Monday 25 July 2016

Update

Just to say, I have sent mailing info to about half the players so far. However, now I'm bored so I'm going to do the rest tomorrow or Wednesday. If you haven't received mailing info by Wednesday evening, please let me know as that might mean I've sent it to an old email address or accidentally forgotten you.

If you put two quilts into this swap, you will get a separate email for each one - it's easier to keep track of that way.

Sunday 24 July 2016

Sorted!

Well, that wasn't TOO stressful. I have successfully matched up all but one of the quilts with new owners, and everyone who played will be getting at least one quilt swapped out. The unswapped quilt wasn't unloved, but the way the logistics of these things work, sometimes the same small group of people like the same small group of quilts, and swapping out can be very complicated. This time around, I elected to ask a person who made two quilts to keep one of them so that everyone else in the swap could have a quilt swapped out. She'll still going to get one quilt in the swap, which makes me as happy as I can be, when I can't swap all the quilts in the whole swap.

In case you are wondering about the swapping process, here are some of the guidelines I use to help myself match things up:

  • Find a new home for the greatest number of quilts possible.
  • Try to give people quilts as high on their lists as possible (in all cases, but particularly if someone has made a very popular quilt).
  • If a quilt is on someone's preference list, they did like it, so it's better to give someone one lower on their list than to leave a quilt unswapped.
  • If the above criteria have been met, try to give everyone quilts by people they haven't had quilts from before (so e.g. if Ann's quilt and Jane's quilt were both in your top tier of preferences, but you had a quilt from Ann last time around, I might give you Jane's this time). 
Anyway, that's just a little insight into the process - it's a lot more complicated than that, and I do appreciate everyone's flexibility in listing loads of choices and being patient!

I'll be emailing people over the next few days with instructions for how and where to mail your quilts. Watch your email!

Lists in

Just to say, I now have in the last three outstanding lists. I hope to get the sorting done today or tomorrow. Then, allowing for any time to contact people if necessary, I should be emailing you all with instructions for where to send your little quilt(s).  Thanks for your patience, everyone!

Friday 22 July 2016

Still waiting

Hi everyone - sorry for the delay; I am still awaiting three preferences lists. I haven't had time or energy this week (last week of school is always hectic for those who work in one!) to chase missing people up, but I've sent emails today to remind those ladies and hopefully will have their lists soon, so I can start the sort out. I'm on holiday now until school starts again, so as soon as I have the lists, I should be able to get started with the sorting.

Thanks for your patience.

Monday 18 July 2016

Preference Lists

I've had a bit of a chance to catch up this weekend, and have recorded the info from all the people who have sent their lists in. So far it's looking pretty good, but it's hard to tell for sure. I am still waiting for lists from five people, so until I get those, I won't be able to start the actual allocation process; if I don't hear from them within another day or two, I'll send an email reminder. However, this is a very busy time for me (last week of school), so it will still take a while to get things sorted out, even if all the lists come in tomorrow morning. Bear with me - it's worth it in the end, as the wait enables me to give as many people as possible a quilt high up on their lists!

Friday 15 July 2016

Update

Hi everyone. I've had lots of emails with preference lists coming in, but no time to deal with them yet. If you haven't yet had a chance to send yours, don't worry, but the sooner I get them all, the sooner I'll be able to start the massive sort out...

Tuesday 12 July 2016

That's it!

OK, so that's it - all the late night, last minute entries are added, so there are 39 quilts total in this round of the swap, with 33 players (I think. It's possible I can't count).

A few quilts don't quite meet the rules (a little too small, not quite square) but because I'm nice, I've allowed them in anyway.

If you've not played before/don't remember what happens next, here's what to do:


  •   Please send me your preference lists when you get a chance. Please try to include 10-12 choices of quilts you'd like to receive on your list (though of course, if you really don't like as many as that, you can put fewer). I will do my best to match you with a quilt high on your list. You can rank them strictly if you like (1, 2, 3) or in tiers (my three favourites are x, y z; next are a, b,c; finally I also like p, q, r) or even say things like "I really like most of these, and would be happy to get any of them except I'd rather not get my own back or have quilts x and q because they just aren't my style/I'm not a huge fan of bright orange".
  • It would be helpful if you'd include your address in your preference list, if you aren't sure if I have it.  If you played in round 9, I have it (unless you've moved, of course).
  • Once I get all the preferences lists back, I'll try to sort it all out so quilts go to people who want them, and people get quilts they like.
  • It's possible that your quilt won't appear on any choice lists. This has happened before. This does not mean your quilt isn't nice!  Sometimes there are other reasons - I've had this happen, for instance, if a quilt was a very particular style (e.g. Sunbonnet Sue) which didn't happen to appeal to most of the players in a given round; if a quilt was holiday themed (e.g. Christmas) but the swap finished at a time away from the Christmas holidays; if a quilt was photographed in a way which didn't really show it to advantage; if a quilt was quite plain/simple when there were a lot of showy pieces. If no one selects your quilt, or if only a few people do and I can't make the swapping work out, I will contact you to let you know that you will be keeping your own quilt. 
  • Sometimes, if there are a handful of quilts I can't match up, I'll check with those people if they'd rather keep their own quilts or try to do a mini-match among the handful of unmatched ones.


