Fee’s Tea Towel

I have known Fee since October 1993; she was a student where I worked and I was her Practice Teacher.  We have maintained a close friendship over the years, even when she moved from the Midlands, back to Devon.  Fee has been a regular reader of my Tea Towel Blog, often offering comments, memories and constructive criticism about my ability to take photographs of my tea towels which involved me retaking photographs of all 800 tea towels.  It seems very appropriate to me that Fee should be my first ‘Guest’.  Fee is definitely not a tea towel collector; she admits to only owning five!

“Well – who would have thought it – my favourite tea towel is one you made for me.  I only have five tea towels – you may have given me three of them.  I have certainly never purchased one in my life…. I love this because it is such a thoughtful and individual and unique tea towel – and it was a lovely gift.  It makes me think about how thoughtful you always are.  And how much I feel loved by you.  Especially this last week when I have been ill and you’ve been emailing every day and sending me photos and updates of your adventures.

I have never used this tea towel – the only one of my five to have that honour (you wouldn’t call it that!!) but it seems too nice to use – and also it has my face on it and it seems too weird.  It (the photograph) was taken in my kitchen in Dawlish – a house I loved”

When I had finished counting my tea towels, and realised that I had some duplicates, one of which related to Self Advocacy in Action, a group Fee worked with, I offered it to her.  Her response was “Well – of the five tea towels I actually own – one is a Self Advocacy in Action one.  I think a duplicate in such a small collection might be a bit unbalanced so I will decline”.

I was then fascinated to know exactly what Fee’s tea towel collection consisted of “Two are of Leicester (I bought both of those as part of her Leaving Leicester gift) but different designs and one says Lobster Fresh with Boston on it.  Make of that what you will”

Bearing in mind Fee has no great love of tea towels, a tea towel can always conjure up memories and feelings (even for Fee).  Thank you Fee.