This Christmas I received a handmade gift from my friend Kelleen. You may remember that together we took on a pincushion project last spring that I despaired of ever finishing. It included tiny counted cross-stitch on linen that I thought was going to make me go blind. I did eventually complete the project. How I laughed when I opened my present and saw that my friend had tackled this challenging pattern once again, this time to make me a sewing box that matches my pincushion!

Kelleen actually made the cord that draws the sides together when you close the box, and she says that turned out to be the most time-consuming part of the project. She got me the perfect present: something I love having that I would never have made myself. Thanks, Kelleen!