The Feminine Arts (pt 1)

I eschew dressing very feminine for the most part.  I don't wear dresses except for incredibly important and special occasions (my graduation, my future wedding,.....).  I have some skirts, but they rarely see the light of day, except when I go to Mass Buddy's more traditional church.  Makeup?  Does Blistex Lip Med  count?  Purse?  Why?  I have pockets!  Anything else I want/need to carry I need a backpack for.... Imagine the horror when I discovered the one skirt didn't have pockets.  Then I realized my coat did and we were all good.

In light of this, I think it is rather amusing I'm interested in things that are considered feminine, like quilting and needle arts.  I know how to do basic sewing.  I know how to do some embroidery stitches and I know how to do counted cross-stitch.  I've signed up for knitting classes!  I know how to make simple jewelry.

I'm also interested in cooking, which was traditionally considered a girl pursuit, unless of course you were going to be a *chef* then it was ok for boys.

The only feminine art I'm not into is ironing.

I've been pondering this all day.  I suppose I'm interested in these things for two primary reasons:  I was exposed to these things at a young age and they are a way of being independent.  Perhaps if there were more men in my family and I had been exposed  to more masculine pursuits, I would be interested in them.  But there aren't any boys in my family around my age.  My mom exposed to me to a great many of the needle arts.  I never necessarily saw them as girlie, but rather as something to do while watching TV.  

I became interested in quilting after watching and later reading "How to Make an American Quilt"  Yeah.  It's not the greatest movie.  But it inspired me to learn how to quilt.  Kind of like how Midnight in Paris is inspiring me to read Hemingway.

More than anything, I've always wanted to be a self-reliant, independent woman.  Knowing the feminine arts helps me be independent.  I can cook for myself, repair most of my clothes (I don't know how to darn), make my own clothes if necessary and if worse comes to worse, I could possibly sell the quilts I've made.  (Which I've actually done and if my dog keeps racking up the vet bills it looks like a distinct possibility in the future).

I don't know.  It is something to ponder.