August and September fairs always bring back memories of the years I was in 4-H. I never raised a steer or trained a horse. It was the 50’s, and besides the fact that our family didn’t have room for a horse, girls were encouraged to join sewing or cooking programs. I sewed. The first year, I made a pincushion, an apron, and a set of place mats. The second year, when I was ten, I sewed a checked gingham dress with set-in, cuffed sleeves, fitted bodice with collar, and gathered skirt. I spent more time ripping than sewing, but I finally got the sleeves in the right armholes and right side out. Unfortunately, that was the year I grew six inches and gained twenty pounds, and by the time I was supposed to model the dress at the state fair, I had outgrown it. By the third and fourth years we were making whole outfits: pajamas, robe, slippers or skirt, jacket, hat and purse. If I had stayed in until I was 18, one of my choices of a project was a wedding dress.