Wednesday, September 18, 2019

A Pincushion Swap

Greetings dear friends & readers & Happy Wednesday to you all !!


A couple of years ago my dear friend Leeanne emailed me & said  "here is a blog I think you might really enjoy"
The blog she was referring to was Janet's blog "Rogue Quilter"
I began following Janet & spent many hours drooling over her beautiful quilting & fine detailed work - in particular 
her mini quilts


On a post a few months back, I happened to comment how beautiful I thought this bowl of pincushions was - 
all made from leftover scraps by Janet
"Would you perhaps like one ?" asked Janet
And so I offered to do a small swap with her - we both quickly agreed not to put any pressure on ourselves & just make this swap very casual  - which suited us both perfectly


I wasn't sure what to send to Janet - but I remembered her mentioning how much she loved my upcycled projects 
I came across these two wooden spools - they had been tossed my way when a friend was throwing out an old spinning wheel that had gotten wet & somewhat swollen in size
(I have probably had these for about 4 years now)
I decided to upcycle one of them & make into a pincushion for Janet


I made the top "pincushion part" by gathering a circle of raw linen, filling it with wadding & affixing it to the spool - then I wound some thin batting around the centre stem
I covered this with some tape measure ribbon that I already had in my stash



Because the base was not sitting stable I glued a large washer to the base & then covered this with black wool felt - this gave the whole thing some weight & good stability
(This was actually The Mr's suggestion - not mine) 😉

I had enough small beaded letters in my stash to spell the word "quilt" - unfortunately not enough to spell 
"Rogue Quilter."
I stitched some tiny hexies to the top & then sewed on a couple of copper effect sewing charms - also in my stash


My pincushion was ready to send across the oceans & the miles to Janet in Utah.



As I forgot to photograph my parcel before I posted it I have borrowed this photo from Janet's blog
I purchased some handmade lavendar soap from this gorgeous Lavender Farm just 5 minutes up the road from where I live.,
Also I purchased some Whittakers chocolate, made here in New Zealand - & sent one of my linen lavendar hearts.
I crossed my fingers & toes that all this would get through Customs without a hitch 😉


You can read Janet's blog post about receiving my parcel * Here *

Yesterday - to my utter delight - Janet's swap package arrived.
Let me tell you friends, before I even got the end open, I could smell this most delicious fragrance !! 💗
Janet had sent me some of her own handmade herbal soap - it is Sooo divine, I cannot describe the 
incredible smell of it (& that beautiful bee shaped soap made my heart skip several beats)!!


Along with the wonderful promised pincushion Janet had included one of her mini quilts ! 😊
This one had been made from scraps retrieved from the rubbish bin while Janet was on Retreat - one lady had tossed all her scraps out & Janet had "rescued them". 
I was just delighted & quite honestly - speechless! The workmanship & tiny piecing is just incredible.  

Also included was a notepad & some delicious sounding choccy treats (which won't last long in my hands I can assure you !!)

Thank You So Very Much Janet - your parcel made my day & I just can't stop staring at all my treasures.
You are so kind & generous & I wish there wasn't a great big Ocean in between us !!! 💕



Yesterday was a Tuesday-with-Sid-day & as it turned cold & rainy, we - (I) - made a hut!


It only seems like just yesterday I was making these for Sid's Daddy - covering my old wooden clothes horse with sheets to make a hut !

While Sid had a nap in the afternoon I sat & bagged up fresh supplies of both my citrus & my cottage garden potpourri's

I supply these to The Farm Shop at Gordonton & they were low in stock so tomorrow I am driving over to replenish their supplies.
This afternoon I have finished making up more of my teacup birdfeeders - these are also going to the Farm Shop to be sold on my behalf

I sell each birdfeeder with a small bag of Wild Bird Seed

Anyone who has been following my blog for awhile now knows my addiction inclination towards old vintage china - I love to scour the Op Shops for it.
So I had a good stash to choose from to make these up today.
Before I drive to Gordonton I am driving across to the opposite side of the City to attend my eldest Grandsons Daycare as they are having a Grandparents Morning.


