bargello grass

Mother likes to say she spent the better part of the 1970's in stitches. Renovating a family homeplace, raising four wackadoo children, volunteering at church and school, and all the while managing with a grace and humor that eludes me.

To keep her mind nimble and escape the cacophony of life, she took up needlepoint. Floral wall hangings, plackets for basket handbags, rugs and the pillows! Pithy quotes about aging gracefully, intricate samplers, and my favorite, the beautiful bargellos. Bold colors in a rolling geometric pattern I could stare at forever. Hills and peaks of colliding lines intersecting and joining to create a network of beauty… not unlike my mother's life.