I could make that!

As a crafter, I think we tend to look at things in different ways. Anything fibre-related in shops makes me stop and stare. Then I nonchalantly wander over, pick it up and examine it carefully: could I make that? I often put it back smugly, thinking, "I could make that!" Of course, most of the time I never do - yes, yes, I know... I just like to reassure myself that I could weave a bamboo placemat or knit a hot water bottle cover if placed in a life-or-death situation. But occasionally I'm prompted into action. Or shamed into action, might be a better way to describe it, I'm afraid.

I was in a lovely little specialty store recently, looking for a birthday present for an English friend. I had an idea: I'd buy here an inexpensive china teapot, with a tea-cosy and a packet of fancy tea. I picked up tea-cosy after tea-cosy and thought, "I could make that! I could make that! I could make that!" And then realised that I should be smacked on the wrist if I bought something that I could so clearly make, with a little effort and imagination. I browsed pattern sites online but all of the tea-cosies were far too frilly and ornate: I wanted a straigtforward, honest-to-goodness, it-does-what-the-name-says tea-cosy. So, to follow is a pattern for a Straightforward Tea-Cosy.