there were other options for transferring an embroidery design to fabric. I never really liked iron-on transfers. I always seemed to move just a little and get the ghost outline, but she was a pro, and her transfers were perfect every time.

My mom loved hand embroidery and was happy to stitch designs of any subject. My first baby blanket was a quilt she made, and every other block was hand-embroidered, and that was just one of many she made. She never stitched anything that stayed in the hoop. Blankets, clothing, dish towels, etc., if she stitched on it, it was meant to be used.

Yes, I still have my baby blanket. It's in storage, but someday I plan on getting it out so I can photograph and share it.

The butterflies were the last set of dish towels she made me. They were a Christmas gift, and like the box of transfers, they sit nestled away in a closet, never to be used. I know it's a waste, and she wanted me to use and enjoy them, but I'm not ready to see someone wipe their hands on them yet. I think I should try to find a way to display them in a frame or shadow box.

This little box doesn't look like much to most people but to me it holds exactly one hundred and five memories.