I’ve been thinking a lot about crafting generations. Recently, I read an article about a woman who was a fourth-generation button collector. Can you imagine the sentimental value of buttons collected by your great grandmother? I myself am a quilter, as was my mother and her mother. On my dad’s side, we have a scrap of a quilt stitched by my great grandmother’s grandmother. I am fascinated by the idea that I am tied to these women (some of which I’ve never met) not only by blood but also by my handiwork. We cannot choose our relatives, but we are entirely free to choose to relate to them by taking up the craft where they left off.

Is beading (or any other craft) a generational tradition in your family? How many generations can you trace it through? How are you instilling the craft in the next generations?