Living & Sewing in the Digital Age

I am always amazed by the things we can do in the 21st Century. This week, I experienced how digital, fiber optic, satellite technology influences even the humble act of sewing.

On Tuesday, my sister called me (on her cell phone) from North Carolina. My 5 year old niece was singing with her Kindergarten Chorus on Thursday. They were singing songs from the 50's and my sister wanted my niece to look the part. She called so we could brainstorm about Niece's outfit. We settled on plain, 5-pocket jeans rolled up to capri length and a shirt (think Bye, Bye Birdie). Then my sister found out the girls had to wear skirts with white blouses. Sis wanted to keep with the 50's look, so she wanted a poodle skirt. In spite of her husband buying her a sewing machine a few years ago and me buying her Sewing 101, Sis has never sewn a stitch. I believe she wanted me to make the skirt Tuesday night and FedEx it to her by Thursday. But, since we live in digital, fiber optic, satellite, high tech era, that wasn't necessary (or practical).

I photocopied pages from Make Your Own Sewing Patterns that illustrated cutting a pattern for a circle skirt. I faxed these pages to Sis. While I was driving to the library to make the copies, Sis was at Walmart shopping for fabric and notions. Again, we used cell phones to communicate in real time about what was needed, and what was available at Walmart. Once she got home, we got back on the phone and I talked her through cutting-out the skirt. Sis has never sewn a stitch, but she can do amazing things with Stitch Witchery and fabric glue! You see the results of our 21st Century, high tech collaboration -- an adorable black and pink polka dot poodle skirt with pink sequins for the chain! Thanks to digital photography and home computers, on Wednesday morning, less than 24 hours after our first conversation, I checked my e-mail and saw my beautiful niece wearing her poodle skirt.

We live in an age that allows us to have cell phones so we can talk from anywhere to anywhere. We can reproduce pages from books thanks to digital photocopy technology (and old fashioned public libraries). We have fax machines in our homes. I'm able to share the experience through my blog. This would not have been possible or practical 10 years ago. The only thing missing is the ability to beam myself to North Carolina to see my niece perform!