Tea Cozy & Pillowcases (Christmas presents #3)

My mom is the only person in my family who reads my blog, so I had to wait until after Christmas to post her presents.  I was in a hurry on these, as the others went in the same package (dad & brother live in the same city) and they are farther away so I always assume mail will take longer.  Which meant mom's gifts were made last--but they still made it in time!

I started with a tea cozy.  Mom saw this one that I made my dad earlier this year and she told me that lately, she's been making tea by the pot as opposed to by the cup, and she would like a cozy to go with a teapot that apparently I bought her years ago but don't remember.  I picked out a few different fabric options and asked her to pick. This one won by a mile.  I love that it has actual tea pots and tea cups on it!  Although it does feel a bit like cheating--she sent me this fabric several years ago!

I used the same template that I used for my dad's, which actually came from tracing his old one--and it turns out that my mom traded with another vendor for that original cozy at a craft fair *years* ago, so I guess everything comes full circle! The lining fabric is teacups, also given to me by mom.  I used Bosal double-sided-fusible foam stabilizer for the middle--it holds its shape nicely. It's just straight-line grid quilting and I used pre-made bias binding for the bottom--and the green matches my mom's teapot!  Score!  I do wish I had added a loop at the top as I think it gives a more finished look. 

Back in June, she saw the pillowcases I made myself and mentioned that pillowcases would be a good Christmas gift for her.  Preferably purple florals.  I didn't think I had anything that matched that description in my stash but I did!  So I made two pillowcases. The bands are the same fabric so that they coordinate; if you use them together they will look like they belong together even though they are different fabrics. The second fabric is pink rather than purple but I really like it and think she will, too.

I love the Roll It Up instructions from the Million Pillowcase Challenge and that's what I use every time I make a pillowcase.  I'm lucky mom reads the blog and tells me what she wants me to make--sure made making presents easy this year!

This is the last of the homemade presents from this year--no mommy-made gifts for my son though we did make a pillow together that we finished just before Christmas--pictures coming soon.