24 September 2009

Handmade birthday

Yesterday my sweet little Owen turned four.

I really wanted to make a something special birthday gift to give him, inspired, as usual, by soulemama, whose little girl also turned four this month and received a handmade quilt from her mama. Since a quilt was a bit ambitious for my skills and the little time I had to sew, I settled for something quicker and smaller.

I actually give the credit for this idea to Jeff, who thought it up during an evening brainstorming session with me four nights before the actual birthday.

You see, our Owen is a lover of all things Thomas the Train, which, at first I hated, and now I love because during the past two years of his collecting, I have seen the genius in this wooden train set that began in 1945 as a series of stories written by Rev. Awdry for his grandson, Christopher.

Anyone familiar with Thomas will know that all the useful engines rest at night in a sort of roundhouse called Tidmouth Shed. Jeff's idea was to construct a version of Tidmouth shed in which Owen's engines could rest for the night.

Here is the plastic version that is for sale:


And here is my version:


The best thing about sewing this little project is that Owen helped me choose the fabric and then promptly forgot about it, which made the opening of the birthday gift that much more fun when he saw his fabric choice sewn into something which hopefully will turn out to be, as Sir Topham Hatt would say"very useful indeed."

12 comments:

Jessica said...

you never cease to amaze me, bean! what a fun idea. i'll bet he was thrilled!

jefferies said...

very cool! my boys love thomas too...which I also wasn't too thrilled with at first but i'm ok with now. :-)

David and Jana said...

Very clever! I love it. Way to go Kristine, I bet he loved it!

Jen said...

Hi friend! How is everything going? I am so envious of your skills and love that you can give something meaningful to your kids! It turned out great!

~ann said...

Oh my gosh - that is just about the cutest thing I have ever seen. I really had some little tears come to my eyes when I saw your perfect little creation because I just love that you came up with that idea and had the skills to do it. Your boys are so lucky to have you. I love you!

Em said...

that is so fun. how'd you make it stiff? is it duck cloth or what's it lined with? good yob!

Trisha said...

That is so awesome! Very creative, Kristine!

Emily said...

You are amazing!!! We are Thomas fans too, Easton would LOVE that! You are so talented!

Jen I said...

That is so cute. Cash would love something like that too.

Anonymous said...

Your such a cool mom! Will didnt get such creative presents on his
4th bday!

Lis said...

"So much better than China," Thomas chuffed.

WASHINGTON SOUTHWORTHS said...

Thomas hasn't quite caught on fully at our house yet - we're all about Handy Manny. I'll take Thomas over Dora or Diego ANY day though!!
Great job on the present. Very creative. I am always in awe of others' sewing talents. :)