Thanks So Very Much for your visits today dear friends,
I hope the rest of the week goes well for you & you find some happy moments in the busy-ness of your days,
With much love & friendship to you all,
Julie & the furry ones x0x0x0








19 comments:

  1. Hi Julie wow what a wonderful happy post.
    Oh I love the pin cushion that you made for Janet and what fun swap parcels that you sent to each other well done ladies.
    Oh Julie those bird feeders are beautiful and your little man looks like he is having so much fun,hope your day is a good one my friend xx

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  2. Very enjoyable post Julie, your swap was wonderful both what you sent and received. I wish I could smell the soaps!!! The mini quilt has so many tiny pieces in it, as does the pincushion. Love the bird feeders. How cute is Sid in his hut! 😁😁. We certainly need to enjoy each day.

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  3. totally enjoyable read, love seeing what you create when 'upcycling'!
    those swaps were a delight too!
    thanx for sharing

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    1. Thanks for your lovely comment Selina - yes the swap gifts were so delighful - I still cannot stop smiling over them!

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  4. The reel looks 'really' good Julie..
    Something different and unique..and the various
    ideas one could have in designing one is endless!
    And..better still are the bird feeders..they are
    lovely! But! Don't the birds find it difficult to
    open the packets..HeHe! :). Lovely!

    And! Goodness! Yes! I remember mia Mama putting
    up the cloths horse and covering it with blankets
    and cushions..Great fun..! Sid is certainly loving
    that..! :)

    Must get on..lots to do and prepare..few sunny days,
    right through to the weekend! Looking forward to it..!
    。・:*:・゚★,。・:*:・゚☆ 。・:*:・゚★,。・:*:・゚☆ 。・:*:・゚★,。・:*:・゚☆

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  5. How absolutely beautiful the swaps are, you both received something very special. I am rather in love with handmade soap at the moment too. x

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  6. Gorgeous swap goodies from Janet....isn't she amazing with those tiny bits of fabric? Gosh the honey comb soap is incredible! I get so many comments about my china cup and saucer bird feeder, many think I'm mad for sure, like The Mad Hatter at the tea party! What have you got a tea cup in the garden for?? Some people just don't get it do they? happy mini road trip tomorrow.

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  7. Oh my goodness! Beautiful gifts sent and received Julie. No wonder you were both thrilled! Sids cubby definitely brings back memories. School holidays always had either blanket chubbies or cardboard carton towns lol! A lovely post Julie xx

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  8. What wonderful gifts you received Julie and equally nice gifts you sent to Utah, wow my fingers ached just looking at her mini quilt😀 amazing work. Oh I did the same thing for my boys until their Dad built them a real cubby, Sid looks like he is having fun, love your potpourri and bird feeders, will you be doing your Christmas market this year??? Have a great week. Chris xoxoxo

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  9. How beautiful all these things are and work that goes into them is amazing.

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    1. Thanks for your lovely comment Kim - Janet's work is so fine & detailed & all matching perfectly. She is amazing!

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  10. P.S Love your little man's hut....I wanna come over to play!

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  11. The pin cushion you made is wonderful. Both packages were amazing; such pretty things! I love your teacup bird feeders, and your potpourri is beautiful! You have such interesting and fun posts. Is little Sid shy> He looks very sweet.

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  12. Hi Julie, What lovely swaps from the both of you. Your potpourri bags are lovely. Hubby bought me tea cup holders for outside for Christmas. I do not put bird seed in them here as we are not allowed to have bird feeders except a hummingbird feeder. I do not like living in a community with rules but here we are. We are thankful to be here as our health is not the best. Nancy

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  13. Oh the swaps are gorgeous! You are so clever and inventive with your up cycled items. Your blogging friend does beautiful quilting and I can almost smell the soap! Sid looks as he is in heaven, I remember our huts we made on rainy days too. The teacup bird feeders look fun, do the birds break the cups? Have a great weekend.

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  14. What a beautiful swap! Such gorgeous things! I love the pin cushions, both yours and Janet's. You're quite right, there's to much negativity in the world that we certainly don't need it in our crafting! Best, Jane x

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    1. Thanks so much for your lovely comment Jane - you are so right - it was indeed such a beautiful swap. I am still drooling over my parcel from Janet. xx

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  15. Those pincushions are charmers!!! I love them all. You've been very busy, probably need to so you don't get into too much mischief. lol. We're all very aware of your 'addiction'....oops...hang on....you used another word for that didn't you? lol xxx

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  16. I am so glad we swapped, Julie! It was a treat to received your delightful package and wonderful creations! Thank you again and again!! :)
    Isn't that a sweet photo of Sid.
    The teacup bird feeders are absolutely adorable. What a fun idea!

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