teacher thank you gifts

It's the last day of school! When Avery started kindergarten, our district implemented a new calendar that runs from mid-August to mid-May. It still amazes me how quickly the end of the year creeps up!

Avery and Claire go to one of the coolest schools in town (in my opinion) and are surrounded by incredible teachers and staff. I had originally planned to do gifts just for their four homeroom teachers, but then the list grew to include everyone from gym teachers to the school secretaries. I needed to find a way to keep costs down. Enter the zip pouch!

I made 13 pouches, all of the same simple design. They are made out of what I thought was a grey crossweave (in reality it's more blue) and a single patterned fabric for the reverse applique window and lining. Everything came from my stash, including the interfacing and zippers. They sewed up quickly once I got an assembly line going. 

Avery and Claire put each one together. Inside the pouches are some yummy chocolates, a handwritten note from the girls and me, and a $5 Starbucks card for the homeroom teachers. The two male teachers in the school get a Starbucks card and chocolate instead of the pouch. I attached a tag to the zipper pull that has each teacher's name so that the girls can easily tell which one is which.

I'll admit that this is not normal for me-- usually I have grand plans to make things but then run out of time and end up doing a last minute dash to the store for gift cards. I'm happy to have had the chance to do something more personal. On to summer!