Savvy Seasons Swap 2011

I've been working on this for quite a while, but it kept slipping my mind to take photos...so I'm just gonna jump right in with both feet and show you the finished product!

My secret partner requested a table runner that could be used throughout the winter, and not just during Christmas (which is really good, because she'd only have gotten a week's worth of use out of it!), so I went with a winter snowman theme. The snowman block is 12", the two Winter Woolies blocks are 6" x 12", and the whole shebang measures roughly 18" x 38".

I've actually had this project sketched out since the day I got my partner assignment, but I had a devil of a time deciding on fabrics. I wanted to use linen, plus a mixture of traditional Christmas colors and a splash of blue. Coordinating those four things wasn't too difficult, but what really complicated matters was the tiny piecing. I needed to find red, green and blue prints that matched, plus in a small enough scale to show up well with the paper piecing. I finally settled on the three diamond prints from Kate Spain's Flurry line for the binding and sashing, a cute blue & white dot print that resembled snow for the snowman + Winter Woolies background, and another Flurry print called Nordic Winter Stripe for the back (which I love, love, love!). The hat and scarf are from an old Caleb Gray Groove print, and the green glove print is one I picked up a while ago at Joann's from the fat quarter rack.

Don't you just love Kerry's Winter Woolies block pattern? Everything she makes is so stinkin' cute! I added a wee little button on top of each toboggan instead of appliqueing the little ball on.

Here's a closeup of all that tiny paper piecing. Kerry's pattern is very easy to follow, and I promise it's not nearly as hard as it looks...it just takes some time :)

And I'm really loving this little guy because he looks like a stack of puffy marshmallows! I made him using 2", 3", and 4" snowball blocks, then added some free motion stick arms and button eyes.

And here's a shot of that Nordic Stripe print I love so much. I bought just enough to back this, but I'm gonna have to go back and snag some more for myself now. I don't know if you all have used this line or not, but it's SO stinking soft!

 And just for good measure, I threw in some kitchen towels because you can never have enough of them.

Here's my whole package ready to go out....the runner, kitchen towels, two fat quarters, various Flurry scraps, Coffee Crisp candy bar (I blame Kristie for getting me addicted to those!), and a cute notepad of two ladies eating cake that says "it's ok, it's organic!". Because as we all know, even cake is magically transformed into a health food when it's organic *wink*.

Hope you like it partner!

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It's Beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

I got off work early today because we had our big office Christmas party, and as I was stuck for 30 minutes behind a train 2 blocks from my house (grr!), I was trying to decide what I wanted to do with my extra spare time! I thought about getting started on the 7 Christmas presents I still need to make, or posting my new holiday bunting tutorial on here, or doing the pile of dishes in my sink. But ultimately, I decided to crash on the sofa and catch up on my backlogged shows on Hulu Plus. Until...

...I pulled up to my house and found my Savvy Seasons swap package on my porch, which included some delicious homemade cookies!!!! The plan was then modified to include sofa + Hulu Plus + blogging + cookies + hot chai (my friend gave me this delicious new brand at Whole Foods called Festivus - yum!)

Do you like how I skillfully kept the packaging intact, while managing to squeeze a cookie (or two) out through the tiny opening? What can I say...I was born with talent, lol!

And my favorite? The little fabric fortune cookie she attached, which had a teeny little "To & From" tag tucked inside. So creative! My partner was Nancy (who is one of my readers - yay!), and I can't believe the amount of care and detail she put into my package - it makes me want to try so much harder on all of my swap packages, because I want to make all my partners feel as special as packages like this make me feel :)

They recently extended the mailing deadline to the 14th (thank goodness!) and I haven't mailed my box yet, so I'm looking forward to spending some extra time on my swap partner. Hopefully I'm able to make things for my partner that are as cute as these...

A sweet bunting note card...

A precious wee fabric Scottie ornament.

