Spicing up the Kitchen: Sent

Now that my partner has received her swap items, I can share the full details. My partner for Spicing up the Kitchen was Natalie. Natalie asked for black and white items with touches of yellow and red. She seemed excited about her package, so I feel really good about my swap items.

Besides the apron I showed you, I also made her a teatowel with embroidery and patchwork. The embroidery is from Sublime Stitching, and I'm thrilled with how it turned out.

I will definitely be embroidering more in the future. In fact, I've already started a new project. It's a cat; she's wearing a fur coat. Awesome.

I also made Natalie this potholder, using some scraps and a piece of Ruby Star Rising teacups for the front.

I really enjoyed my first swap experience.

Thanks to Erin and Darci for putting this group together on flickr. It was so much fun!

Spicing Up the Kitchen: Received!!

I have to say, being part of this swap has been so much fun. Not only am I "stalking" my secret partner, to make sure my items will make her day, but someone has been doing the same for me. And she nailed it!

I got my package last week, on a day when I REALLY needed a pick-me-up. It was a hectic week at work with lots of long hours. Becky (My Fabric Obsession) made these incredible placemats for me. Here's her blog post.

I can't get over the hexie cuteness. It's unbelievable to me, but this was her first attempt at hexagons. Really!

They are already on the table, and have already been loved a bit by the kitties. With my new tile floor in the living/dining room, it is starting to feel like home. I'm trying to think about some new decor ideas, and these lovely placemats were a great jumpstart for this room.

Becky, thanks so much for your beautiful placemats (and chocolate! and measuring spoons!).

My swap items are complete, so I'll be posting and sending my package soon!

Spicing up the Kitchen progress

I finished the biggest item for the kitchen swap this weekend, and I think I'll have trouble mailing it away.

Jamie Christina's Pretty Ditty apron is such a cute pattern, and I love this red geometric fabric, found at the Quilt Show last fall. I paired it with some of Robert Kaufman's Quilter's Linen in a blue-gray shade, which I think works well for the trim.

I learned some new techniques with this one, including a ruffle (which is probably my favorite part) and gathering stitches, a very useful technique.

Ruffle closeup

I'm almost finished with my swap offerings; I just have to make one quick supply run for the finishing touches! I hope to finish this up before the end of the week.

Spicing up the Kitchen preparations

I've been working on my SUtK swap offerings, but I've hit a bit of a wall. Sometimes, it's best to walk away and think about things before continuing, so that's what I'm doing now. Here's a sample of the fabrics I'm using:

I've added a bit to this stack, but I think it suits my partner pretty well.

I'm planning three parts for this swap, and the first one is complete.

The second part is where I've hit the wall. I've made two versions of the item, and it's just not quite perfect.

Do any of you have the same feeling of inadequacy when you know the item is for someone else? Anytime I'm making a gift, I'm ten times harder on myself about it.

I'm working on the dimensions of the third item, in the meantime. I've got one month left before I have to mail my package to my partner, so I've got a lot left to do!

2011: The Year of the Swap

I've joined three swaps for the new year. Perhaps that's a bit ambitious, seeing as I've never done one before. I'm very excited, though, and I feel confident I can complete these three commitments.

The first swap is Pillow Talk. This group is just completing their fourth round, and the projects are amazing. You can see some of the incredible past contributions here. I will get to make a pillow for another group member, and one will be made for me.

do. Good Stitches

The second group is do. Good Stitches, created by Stitched in Color. This isn't really a swap, but a charity quilting bee. It's a six month commitment, and each month, I make two quilt blocks for a quilt planner, who then completes a quilt top from the group's squares. The finished quilts are given to the charity of the quilter's choice. I'm excited, and am currently finishing up my first two quilt squares, which I'll share here when I'm finished. You can view the group's page here.

The final group I joined is the Spicing up the Kitchen swap. This is a brand new group and the swapping is just about to begin. I have until March 1st to complete my swap goodies.

I created this mosaic to give my secret partner some ideas and inspiration. (Please click through to the picture for image credits)

I think these three group will be a fun addition to my 2011 crafting. If all goes well, I plan to continue with them all, and maybe even join more groups as the year goes on.

I still have not finished thinking about my 2011 goals, but I'll be posting on that topic soon, as well as sharing another sewing FO.