Mug Rug Swap - Part 2 - From Amy to Amanda

If you're a regular reader, 

you will have already seen my first post about

the little mug rug swap

I've had with Amanda of The Patchsmith!

{Here's the mug rug Amanda created, just for me!}

Now I'd like to share what I sent to Amanda, 

along with a description of the design process.

Once Amanda and I had agreed to swap mug rugs,

I had a brief moment of panic,

as I realized I didn't have any idea what her

personal tastes are.

Amanda was kind enough to take a quiz for me...

20 questions to discover her preferences for colors,

patterns, and themes.

1.      Bold and Bright, or Soft and Sweet?

2.      Black, White, or Black and White?

3.      Whimsical or Practical?

4.      Classic or Modern?

And so on...

So now I had somewhere to begin!

From the quiz, 

it was clear that Amanda has a love for nature and gardens,

flowers and animals.

I pulled out my Botanika fabric 

by Paula Prass for Michael Miller,

and the fussy cutting began.

I used some bright greens...like this one

from Bijoux by Heather Bailey...

and various Black and White prints, to tie it all together.

Here's the final mug rug...called "Unlock Your Dreams".

And the back...more Bijoux by Heather Bailey,

with a little bee from the Botanika print.

{Hello, little Bee.}

I like to use Pellon 987F fusible fleece 

instead of batting,

to get a flat ready-to-quilt mug rug.

For this one I used parallel lines in many directions.

OK...I loved it...but would Amanda?

{Insecurity entered the scene...}

Maybe it was a bit too bright and wild.  

And there wasn't a single FLOWER on the whole mug rug!

Hmmm...on the quiz, there was a question,

"Wild or tame?"

and she answered, "Ooooooooh...BOTH!"

That gave me an idea...make a Tame one, too!

I knew Amanda loves fresh country prints and blue is her favorite color.

This time I started with some pretty blue prints from

Delilah, Darla, and Sugar Hill,

all by Tanya Whelan for Free Spirit.

{Here's a look at Sugar Hill.}

Between those three lines, I used lots of 

florals, polka dots, stripes, and gingham.

And now for the design decisions...

If you check out my blog header, you will see that I've used

one of my mug rugs for the photo.

I love the simple style of this mug rug...a strip of Tumblers,

and lots of modern straight-line quilting in the background areas.

Simple and sweet.

I knew I would have fun re-creating this design for Amanda's mug rug.

This one came together very quickly!

Lots more straight-line quilting again...

And here's the back...

{Or Side #2, if you prefer...}

I'm especially pleased with my machine binding on these two mug rugs!

I've combined what I've seen in several tutorials,

and these projects gave me a chance to practice my own method.

{Would anybody out there like me to post about how I do my machine binding???}

It was time to package up the mug rugs for the mail...
a long trip from Pennsylvania all the way to Southern England!

There was a bit of room in the little box,

so I said goodbye to a little charm pack

of Gypsy Rose by Fig Tree Quilts for Moda.

{I thought these little prints 

would look very sweet in some of Amanda's future projects.}

Now I happen to know that Amanda has a sewing sister,

just as I do!

I thought if one mug rug seemed more suited 
to her sister than to herself,

she could always give it away.

{Well...let's just say Amanda's sister will need to visit her, 

if she ever wants to use one of these mug rugs. :) }

One last thing:

Little did I know that Amanda would receive her package on the day of the Queen's Jubilee!

{How appropriate this little Crown print turned out to be!}

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Mug Rug Swap - Part 1 - From Amanda to Amy

I've taken a couple of weeks off from the Zakka Style Sew Along...

{But don't worry!

I plan to jump back in later this week.}

I've enjoyed the Sew Along so much,

in part because I've met some new sewing friends

from all over the world.

We comment on one another's projects on blogs or Flickr accounts.

Because of the Zakka Cloud Mug Rug,

I engaged in a mug rug swap with

Amanda of The Patchsmith.

Go on over to her fabulous blog and say hi for me!

{Just LOOK at what she's done with her Stem Messenger Bag!!!}

Amanda lives in England,

in a little village that she says is as lovely as it sounds.

{I'm picturing cottages and hedges, little shops and Jane Austen...}

{Pinterest photo}

Amanda went to work, stitching up a little gem that combines,

as she puts it, a little bit of herself,

a little bit of me, and

a little bit of Southern England.

Follow along, as I unwrap my package...

{LOOK!  I received something from the ROYAL MAIL!}

Already I love the British wrapping paper,

with Union Jack hearts, and lots of polka dots!

First off, let's look at the mug rug!

{A-DOR-A-BLE!!!}

There's a note inside explaining the design process...

the little flowers and the blackbird

reflect the sights of the season in England.

{Notice all the little pieces in the background, too!}

The butterfly is the rare and beautiful

Adonis Blue,

native to Southern England!

Look at all the pretty handstitched details,

and the little caption...

{Perfect!!!}

Hmmm...what else has come along for the long ride across the pond?

I may have confessed my fascination for Cath Kidston.

Up until now, though, I've only ever seen the catalog.

Now I've got a pretty cosmetic bag!

{Just look at that little zipper pull...awesome!}

As if all this were not already making me squeal,

in her lovely card, Amanda mentioned that she'd also enclosed

some muffin cases to commemorate

the Diamond Jubilee!

{What's that, peeking out from the polka dots?}

Oh, how could she have guessed how much I love these cupcake papers?

{I have great plans for these charming little sweeties!}

I want to thank Amanda properly 

for all the thought and time and creativity

she put into our trade.