An absolutely adorable scrappy Christmas tree skirt! I've been dying for a handmade tree skirt to replace the crappy one I bought at an after-Christmas sale a few years ago, and this one looks so lovely under our tree (it matches the rug perfectly!)

I was laughing out loud to myself while laying underneath the tree with the lights shining in my face, because I kept thinking of that line from A Christmas Story "Only one thing in the world could've dragged me away from the soft glow of electric sex gleaming in the window".....hahaha!

But that's not all! She also added some cute plaid towels to go with the Christmas/Scottie/Plaid Scottie theme. They're now being proudly displayed on my oven :)

Thanks for the beautiful and incredibly thoughtful package Nancy, and I love that I got to know you a little better through all these gorgeous handmade goodies :)

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Goodie Bag Swap, Round 2

I received my new bag from my partner wen_ot in the Goodie Bag Swap yesterday! I took photos as soon as I got home from work today, because I'm anxious to cram all my stuff in there and start using it! This bag is so perfectly me...I love the wool, the cute wonky yellow stitching, and especially the "secret" front pocket :)

That little hole in the front isn't just a cool design element - it's a giant pocket! I'm going to keep my phone, iPod, and a few other frequently used items in there :) My brother-in-law thought this bag was about the coolest thing since sliced bread....I think that concealed pocket in the front was transporting him back to his Hardy Boys mystery days, lol.

And he was even more impressed when I told him it was reversible. And because Wendy thinks of everything, she put a cute summery print on the inside so that I can use my new bag year round! The striped fabric is a really thin, soft cotton that's perfect for the blazing inferno summer days down here in New Orleans :)

Thanks Wendy! I absolutely love it!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Goodie Bag Swap

November is always our busiest time of year at work, because most of our clients renew their policies January 1st (which means we're working behind the scenes putting everything in place 2-3 months in advance of that). I worked roughly 8 hours of overtime last week, so it was a real rat race trying to get my swap bag finished and to the post office in time! I really need to reform my procrastinating ways - argh!

This bag is very simple in appearance, and a departure from the bright colors and busy patterns I'm drawn to, but I had a really hard time letting this go at the post office! To date, I think this was my hardest swap item to part with, mostly because I'm madly in love with how the B&W plaid and mustard yellow look together - it's got a cool, retro vibe to it. Plus I'm a sucker for a good wintery plaid, and the Moda Bella Solid I used for the outside was so buttery soft. I just wanted to rub it on my face, lol! (don't worry partner, I didn't actually do that). I love this bag so, so much and feel like it's the most "professional" looking one I've made. Hopefully my partner likes it - I'm worried it might be a little too simple.

As you can see in the photos below, I decided to alter the pattern a bit and add a zipper pocket. I don't know how the rest of you feel, but if I'm going to go to the trouble of making a fancy bag, I'm gonna make it worth the effort by adding hardware that's durable and polished looking - especially if it's for someone else!

I left in the large pocket that was called for in the pattern, and eliminated the smaller pocket that is supposed to lay over it, so now my partner will have storage on both sides of the purse - a zipper pocket on the side closest to her body, and a large pocket with two sections for her phone, keys, etc. opposite that.

I've been wanting to try this pattern for a while, and even bought the fabric used on the cover, but hadn't gotten around to it in the year+ that I've had it. I'm always at the bottom of my To Do list - but I think it's safe to say we're all like that :)

This pattern is a bit tedious with a lot of detail work, but overall I thought it was well-written and easy to follow (I've always had good luck with her patterns). I did find one error though, which I'll pass on so you all don't make the same mistake. When you get to the point where you're supposed to make two gathering seams 1/4" and 3/4" away from the top and bottom of the exterior panels, you should make the second seam only 1/2" away from the edges. The finishing seam when sewing the exterior of the bag together is only 5/8", so if you place the gathering seam 3/4" away (rather than 1/2"), it will show when you turn the bag right side out. I wondered about that while I was making the 3/4" seam (since most of the seams up until that point had been 5/8"), but instead of reading ahead to make sure, I trusted that the directions were correct, and ended up having to rip out both seams. Make a mental note on this, because picking out stitches between a million tiny gathers is not fun!

