I had a grace hammer fall on my head yesterday while working on the method to recreate this lovely embroidery. The kind of hammer that felt like a bit of a "d'uh!" moment, but I'd rather give credit to Our Lady and my Holy Angel for dropping grace into a situation when I can't see the forest for the trees. I don't have enough time to thoroughly examine intact antique embroidery to determine method then completely hand stitch the stump-work so I considered recreating the desig

I love a challenge, especially when it comes to stitching and this lovely set provided a few along the way. There were the usual challenges like finding the right fabric for the lining replacement, figuring out how it was constructed to ensure careful disassembly, embroidery thread color matching, and so on. The first major challenge came after I gently removed the original lining. This revealed the construction of the embroidery and that it would be impossible to remove and

Sometimes projects have a profound impact and you can almost feel every stitch mend and nourish parts of your soul. The development of our Maniturgium and First Stole were definitely opportunities for this kind of soul mending. Without getting into the weeds I will say that once upon a time I looked forward to receiving a maniturgium. I have long since come to terms with the loss of that possibility but the soul is always 'on the mend' whether we are conscious of it or not.

Veiling does not hide or diminish, rather it reveals the dignity and honor that is due to what, or Who, lies beneath the veil. In scripture we find many examples of God's veiled presence among us. The Church carries this tradition forward to reveal to the faithful that He is fully present — Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity — in the Eucharist. The sacred vessels (ciboria), which hold our Eucharistic Lord within the tabernacle, are adorned with the finest available materials and

An amice is a vital part of the Armor of God (Eph. 6.). Though it is a simple piece of white cloth it represents the Helmet of Salvation; and, like any helmet when engaging in battle, it is essential in the spiritual battle a priest must face when approaching the altar to say Holy Mass. It is made (preferably) with linen and has long strands of solid weave cotton tape attached at the top two corners. It is worn across a priest's shoulders and around his neck with the purpose