I really appreciate these tokens of friendship

and will always cherish them!

They are exquisite!

{And now, it's time for me, and time for tea!}

{Join me again in a few days, and I'll show you what I sent to Amanda!}

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Pyrex-omania and Other Vintage Loves

I know I'm not the only one, when I say...

I LOVE VINTAGE !!!

There used to be a shop near my home,

where several crafters sold their wares on consignment.

{That's where I found many of my Bob's Boxes, shown in this post!}

One time I was shopping there, and I found these two tiny tea pots...

{Not in perfect condition, but irresistible to me!}

I keep them in my kitchen, because I love the colors.

Now that I have a blog, I use them as styling props.

{Aren't they cute?!?!?!?}

So when I made this mug rug, the yellow one came in handy.

And one of my most favorite parts of that mug rug is...

the little Pyrex bowl!

{See it in the upper left-hand corner?}

Somehow I mentioned the phrase "Pyrex bowl"

to my mother the other day.

Ever so casually, she mentioned, 

"You know, I have a set of those nesting Pyrex bowls."

{Were my ears DECEIVING me???}

"You can have them, if you want them."

{I love you, Mom!!!}

I went and got them posthaste.

{I don't read Jane Austen books for nothing!}

They look great in my kitchen, and I even USE them!

{They make my cooking taste better, too!}

I'm showing them here on a little quilt I made a looooong time ago.

My mom {also} has a vintage quilt made by her uncle's mother.

It's a Bow Ties quilt from feedsacks, and it's beautiful.

{Someday I'll have to show it...
 but I bet she'll think I'm trying to sneak it home if I take pictures of it right now!}

It inspired me to make this little one,

from the book by Little Quilts authors 
Alice Berg, Mary Ellen Von Holt, and Sylvia Johnson,
titled Little Quilts All Through the House.

I made it about 10 years ago...so it's practically vintage itself!

I still love it...I remember how much I enjoyed the hand-quilting,

And stitching all those Y-seams!


{Maybe I've glamorized the past...just a bit!}

Now it's time to go and mix up something special in

my new favorite bowls.


{What's your favorite vintage find?}

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Announcing...the WINNER(s) of my first GIVEAWAY!

A big THANK YOU

to all who commented for a chance to win

on the Sew, Mama, Sew!

Giveaway!

Giveaway!

This is my very first giveaway EVER, 
and I was hoping to have at least 50 comments.  
Actually, there were 158 entries!


I think I had better give away 2 prizes!


{It made me HAPPY to see that so many people wanted to win my prize!
I feel like Sally Fields!}

Mr. Generator chose the winning numbers for me.

First he picked the comment belonging to Christie S.

"Love the cheery Cherry Carrier."


{Here is Christie's favorite casserole carrier!}

And then Mr. Generator chose Krystina, who said,
"These are so clever! I'd choose Love and Chocolate. Thanks for the chance!"


{And here is Krystina's favorite casserole carrier!}

If you didn't win my prizes, I hope you were lucky at one of the other blogs!

Even if you didn't win anything, anywhere...

remember you can purchase

my tutorial-syle PDF pattern for making

your very own casserole carriers!

Or if you're just too busy, pick one of mine 
that's for sale and ready to ship

from my shop on Etsy, eamylove!

{If you don't see one you like, contact me...

I'd love to sew something special,

just for you!}

Don't forget about the 15% off discount, before shipping,

being offered through May 31,

when you use the special code

provided in this post!

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GIVEAWAY with Sew, Mama, Sew!

If you are new to my blog,

I'd like to WELCOME you...I'm so glad you're visiting!

And if you've been here before,

hello and WELCOME back!

To thank ALL of you, I'm participating in the

SEW, MAMA, SEW!

Giveaway Day.

It's an event that's so huge, it actually lasts all week!

There are dozens of prizes to be won by visiting Sew, Mama, Sew

and the participating blogs.

You have until 5 p.m. PST on Friday, May 25 to enter.

{Here at my house in Pennsylvania, that means 8 p.m. EST on May 25!}

INTERNATIONAL entries are welcome!

So, what can you win from me???

Hmmmm....

How would you like to have this version of

Aunt Ellie's Casserole Carrier,

in sunny yellow with cherries?

{It uses Mary Englebreit's Recipe for Friendship!}

Wait...maybe you prefer chocolatey browns with 

apricot polka dots.

{This one features Breakfast at Tiffany's by Fig Tree Quilts.}

Are you ready for some FOOTBALL???

{Don't even TELL me if you're not a Steelers fan!}

Or how about this one?

I made this as the model for my tutorial-style PDF pattern

for sale in my shop on Etsy, eamylove.

{I've used Giddy by Sandy Gervais and Java by Deb Strain}

For my prize, I will send the winner

 the casserole carrier of his or her choice 

from my shop on Etsy - eamylove, a $25 value!

Here's how to enter my giveaway:

Just leave a COMMENT on this post, 

telling me which casserole carrier is your favorite.

That's all you have to do!

 {Need more choices?  Visit me at eamylove on Etsy!}

If you are my winner, I will notify you by email 

and announce it on my blog in another post on May 26.

{IF you are a no-reply blogger, please include your email in your comment, so I can reach you.}

If you are my winner, you can still change your mind when it 

comes time to select your casserole carrier.  

Also, if someone purchases the one you liked, your favorite may not be available.  No worries...I'll make sure you get one you like!

{GOOD LUCK, EVERYONE!}

If you're shopping, don't forget about my discount code for 

15% off through May 31.

See my earlier post for the code!

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