that handmade sigh of relief

You know the one right? That comfortable groove when you get to make something for a fellow crafter or believer in the "I-don't-care-that-it's-got-wonky-seams-cos-it's-handmade" philosophy.

That cosy feeling had me sailing through this second version of the ice-cream social dress*. Even the bits where I was muttering through my gritted teeth and unpicking seams into the wee small hours were worth it knowing that it was going to be worn by the daughter of a fellow sewist.

Fellow sewist herself also had a birthday and suddenly I was completely and utterly stuck for ideas. For weeks I was tossing up potential projects. Placemats? No she's made them already. A table runner? No she's made one already. A tote bag. No she's made one already. Knit something? Don't be stupid you know how slow you are at knitting.

In the end I came up with a variation on the burlap bucket I made here (pattern from the very talented maya*made) and this book.

My other crafty (and Libran, and red loving), friend got the same fabrics (which, incidentally are both from Kelani) in a different way

A cushion with a tiny bit of quilting on the branches of those beautiful trees. She got some other stuff too (namely an antique amber owl brooch from Yard Sale), but I just know she's loving the handmade cushion just that little bit more. You know?

*Believe it or not the dark fabric used in the ice-cream social dress is actually the same denim as used in the other two projects. A combination of a dull day and an early morning, pre-birthday party photo shoot has ended up making it look black. Which it's not. Just sayin'.