Collaboration

I’m not always on the ball teacher-gift-wise, but this year, I managed to get it done with a little help from the kids.  Erin’s coffee cup cozy tutorial is something I’ve been eyeing since she posted it last year, and I finally decided to try it, when I realized that it’s a perfect project for kids and moms to do together.

I don’t normally ask the boys to get involved, to be perfectly honest, because it’s often more trouble than it’s worth.  They are reluctant collaborators.  They do like to make things, but on their own terms, in their own time.  Crafting with Mom usually involves tearing themselves away from whatever screen they are attached to at the moment, and that’s never a popular option.

Still, I asked for their assistance this time, because I want them to be actual participants in the gift-giving process, and not just the messengers of the finished goods.  There were a few groans here and there, but for the most part, they were accepting of their roles as fabric-choosers, button pickers, and fabric cutters.  I traced the pattern onto the fabrics they picked out, they cut out the shapes, and I sewed the whole thing together according to Erin’s instructions.

I learned something unexpected from this little project.  If you know me at all, you know I have a tendency toward the matchy-matchy.  So when I asked the boys to pick out fabrics and a button, it was all I could do to keep from twitching as Eamonn revealed his selections.  The main aqua/gold/green/brown fabric, didn’t have much in common with the pink/green/orange button, and neither of them went with the red checked pattern of the lining fabric.  Oy.  But you know what?  Although I would never have chosen to put those colors and patterns together myself, the resulting cozy is my favorite of the three.  All of that stuff really works together.  The lesson here?  I really ought to be more adventurous with color and think like a six-year-old now and then.

This project used entirely things I had on hand: fabric from my stash, and buttons I made some time ago.  Even the packaging was was scrounged: Sew Mama Sew gift tags I’d printed out last Christmas and hadn’t needed, twine, and small heavy-duty brown bags that at one time carried sandwiches from the bagel shop.  The only brand new components were the coffee shop gift cards I snuck into the bags.

These were fun.  If I didn’t have a million other things to do, I’d make one for myself   Thanks for the pattern, Erin!

This day in blog history:

• Truly embracing handmade? - 2008

This topic in blog history:

• In reverse - September 2008
• I just like playing with them - February 2009
• Buttons can keep your coffee cozy - May 2009