Autos & Au Revoir: Choosing a Farewell Gift

When we lived in the south, we were teased for driving an Outback. We never saw another on the road, and I chuckled at the teeny tiny Subaru dealership the one time I had the car serviced - I think they only had five cars on the lot! Our first five minutes back in New England, though, we noted how every other car on the road was like ours, and joked that it wasn't just us but also our vehicle who was happy to be "home." So last summer as we headed to Kansas, we were expecting to be the exception once again... imagine our surprise when we turned onto our new street and there was another family with a Subaru, and they hailed from our home state! It might be silly to pin so many hopes on a car make, but we were certain we'd have a lot in common and looked forward to meeting them.

​Fast forward six months, and I'm happy to say that I have a wonderful friend who shares a lot of common interests (she even quilts!), and my kids have two little friends who they love to play outside with. ​Unfortunately, as is the bane of military life, when you meet wonderful people, you must soon say goodbye to wonderful people, and this month it's their chance to move (to the south, where they can experience the thrill of being the only people on the block not afraid of flurries ; )

I wanted to gift something thoughtful for them to remember our time here together. The mom likes useful and minimal, and loves educational, open ended gifts for her boys, so I settled on placemats for the family (added bonus, they'll take up very little room in the car since her going away party is happening after the movers depart). I had a mini charm pack of V and Co's Color Me Happy on hand that included some of my friend's favorite colors, and really, what boy wouldn't enjoy eating with Vikings? On the reverse of all four, I appliqued table settings for the kids to practice setting the table with. I'm hoping they'll use these for years to come, and that with a little luck, we'll all cross paths again!

If you'd like to make some of these for your family or friends,
check out my Table Setting Placemat Tutorial. ​

​​And now for the last bit of 4x7 Sewing Challenge business - announcing the final winner! Except I have better news: TWO winners! I wish I could send prizes to every person who plays along, but when you're providing all your own prizes, there are some financial limitations. That said, I adore Hawthorne Threads as much as I love giving gifts, so I decided to stretch and choose two people to receive a $25 gift certificate each. ​

​Congratulations to #2 and #7 - Shauna of Shauna's World and Sarah of Sarah Goer Quilts! And thank you again to everyone who participated in the challenge this year. I hope to see you in 2017!

Do you have a favorite handmade farewell gift? One you've received
or one you love to give to friends who depart? Let me know below
because I say a lot of goodbyes and would love some fresh ideas!

~ Sarah