Sew Sew Swapped

As y'all know, I've been hosting the Sew Sew Modern swap on Flickr. It's a group of uber talented folk and I'm just amazed at what everyone has made!My partner has finally received hers so I can show you ALL the loot! Cristin of Pear Tree Stitching was my partner! She's crazy talented, so I knew I had to step up!!She asked for a table runner, tote or pillow. I've been feeling over pillowed since I've made so many for the last few swaps...so I decided on a table runner! I checked out her inspiration mosaic. And began full on stalking her!I knew she liked the cross pattern from her mosaic and I've been wanting to try the method of using interfacing for small squares. It was a plan!I used Elizabeth Hartman's tutorial for the interfacing method. I've since found out that you can buy the interfacing marked with a grid; you should do that! Marking it was a hassle!!

One thing I changed was that I sewed a liberal 1/4" seam (not quite 3/8", but close). Instead of cutting with scissors, I sliced off the edge with my rotary. I barely cut 1/16". This went really quickly. And the end result was 1/4" seams. (This will only make sense if you've read her tutorial:)

It did go together well! But I'll be honest, I wouldn't use it again without buying premarked interfacing. I don't think it saved me any time. Pressing takes forever because of the interfacing. If you're an accurate piecer, it's probably not worth it. I think I'd save it for a time when my squares were really small. These were cut 2" and finished about 1 3/8".Here's the finished project!

I was photo bombed by Mack the Chihuahua:)

Another exciting tidbit about this table runner is that the guru is back in action! Sort of. She was able to bind about 10" of this!! It's the first sewing she's done in months so it is exciting:)With the table runner done, I needed to settle on my "small item" for the swap. The small item is supposed to complement the large item. I decided on a simple tote. A tote doesn't really "complement" a table runner so I used some of the same fabrics!For some reason that I don't remember, I decided not to use a pattern, just go for it. I've made lots of totes, so I was drawing on experience. This was not a good plan. Everything came together, but seams were ripped. One important thing about a pattern is that it tells you the order to put things together! I forgot to put on the handle before I sewed up the sides! Grrr! But the finished product is pretty cute! It has a quilted front pocket and an inside pocket.

And Cristin posted this comment!

Y'all know me, I couldn't stop there. I'd read on her blog that she is expecting twin girls! So I appliquéd some bibs!!

Here's how it all looked wrapped up! (There were some extra fabric goodies!)

Her thank you note definitely convinced me that she was thrilled! These were so fun to make, even with the snafus! And it's even better now that I know they are in a happy home!!Now I'm just waiting on mine to arrive! What will it be???xo LC