I'll be emailing the group soon with similar instructions, but first, I have to update my mailing list to remove those people who didn't get a chance to make a quilt this time around...

Any questions, just ask.

Quilt no 39


Quilt no 39: Friendship Flower
10.5" square
 100% cotton, machine quilted



Quilt no 38


Quilt no 38: untitled
12.75x13"
The block is my own design.


Quilt no 37



Quilt no 37: untitled
10.5x13.25"
Paper Doll block.  Designed by Phyllis Paul @ Cozy Quarters Pattern.  Hand quilted.  The pattern is more rectangle than square so the doll is showcased. 


Quilt no 36


Quilt no 36: Transit of Mercury (Not to Scale)
15" square (ish)
A small, rocky planet passes before a middle-aged star.  Machine appliqué. Aura in metallic wax. 


Quilt no 35


Quilt no 35: Cats' Stairway to Heaven
14" square
 I've wanted to make the full size version of this quilt for some time but have too many other projects on the go.

All 100% quilters cotton.


Quilt no 34


Quilt no 34: untitled
9.5" square

Quilt no 33


Quilt no 33: All My Hearts Are Rainbows
10.5" square
I got a scrap bag full of hand dyed fabrics from Ricky Tims & couldn't resist the rainbow colors.
First I made the rainbow strata, then sliced it & turned those narrow pieces in the opposite direction.  When I realized that the green would make a solid stripe across, I decided to stagger the seams a bit.  A big PLUS in doing that - no seams to match up!  I drew the concentric hearts for the quilting onto printer paper & pinned it to the quilt, then stitched right through it.  I've enjoyed looking at it sitting here in my house - almost decided to keep it for myself!


Quilt no 32


Quilt no 32: Feeling Blue
14" square
The quilt has a pieced background of multiple blue fabrics, overlaid with snippets of blue/orange ribbon & blue/turquoise synthetic yarns and covered with a medium blue rayon.

Cotton batting & backing.  Hanging pockets on the back.



Still more to come!

Just wanted to say, I have at least 5 more quilts to post (maybe another one coming in, or who knows, several - after all, the 11th isn't over in some parts of the world!) - so don't rush to make a list just yet.  Although my toothache is much better today (a big thank you to those who wished me well) it's still late and although I'm a night owl by nature, I really do need to get some sleep, as I have to work tomorrow...  Hope to get the rest of the photos up tomorrow night, and then instructions about What To Do Next.

Quilt no 31


Quilt no 31: Little Bird
10" square
fussy cut, machine quilted and hand finished with Drizzle stitch

Quilt no 30


Quilt no 30: Blue Rose
14.25" square
Fabric: cotton except from the background fabric that is linen.
A touch of paintstik and a few beads. Raw edge applique and machine quilting.


Monday 11 July 2016

Quilt no 29


Quilt no 29: Carpe Diem
13" square
The techniques used are raw edge appliqué, free motion embroidery and quilting on a pieced background. All fabrics are cotton, threads are cotton or polyester and the batting is synthetic. There is a hanging sleeve and label on the back.





Sunday 10 July 2016

More to come...

Deadline is tomorrow, and I know some of you are planning to send photos tomorrow - that's fine. I also have a large handful of photos I haven't uploaded yet - it's on my list and I was originally intending to do it tonight, but I have a dreadful toothache, so I'm going to attempt to get some sleep instead. If it wakes me up at 3am again and I can't get back to sleep, who knows, I may come down and upload quilt photos!

Quilt no 28


Quilt no 28: untitled
12" square
Hand dyed fabric, magazine pages, machine applique and quilting and hand stitch.


Quilt no 27


Quilt no 27: New Life from Decay
12" square
Batikcloth front and back wadding inside.Pieced and FME on front.
seedhead in silk, decolorant use,coloured wools for veins, strps of cotton used and stitched on with machine stitches connecting layers.
Seed pod attached and beads added.
sleeve and label.



Quilt no 26


Quilt no 26: My Favourite Thing
10" square
Machine applique and quilted



Thursday 7 July 2016

Quilt no 25


Quilt no 25: Squaring the Circles
13.5" square
Raw edge applique using linen fabrics; backing is discharged commercial black. Metal embellishments sewn or fastened with brads.




Quilt no 24


Quilt no 24: Woodland Night
16" square
The pattern is from a book by McKenzie Kate
Hand appliqued and hand quilted.
Embellished with a button tied in each corner.




Quilt no 23


Quilt no 23: Cornish Cottages
10" square
Quilt inspired by the little white cottages found all around the coast of Cornwall. Raw edge appliqué using my hand dyed fabrics, free machine quilting embellished with hand embroidery. 



Quilt no 22


Quilt no 22: Wildflowers
15" square
Made from various hand dyes; has a hanging sleeve