The House that Holly Stitched

This is a story about a wall hanging one of my sewing girls, Holly, stitched with oodles of love, for her mum. This story has a most moving significance which neither Holly nor I could  ever have foreseen when we first talked about this project...........but we will come to that later on.

Let us start at the beginning, shall we.

The wall hanging was started earlier this year with the intention of Holly giving it to her mum for Mother's Day. But for one reason or another, "The Kim Sharman School of Stitching Excellence" has only been open intermittently throughout the year.

I was visiting Holly's mum (a very dear friend of mine) in late January of this year and I noticed the advent wall hanging that Holly made a couple of years ago still taking pride of place on the wall. Yes indeedy, Holly's mum is one who seems to have evidence of yuletide still hanging well into the year. Deary, deary me!! How could this be?? Now, I am one of those gals whom when the 1st of January hoopla, moseys along blowing party whistles and chorusing in celebration......HAPPY  NEW  YEAR........the Christmas decorations come down and stay hidden until the following December.

This rather woebegone situation had to be remedied, so Holly and I came up with a brilliant idea (well we thought it was) of replacing the advent calendar with a wall hanging of  monumental significance. We decided how cool it would be to stitch a house, with memories of her family mingled throughout. Holly's mum has one serious photo collection capturing the everyday moments of growing children, those important milestones and family celebrations over the years. Yes indeedy, she is a bit of a shutterbug!!

With the hunting and gathering of  a selection of fabrics the designing of the 'House that Holly stitched' began. We decided to transfer photos of the family to fabric, using photo transfer paper.

Holly's house wall hanging is a house filled with delightful and whimsical details. From the shuttered windows that when opened to let the sunshine filter in, reveal special photos of members of her family. There are wild flowers growing in the garden which gently brush Holly and her brother James as they amble along the front path leading to the welcoming front door; which upon opening reveals her mum and dad on their wedding day.

Oh how happy and in love Holly's mum and dad look. They are beaming aren't they.

There are window boxes where pretty flowers cascade every which way and climbing roses escaping from pretty pots, trailing in wild abandon up the wall. You see this is a house where not only the blossoms bloom but it is a house where love grows.

Each window  is filled with special memories of family celebrations.......of family love.

Holly's dad and mum, when she and her brother James were teeny babies.

There is a cute, lace trimmed, attic window and the prettiest of roof tiles. There has to, just has to be a li'l lace peeking from a house......somewhere, don't you think??

There are clothes lines where the washing sways in the gentle breeze, kissed by the sunshine.

There is Old Man Sun with his gentle smile of love and radiance, beaming rays of warm sunhine upon this house of love and an ancient tree where the little birdies rest awhile.

There is Holly's dad and her brother James driving the big, red truck when he was a little fellow. I love this photo; such a precious memory!

Even Holly's furry friend, Lottie loves to sit on the front porch amongst the roses. You see, Lottie, with that feline sixth sense of hers, knows this house is a house filled with love!

Each family member's name has been quilted in a doodling fashion on the wall hanging.

For many months Holly slowly and carefully stitched her house,stitch by stitch until finally last week, her beautiful, house wall hanging was finished.

What is the moving significance of Holly's house wall hanging?? You see, Holly is the daughter of my friend who passed away several weeks ago. When we talked about and designed this wall hanging, we could not have thought of the beautiful and poignant memories Holly's amazing wall hanging would evoke today.

Holly's beautiful wall hanging hangs with pride of place in her home. It is rather akin to a beautiful and touching benediction of the love this family has for each other. Holly has done the most splendid job in fashioning this lovely work of art. Indeed, "the house that Holly stitched" is one filled with a lifetime of treasured memories. It is a wall hanging which when gazed upon each day will bring to mind many, many lovely remembrances of special times spent with each member of the family. When gazed upon it will bring to mind the most beautiful memories of a most wonderful husband, dad and grandad.....for he was their world and they his.

May I say a lovely thank you to all you ladies who are thinking of and praying for my dear friend and her family. I know she is comforted by the thought that lovely ladies, such as you, from all over the globe have taken the time to think of her and her family at this time.

Until the next time..................