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Pouchie Love

I've been a little quiet on the blog front lately (which is pretty much the only area of my life where I'm ever quiet...Angela and Karen can vouch for that *wink*), because I've been frantically sewing Christmas presents for my family and numerous other secret projects that can't be revealed on here. One thing that I did forget to mention, is that I received the most gorgeous Echino pouch from Rebecca last week! She was my secret partner in the Pretty Little Pouch Swap, and she totally nailed my style!

There's a little snap closure pocket on the front (which is incredibly convenient for storing receipts).

And on the inside of my pouch, she tucked in a voile sunglasses case (since I live in the year-round sunshine of New Orleans...seriously...it was 70 degrees yesterday), a folding needle case, a Thor card for the hubs (he was SO excited), and some treats for me and Mr. Whiskers which were eaten long ago (some Reese's Cups and doggie treats...just to clarify - I ate the Reese's and Whiskers ate the dog treats).

Here's a better shot of the little origami needle case. LOVE it! It's really gonna come in handy, because I like to carry portable sewing tools with me for wardrobe emergencies at work. I can't tell you how many times I've fixed tears and missing buttons on my coworker's suits. In fact, a month after I was promoted into my new unit this summer, I ended up having to stick my hand down my boss' dress (lol!) and sew the top button back on her shirtdress because it was gaping open and exposing her bra. Did I mention we were also driving down the interstate in my coworker's minivan on our way to a lunch meeting while I was doing this? So yeah. Portable sewing kits are a must-have. And so are bosses with a good sense of humor :)

All of your handmade goodies will be much loved and used. Thanks Rebecca :)

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Pretty Little Pouch Swap

I love tiny wee pouches so much, that I broke my "no swaps for a year" rule again *sheepish grin*. I signed up for Kelly and Michelle's Pretty Little Pouch Swap because it's one of my favorites!

I just finished my pouch for my partner, and I'm proud of myself because I actually finished two whole days ahead of the mailing deadline. That's gotta be some kinda record for me :)

I love playing with texture and odd techniques, and I've been wanting to try my hand at finding a way to "weave" fabric without having a bunch of raw seams. My solution was buttonholes! I made a total of 42 buttonholes on each side of the pouch so that I could weave fabric strips in and out....I kinda screwed the pooch on the placement of the buttonholes on the alternating rows, because I off-set them instead of directly lining them up with the previous row. Oh well. Things still turned out okay (I think) - hopefully my partner likes it because I saw a lot of linen and rainbow colors in her mosaic and photostream :)

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I Heart Mail (and lovely online friends)

The best thing about owning my own house? Not having to hurry to the Post Office before the end of business hours and stand in line for 30 minutes so I can pick up my packages.

Everyone enjoying the shadow of my camera in this photo? lol

I got this in the mail from my awesome (and hilarious) new friend Kristie. She sent me some chocolate and fancy Canadian soap, but the chocolate was gone as soon as my husband heard the words "White Chocolate Pistachio", and the Lemongrass soap is currently in my shower after I used it to scrub the violent smell of garlic off my hands after making the world's largest batch of guacamole for 4th of July. There's no doubt these gifts were well-received and appreciated in our home :)

I love the Plaid and Keep Calm magnets. I think we need to start swapping city magnets along with our fabric so we can have a fun record of our friends around the world :)  I might have already found a slightly inappropriate New Orleans magnet to send in my return "sorry your cottage flooded" package. So sad about their lovely summer home :(

And look, the bag even rolls up into a precious little travel-friendly bundle!

And I'm really late posting this, but here's the stunning bag I received from Meg in the Goodie Bag Swap! She was spot on with the fabric because I love AMH's Drawing Room line, and the Volumes print is my fav! I made the shams on my bed out of that print!

