Monday, April 26, 2021

A TILDA Swap .................... (Catch Up #2)

Greetings lovely friends & readers 💕

(Warning - Long Post & Photo Heavy)


At the beginning of this year my friend Claire & I decided to do a Tilda swap - this entailed each of us making for the other an item from the letters T I L D A .  Claire & I are both dedicated "Tilda Addicts" loving both the fabrics & the patterns.  

We agreed to have an approximate timeline for our swap as the end of May .... however once I began working on my swap gifts, I found I could not stop.  I had planned a visit to Mums at the end of this month but when she had her fall & I bought my visit forward, I decided to take Claire's swap gifts long with me in the hope that I could catch up with her on this trip. (Claire lives in Mum's town but we don't always get to catch up)


When we first decided to do the swap I purchased these wooden letters from Spotlight.  Whilst painting another item I applied some cream chalk paint to them, so to pretty them up a bit I added some small size Re-design transfers.
 

As I didn't want to drill holes in my letters I attached them to each package with double sided tape.

Would you like to see what was in each package?? 

(I will link to the patterns I used & also try to remember the fabric ranges tho' this may be a bit trickier)

"T" stands for Tea towel, Tilda pumpkin, tea coasters, tea mug & tea ... also tags 

I knew these were the colours in Claire's kitchen.

I took a plain white waffle tea-towel & patchworked a pumpkin block onto it using a mixture of Tilda fabrics from older ranges.
The pumpkin block is from this book Tilda's Sewing by Heart
While I was browsing the book I decided to make Claire a pumpkin - pattern is in the book.  I actually scaled the "smallest size pumpkin" down a bit & used matching fabrics to my teatowel block.
The Holiday Spices tea was purchased from Harney Teas.
I also made a pair of tea coasters using some white linen from my stash & adding a Tilda Yo Yo flower/Suffolk Puff.

I took a photo of my pumpkin block & then ordered a tea mug using this personalised service from Vistaprint & had Claire's name printed on it.

Lastly I cut out some cute tags using images photocopied onto thin card. (I knew Claire loved tags)

"I" stands for  "I 💗 Christmas"
(Yes I know I bent the rules a bit on this one 😉)

.  .  .  .  I made Claire a Tilda Santa

This Santa pattern is from this book Tilda's Christmas Ideas
Claire decorates her entire home for Christmas so I knew that making her anything in this line would not be out of order & was fairly sure she did not have this Santa.


Underneath all that mohair beard he does have some eyes - the white wooden stand is for him to perch on but I thought Claire may even decide to hang him.
I am pretty sure this fabric is from the Tilda Old Rose range.
The pattern book comes complete with the drum which you photocopy onto thin card & make up - his other pocket holds his drumsticks. (toothpicks with beads glued on)


I included one of the tags I made earlier in the year & a card of gorgeous Christmas buttons from Theodora Cleave

"L" stands for Lovely little linen table runner & lavender bags 💜

I used this Video tutorial from Crafts with Fee's YouTube channel to make Claire a table runner with Applique & Prairie points.  I know I frequently mention Fee's channel as she shares such wonderful projects.  I used a mixture of Tilda Maple Farm & Woodland fabrics for this project.  The grey linen was in my stash & was left over from this bunting that I made recently.


The table runner is reversible & can be used on either side.  I enlarged it slightly from Fee's measurement.
I made two lavender bags using English Paper Pieced hexagons - the linen was already in my stash & the lavender is from this years harvest.

"D" stands for Doll .... Tilda Fisher Doll with her Whale
(I had to quickly take all my photos before I left for Mums hurriedly so the light is very poor & yellowish unfortunately)
This pattern is from this book Tilda's Seaside Ideas - which I borrowed from my local Library.
The doll is dressed in Tilda Plum Garden fabrics - one of my favourite ranges.
I had no matching fabric paint for her boots so I just used my pale blue chalk paint & it worked out fine.  This particular pattern has the sweetest little cardigan that laces at the neck, the pattern of which is in the book.  I knitted up to the underarms & then just could Not figure out the pattern from there.  I even took it to my clever-knitting-friend-Shirley for advice but she found the same. So I unpicked it & knitted a tiny dolls Jumper pattern which I Could figure out.  

I made the smallest size whale, pattern also in the book - this was fun to make.

"A" stands for Angel ... Tilda Autumn Angel & her Plum
Autumn Angel is a free pattern from * Here * on the Tilda Website
I used gorgeous Maple Farm Fabrics for my Autumn Angel.    I purchased these fabrics from * Here *

I made myself this pattern almost two years ago - blog post here  & still really love my Autumn Angel. I extended the apron quite a bit & added the pompom trim, the same as I did for my Angel.  The Plum is also a free pattern on the website.


Well friends you can see why I could not post all that & wanted to hand deliver it.  I also wanted to see Claire's face when she opened each package & afterwards she may have shed a tear or two - she was so delighted with all her treasures.  Claire is one of the kindest, most generous people I know & it was such a pleasure to make this for her & bring her some Joy.  I thought long & hard about her colours & what she might like & was pleased to say I got it just right.  (If you are on Instagram you can follow along with Claire * Here *

If you made it all the way to the end - Thank You So Much !

