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Amanda's keychain... |
About ten days ago, we removed personal belongings from our vacation home —
the one I made these
skylight curtains
for a few years back — and said goodbye forever.
After a decade and a half, we took advantage of an insane economic boom
running through the area and decided to cash out.
Even though my own feelings about the place — the town itself, not the home —
have been ambivalent for some time now, it's oddly bittersweet to arrive at
the end.
For those of you wondering what any of this has to do with today's topic, our
buyer's name is Amanda. This is her keychain.
She was easy to work with (although I can't say the same for her overly aggressive lawyer, who didn't seem to grasp that this was a simple real estate transaction and not a criminal or fraud case) and I wanted to show my appreciation with something
handmade when we turned over the keys. Under the circumstances, what could be
more appropriate as a gift?
Once I latched onto the idea, a two minute online search convinced me to use hexies, especially since I already had a collection of premade ones from a few years ago.
I chose two that were made with Peltex, so your first step will be to
create a couple of
Peltex backed hexies. After that, here are the rest of the required supplies. (You'll also need
some optional interfacing, fabric glue and a split key ring.) Something to
decorate the reverse side with is also good; I had a special brad to
use as you'll see later.
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| What you need... |
Shown with the completed hexies above are two strips of matching fabric,
each originally about an inch wide. I took a 4" long section and folded the
sides in towards the middle (this is the piece at the bottom of the
picture).
I also interfaced it since I had a scrap of Decor Bond lying
around. This was then folded in half and sewn as shown below. This will be
the tab piece for the split ring.
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| Sew up the strips... |
The other piece — which was about 8" long but how much you need will
depend on what monogram is being made — was folded as you would a standard
"no turn" strap (i.e., edges to the center and then folded down the
center) and sewn along both edges.
By the way, if your letter isn't just formed from straight lines, consider
cutting this strip of fabric on the bias so it can curve more easily.
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| Use the thin strip to create a monogram... |
Cut the strip into pieces needed to form the monogram.
I got lucky with the letter "A", since it's simple to create. (The top of
the letter is folded; I would suggest doing it that way if you have an "N",
"M", "V" or "W" too.)
Use fabric glue (or double-sided tape) to help keep the pieces in place before sewing. I managed to sew all the way around the letter in one continuous sweep.
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| Fabric glue comes to the rescue... |
Ensure that your thread matches well with your fabric(s). (Or have a busy fabric print like I have here to hide any wonky stitching.) This means having a different coloured thread for the bobbin later on, if necessary.
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| My finished monogram... |
The next step is to put the two hexies together — with the ring tab in
between — and stitch closed.
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| Getting it ready for the final sew... |
Since the hexies were made with the Peltex fusible sides facing up, a
good press with the iron right now will help seal the two together before
stitching.
Here's the back side of the keychain... embellished with a heart shaped brad featuring a butterfly.
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| Reverse side of keychain... |
Among other things, a butterfly evokes hope, change, life and
transformation.
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| Apt symbolism of a butterfly... |
I believe Amanda would agree that it's an appropriate symbol as she steps
into a new phase of life as a homeowner.
Meanwhile, hubby and I are also turning a page as we bid farewell to (a much
underused) home away from home. It's never easy to let go of something into
which you poured literal blood and sweat (although not any tears that I'm
aware of) over fifteen years. Our efforts, however, made it the arguable
jewel of the block.
We may feel slightly conflicted for a while yet, but it's reassuring to know
that our former home has been handed over to an owner who will carry on the pride of ownership.
'Til next...
Feeling bittersweet about such decisions in life is so normal, Rochelle, and this one is very understandable. The best part is knowing that Amanda is taking over as the new owner and making her own memories in your vacation home. She will love her new keychain, especially knowing it's handmade by you with such sweet thoughts put into it. Cheers to you for making good moves!
ReplyDeleteThe perfect gift for the new owner. Some things are harder to let go of than others, but I am sure you had many lovely memories and photos that you can look at when you want to. It was the perfect time to sell as prices for everything all over the world have gone up and especially vehicles. They barely have any cars on the sales lots here and you have to order a car so no more bargaining and hardly any car sales people anymore.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on making a difficult decision. I know as I sold my vacation home 2 yrs. ago. The memories and the $ you made are where you will find comfort.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Mary. Yes, there were good memories and the monetary payback is certainly nothing to complain about, but I'll also find comfort in not having to pull weeds out there ever again!
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