First 2016 Finish and PillowtalkSwapIGstyle

Redwood Grove Shams

Officially done with one WIP as the New Year began and finally getting around to blogging about it, yeah!  Most of the progress was done with the cheering of #fridaynightsewalong on IG.    Two pillow shams to match the wedding quilt Redwood Grove gifted to my niece and her husband.  Here they are on my bed testing out the fit.

Redwood Grove Shams

The disadvantage of putting off a companion project is having to find all (or most) of the coordinating fabric and trying to remember the thread color and style to quilt it in.  With the help of some pictures(below) I think I pulled it off.   The shams photographed dominantly green for some reason but there's blue in them too.

Original quilt and WIP

PillowtalkSwapIGstyle

Now that my partner Amanda has received and acknowledged the pillow and goodies I can share it here.  She requested a red and white Christmas as the theme. The high contrast 40wt Aurifil was kinda scary especially on the white because I typically try and blend in.  I think it adds so much with the loft of the batting that it was worth taking a chance and holding my breathe. 

PillowTalkSwapIGstyle

The 16x24" pillow is an original design using a modified Alison Glass Glamp block and fussy cut reindeers from the Postcards for Santa fabric line and stash.   I made a fob and table runner for extras and mailed to be sure it arrived early December for the holidays.  I challenged myself by installing an invisible zipper and lined it with beach themed fabric because around these parts Surfing Santa is a tradition.

My adorable helper

Little M was independantly playing with her Duplo's and said to me "Your sewing is my favorite Nana".  She wanted to read to me so I pulled a chair up next to my machine but out of reach of the needle!  When it was time to bind I invited her to help not realizing Wonder clips are harder to pinch than I thought.  She was happy to be in charge of handing them to me.  

Kelly @scrapstudio coordinator of the swap has been great and is working to lineup an angel pillow for me to receive.    As gratifying as social swapping events like #getyourquiltywishgranted can be, there is the risk of frustration and disappointment as well.  While it is fun to discover new quilters and be inspired by their makes, I'm not sure if I'll participate again anytime soon but am glad I did.