swap #2

Swap #2 is Doll Quilt Swap 6. There have been 6 rounds of Doll Quilt Swap, and I have done every single one of them. I was beginning to feel like this might be my last one, but nope! This was a fun round. I had a great partner on both ends! Sign me up for the next round.

Let me share with you why I like this swap so much.
1. The camaraderie is wonderful between all the swappers in the flickr pool and discussions.
2. It's sneaky. You know who you are sending too, but you don't know who is sending to you.
3. It feels like Christmas waiting to see who gets what.
4. It inspires me to create something new. It truly pushes me creatively.
5. And if you get a great quilt, especially the one you've had your eye on, it is like icing on the cake!

Amy is the one who sent to me. Look at this beauty! Amy is a sneaky one too! Did you know she is the wedge making queen? She and I were talking about our love of this quilt. And she drafted a paper pieced pattern and sent it to me to try. Then she starts making one for DQS6, and I'm thinking "whoever gets that is a lucky duck!" All the while she is making it for me. She even sends me an email saying "we should do a swap sometime". sneaky sneaky!




She also sent doggie pillowcases for the kids:




and a few great fabrics for me:




Thanks Amy! I love it!


Here is the quilt I made for Anita/RhubarbPatch. Another lover of houses. I knew I wanted to make houses. When do I not want to make houses? And I haven't tried row houses before. But I wasn't sure what fabrics to use. Then I started looking at pictures of row houses, and realized that it was just the colors I was seeing and the structural details. aha! I used all solids and solidish fabrics for the first time. And thought black doors and roofs would keep things simple and unified. Did you know you can hide all kinds of "mistakes" in prints, but you can't hide a thing in solids! Solids will amplify any quilting or piecing mistakes. yikes!




Here is the back. House fabric from joann's. And a leftover block for the label. Did you know I'm pretty lazy? Sad to admit. My mother still shakes her head at me sometimes. When I make a label, I usually write on a piece of fabric or extra block with a micron pen, heat set it, and piece it into the back. That way, when I'm done quilting and binding, the label is already done.




It was a pleasure to make this for you Anita, and I'm thrilled that you like it!