I shall be back in a few days with my final Catch Up Post.

Have a wonderful week ahead dear friends,

With much love & friendship to you All,

Julie & the furry ones x0x0x0



25 comments:

  1. Oh my goodness gracious me, so many gorgeous treasures you lovingly crafted for Claire, Julie! Angels, dolls, Santa's, knitted woollies, whales, plums, sweet high stepping boots, pretty lavender bags.......my head is giddy from the loveliness of all these pretties. I can only imagine the delight and astonishment on Claire's face as she opened each precious gift! An explosion of Tilda fabric gorgeousness. Why, I think you are an angel, Julie, filled with kindness, generosity and love.

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  2. Wow what a great post lots of beautiful hand made gifts.
    Love them all and great ideas .
    Have a beautiful week .

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  3. Oh my word, I am blown away by these beautiful gifts and your generosity. No wonder she shed a tear. x

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  4. What can one say Julie...
    Is there a better word than..amazing..! :).
    I think my most favourite is Santa..that
    beard is just right, l've always imagined
    Santa with a beard like that, one that
    he could'nt see through..HeHe! Lovely! :O).

    Yours is one Blog l come back to, over and
    over, Julie..and my daughter loves receiving
    the link to..
    Off for a lemon tea..but..l'll be back...! :O)
    🌸 🌸 🌸 🌸 🌸 🌸 🌸 🌸 🌸 🌸 🌸 🌸 🌸 🌸

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  5. So sorry to hear about your Mum's mishap. Hope she's on the mend. Well, you've certainly surpassed yourself with this parcel of goodies, Julie. I absolutely love everything and couldn't possibly pick out a fave but I do love the Santa in particular. Stunning work, Julie, as always with your skill and expertise. Lucky friend to receive all those precious things. Have a great week. xxx

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  6. Not only did I slowly slowly make it the end, it left me wanting to see more of
    your so fun crafting. I am sure you and Claire delighted in the process of opening this. Lynn and Precious XX

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    1. Thank You so much Lynn & Precious .... ​ - I actually really enjoyed putting all this together for my friend - she has been amazingly kind & generous to me over the years & it was nice to pay something back.
      Julie xx

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  7. I am sure Claire was absolutely delighted with all those gorgeous gifts! xx

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  8. What a Tilda treasure! I love everything you made! What a lovely gift for a lovely Tilda friend! I might make a Tilda doll one of these days. I have a couple of books and some fabric. Sending heaps of love, dear Julie!

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  9. Swopping hand created beautiful treasures is such a fab idea. I have a couple of Tilda books and really MUST make a Tilda Father Christmas or two. I would love one and I'm sure my son's girlfriend would love one too. Never too early to get cracking.

    Jean . x

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  10. Oh my goodness Julie! What a treasure trove of gifts! No wonder Claire shed tears. Everything was charming and so, so thoughtful. What a lovely friend you are! I will look at Claire’s blog. I certainly enjoy yours! Carol in Texas

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  11. I am always amazed at the detail of your work. Makes me envious. I could never have this patience.

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    1. Thanks so much Kim. Oh I think you have lots of patience my friend ... to work on all those wedding dresses like you do!! I could not do that. xx

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  12. Wow. Beautiful gifts you made for Claire. They all look so wonderful. Hugs, xx. PS: sorry to hear about Mum's fall. I hope she is ok now.

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  13. I can just imagine Claire's delight... your gifts are so beautiful...
    Hugz

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  14. Claire must have been blown away Julie, such a beautiful swap. You are so clever making all those beautiful Tilda things, how cute is that little whale! You are a very kind and generous friend too Julie.

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  15. What gorgeous swap gifts.....just perfect! And Christmas is always worth bending the rules for xx

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  16. I do believe you have been blessed with 28 hours in us mortals just getting 24 hour day. The time and effort you use to make these wonderful things is unbelievable. You are such a perfectionist. Your friend will be so happy. Thank you for sharing.❤️ 🌈 🦋

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  17. Wow fabulous gifts for your friend Claire, what a great idea for a swap Julie, can't wait to see what she sends you. I have a few Tilda doll patterns, but have yet to try and make one, I will one day.

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  19. Wow...such a fabulous and generous swap! I bet Claire's face was priceless! As a person who has several of your dolls I know Claire will love them. So what did Claire give you?

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  20. Amazing selection of Tilda dolls! What a wonderful swap; so many fabulous gifts! I think my heart would stand still for a moment if I received such a generous swap. You are so thoughtful! keep well Amanda x

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  21. I was blown away by my gorgeous gifts! And as a crafter I know the amount of time and effort and love that went into every piece! I cried like a baby! Thank you my friend!

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  22. What a lucky girl Claire was to receive all those beautiful swap gifts. I loved your I love Christmas for the letter I! Everything is just gorgeous. xx

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