You can tell I've already used it quite a bit, because it's a tad wrinkly in these photos. And can I tell you how ridiculously excited my husband is over the key fob? I always carry giant, slouchy purses and my keys inevitably sink to the bottom. It drives my hubby crazy when he has to stand outside the car and bake in the scorching New Orleans sun while I dig for my keys for 5 minutes....oops! But now I don't have to do that anymore, since I have a handy-dandy fob to attach my keys to. Now that's some good clean livin' there my friends!

Yay for lovely packages I can snatch directly from my mailbox the same day they arrive :)

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Goodie Bag Swap (aka the last swap I'll be doing for a good long while)

For the last 6 months or so, I've barely had time to do any designing or actual quilting because of the borderline insane number of swaps I've been in. I can't say that I regret it, because how can you regret meeting awesome new online friends and receiving super cool stuff like this?

Today I finished sewing my last swap commitment, and aside from running the Goodie Bag Swap with Angela again in the fall, I'm taking a year off from swaps to focus on personal sewing and designing - it's time to get those creative juices flowing! I'll still be plugging along at my usual pace and posting on here, except that I'll be focusing more on posting helpful tutorials for you guys, original patterns, and more quilting! Yeah! Bring on the quilting! *bangs forks on table*

I taught myself to sew & quilt 100% through the internet back in 2007, and I wouldn't have been able to do it if it weren't for the generosity of bloggers who shared their patterns & tutorials for free. I want to pay it forward, because sewing has become a huge blessing in my life, and teaching others this skill has become one of my passions. It really excites me when I can help someone learn how to make something on their own...because isn't it so incredibly freeing to be able to make things for yourself? Exactly how you want them?! No more scouring stores looking for the perfect color, material, or details. Once you know how to sew, you can snap a photo, go home, and create it from scratch with new & improved features!

All that aside, I'm behind on so many wedding and baby quilts it's not even funny. The one I'm most excited about (that I probably won't get to until later in the summer) is a Mad Men inspired wedding quilt for my good friend Amanda. She got married this past weekend and I'm making an original quilt for her that I've dubbed the "Swanky Squares" quilt...it may or may not involve some retro-looking paper pieced blocks ;)

So here goes. These will be the last swap photos I post for a good looooong while. My partner asked for a messenger bag, and I decided to go all out because I like experimenting with hardware. This was my first attempt at sewing webbed belting material, plastic snaps and adjustable shoulder straps, and while it was a pain in the cartouche to finagle that stuff under my needle at times, overall, it wasn't nearly as bad as I anticipated.

The finished dimensions are roughly 17 x 12 x 4. I pulled the measurements from the messenger bag pattern in Sew What Bags, but the instructions and techniques in that book are pretty shoddy (no interfacing, unlined pockets, no interior pockets, nothing to fasten the flap, non-adjustable strap...who wants a big messenger bag with a non-adjustable strap?), so I didn't use anything other than the materials/cutting section. All the fabric is home decor weight and I interfaced the daylights outta this thing, so my partner can literally carry around bricks if she wants. I also added two zippered pockets because I like having lots of secure little compartments for hiding my stuff :)  I put one in the front flap because I once had a messenger bag with a pocket there, and it was a God-send. It kept me from having to fish through my bag for my keys and phone all the time - ugh.

Alright. Sorry. I'll stop blathering on now. I've really run quite the gamut of topics with this post, haven't I? Focus Kaelin, focus! Just shut your yap and show us the pictures, crazy blogger lady!

In 2 days it went from this...

To this...

Side

(the side panels are about 4" wide)

Back

I told you I loved pockets. Total, there are 6 regular pockets + 2 zippered pockets.

My favorite fabric is the interior. It's a really heavy linen with brown stripes I found at a discount home decor shop.

You can fit a crapload of stuff in here. There's plenty of room left over even with a 3" binder, hardback book, and 2" wide software box crammed in there.

Here's a closeup so you can see the 3 different fabrics living in harmony....*ebony & ivory, live together in perfect harmony...la la la*

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