Sewing in Secret

This past week I've been sewing in secret.
A birthday present for my soon-to-be-17-year-old daughter (man, that makes me feel old!!).

She's a Girl Guide and has been working towards the Queen's Guide Award.
She needed to learn a new skill as part of the award, and to my delight she chose patchwork!
Ok, so it was partly an easy option because she knew I could help, but it's so nice to have her showing some interest.  She's been making a very cute doll's quilt for her little cousin as her first project.  And she's often raiding my sewing stuff for needles and thread to sew on Guide badges.

So, with her birthday coming up I decided to make her a sewing kit of her own, with all her own supplies, to help feed the crafty interest!

I've had this travel sewing kit by Amy on my list to make ever since I first saw it.  I adore her patchwork version, so went with that one for mine too.  I'm a little embarrassed looking back at hers, how similar mine is.  I mean, I even put that little deer print in the same spot!!  We obviously have many of the same prints in our stashes :)

The deer placement was completely unintentional.  I wanted to avoid my usual agonizing over layouts so heaped my squares on the table and shut my eyes as I rummaged around and picked up each one.  I have to say, it turned out great and I can't imagine liking it more had I carefully placed each one.  I'm undecided about the red binding, but it's Mia's favourite colour, so it seemed the right choice.

I filled it up with pins and needles, needle threaders and a seam ripper, cute purple scissors and a matching tape measure and a rainbow of thread-filled bobbins for sewing on those colourful Guide badges :)

Now it's wrapped and ready.  I hope she loves it!  Now, just have to make one for myself :)