Originally Posted by Ellie

Last weekend, while chatting with the sales woman at the Viking machine area at my local JoAnns, a woman stopped to ask a question. She was looking for someone who could make a Christmas stocking for her. The last gift you'd received from her mother was a pair of country style, crazy patch Christmas stockings. Her mother passed away sometime after the holidays so they were a treasured keepsake. While decorating the house this year, she was able to find only one of the stockings. Both she and her husband frantically searched without luck. Her husband suggested that she find someone who'd be willing to make a substitute in a similar style.
By the time this young, partially deaf woman related the story the story to us, she was fighting back tears.
Neither the sales woman or I sewed for anything but our own pleasure, family, friends or charity and only had suggestions on where else she might go to ask.
When she showed us the stocking of raggedy edged plaids, I told her, that if she was willing to trust me with the remaining stocking, that I would see what I could do for her, and she agreed. I'm currently working, in bits and pieces, on a plaid rag quilt for Project Linus, so have the plaids close at hand.
Did a tracing of the general outline, scanned the pieced front inorder to get the correct angles, examined it closely to seen how it'd be constructed and sorted through my fabrics.
The stocking was fully lined with a thin spong batting layer, no exposed seams except for the rag edge crazy patch and a fold down cuff. I had to substitute felt for the batting layer and used unbleached musling for the lining in place of the thinner, cream colored fabric in the original.
Tuesday, I called and left a message on her answering machine to let her know I'd made the stocking (actually made 2 slightly different fabrics for her to choose between). Called me back when she got home from work and couldn't wait to see it. Got directions to her house a couple of miles away and was there within a few minutes.
The expression and tears on both her and her husbands faces when they saw the stockings, made me especially proud. They hugged me so tight that I thought I'd have bruises. Hadn't put a price on the stockings and left it up to them. I'd made them something they thought priceless as a substitute for one that was treasured but missing. That in itself was justification for my time and materials and their payment I thought generous.

Will upload a picture of all three once the grandkids school Christmas pagents are over. From tomorrow through the day school lets out for the holidays, I'll be driving out of town and in several different directions to attend them.

Sorry, I have a tendency to be a bit long winded.

Would love to hear stories from others about items you've made as gifts, donations or sold, that, for some reason, made them especially proud.