handmade gift roundup: throw pillows for Mom

Mom also got pillows for Christmas. It was a pillow kind of Christmas. Now, I have to confess, I actually gave Mom an IOU for new covers for the throw pillows in her den last year. But I never followed up, and she never picked out a fabric, so it never happened. Happily, just a few weeks before Christmas we went on a family trip to NYC and Mom and I got to spend a whole morning roaming around the garment district. There are not many things I miss about New York, but the garment district is a big one. We went to B&J, where Mom got me yardage of a beautiful blue wool to make into a skirt AND some Liberty tana lawn (EEEEP!) for a shirt. (Wait for it--you'll see these appear in the New Year.) We went to M&J Trimming for buttons and ribbon. And then we went to Mood where Mom picked out this awesome wool boucle for her pillows.

I wish you could feel this material. It is the softest wool I have ever felt. It must have some angora or something in it as well, because as I sewed, tiny bits of white fluff floated all around me. I was so happy with the way the piping turned out--I love how the striping runs perpendicular to the piping. (Trust me to get giddy about piping.)

Mom got four of these pillow covers for her den. And she didn't even call me out for what was basically a re-gift, since I promised her these a year ago.

In some ways, Mom is as hard to shop for as Dad--simply because she is so generous that she's always thinking about other people instead of herself. I guess that's a common maternal trait, but my Mom does it exceptionally well. She has taught me so much about sewing and fabrics, and her encouragement over the years has been the biggest driver behind my creativity. How do you thank someone for that? Handmade pillows is a start I guess.