Sweet Childhood Memories

Long time ago, when I was a little girl, I owned a pair of shoes. My absolutely favourite and the most beautiful red and white shoes, with tiny golden snap fasteners and decorative rings on the front. Why do I remember this particular pair of shoes? I don't really know.

Maybe because when I was growing up, the colours used for children's foot wear were mostly dull or, to put it nicely, muted shades of brown, yellow, blue and red. This pair of shoes was different. It arrived all the way from Japan. The red and white colours were bright and clear, the shoes glistered in the light. Instead of usual boring laces or T bar buckles, they had golden (!) snaps that made a lovely soft clicking sound when pressed.

I still remember myself thinking that if I put these shoes on, nothing could stop me on my way, nothing could be too high for me to climb. I would walk around and everything would be as bright and sparkly like those shoes. They were happy shoes, shoes for special occasions.

I am really happy to see my sweet childhood memory, a small idea that materialised itself in fabric. But it was not that easy. This tiny pair of red shoes that I struggled with a lot during the process drove me crazy. I ended up peeling of the first pair of shoes and throwing them away because the edges of fabric frayed too much. Even though I felt like giving up on my idea and leaving it for some other time, I persisted and completed this piece of work. A linen keepsake envelope.

The envelope is done using the same pattern as in this tutorial. It has a magnetic snap fastener and a fabric covered button stitched on top of the flap. The bright red and white polka dot fabric for the lining matches linen perfectly.

There is something cheerful and springly about this colour combination. Or maybe it's an influence of approaching Christmas? The most challenging part was the stitching. I didn't want to use the sewing machine but it seemed almost impossible to get the result I was looking for without it. So instead of usual hand stitching on top of the applique, I had to use a back stitch only around the contour of the shoes. But I am happy. It looks exactly how I pictured it in my mind. So here it is - a keepsake envelope for sweet childhood memories. Memories that might seem a bit silly and funny sometimes but sweet memories that fill my heart with warmth and love.