Easter Egg Garland Swap

Jennifer of Artrageous Afternoon hosted an Easter Egg Garland swap several months ago, and after a great and yet-to-be-posted experience with a Valentine card swap I jumped at the chance to trade more paper art. We each decorated 5 eggs and sent them to Jennifer who shuffled them up, put them into banner form with a ribbon and teeny clothes pins and sent them back.

By Amy Wald

Who made this one?? It wasn't signed! And they went all out decorating side 1 and...

Side 2; lovely!

By Melinda of Melinda's Fabric Fancies; here's her post about some of the eggs she made.

By Joanna of Sweet Finds; here's her post about the eggs she made.

Who made this one??

Here are the eggs I contributed to the swap.

I had to make a 6th one for me to keep of course! As you can see I tend to be pretty precise in my paper art; I'm working on being a bit more relaxed and free form. It's a process, and I'm excited to see where I end up!

I wish that all the artists had labeled their Easter eggs; as you can see there are couple that were blank, so I have no idea who to thank.

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This was such a fun swap and now I have a wonderful piece to add to my Easter and spring decor. Thanks to Jennifer and to each of the talented ladies whose lovely Easter eggs I received!

Pink Saturday/Majestic Feathers Tag Swap

Happy Pink Saturday! Beverly has the full list of bloggers posting about pink this Saturday, so check it out!


Jenny of Fated Follies hosted the Majestic Feathers Tag swap calling for tags, and I quote, "decorated with fancy birds, royal hues, crowns and majestic notions." Oh that sounded fun, so I had to sign up!




I envisioned deep purple tags decorated with peacocks in royal blues and teals, sporting real feathers in their tails. I bought a bundle of peacock feathers on Ebay and was so excited until I noticed the (not so) fine print: they would be shipping from Hong Kong...and would arrive in about 2 weeks. Plan B! I found some fluffy white feathers and sparkly pink crowns had me envisioning bright yellow and pink tags featuring white birds. Of course these tags evolved in the creative process as art projects do and I ended up with these which I really like:

A little pink castle on the back of each tag livens up my contact info (written in pink, of course).

I can't wait to receive the tag booklet of 12 tags each done by a different artist!

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These tags show that the inclusion of other colors can actually serve to enhance our beloved pink. Doesn't it look even happier and more vibrant next to the cheerful yellow and the snowy white? I think so.

Happy Pink Saturday!

Vintage Spring Sweetness Swap

Linda at A Swap For All Seasons has such fun swap themes, and I was so excited to participate in the Vintage Spring Sweetness Swap she organized recently. Thrifty Homemaker Angela was my partner, and she absolutely spoiled me!



She sent a box stuffed full of sweet spring goodies: candy (chocolate, marshmallows and Chick-O-Sticks), vintage goodies (detail below), lace ribbons, spring tags and sticky notes, Easter ornaments and a potpourri sachet.

Love the little vintage towel, saucer and postcard!

Angela, thank you for such a great box of surprises!

Here's what I sent Angela:

Vintage homemaking magazines, pink Peeps (Peeps have been around since the 50's, so they fit the vintage theme quite nicely), vintage spring-themed playing cards, a vintage hand towel from the Etsy shop Lilly's Cottage, an ornament that looked quite vintage to me and a spring banner I made for Angela. Our challenge this time was to try not to spend more than $10 and I had such fun searching for just the right items that I thought Angela would enjoy while sticking as close as I could to the swap parameters (total spent, vintage, spring).

Angela mentioned that she likes vintage homemaking magazines, so I thought she would enjoy these magazines from the 70's and the old farm cook book.

I found these vintage playing cards in the Etsy shop Frivolous Whimsy...and they were so cute I almost kept them :)

I am pretty proud of this banner; is that vain? I really enjoy making these, and I hope it adds some spring sweetness to Angela's home.

Linda had several drawings for cute spring-y vintage items for those of us in the swap and look who got the very last one!

I can't wait to find just the right use for this little charm.

Thank you, Linda, for a great swap and thank you, Angela, for my wonderful goodies!

Pink Saturday banner

Good Sunday morning! Let's relive a bit of Pink Saturday, shall we?

I made this pink banner for my swap partner Angela for Linda's Vintage Spring Sweetness swap over at A Swap For All Seasons. I'll be posting the rest of what I sent and what I got soon. Linda is a great swap hostess and she'll be announcing her summer swap in the next few days, so check it out!

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See those pink and white curtains behind my banner?? Those are part of my pink room that will someday make it to Pink Saturday. You'll love it!

A Pair of "Favorite Things" Swaps

In my state of obsession with swaps I signed up for a whole slew of 'em in the last few weeks. I was really excited to come across a couple "Favorite Things" swaps. One was hosted by Sarah of It Might Seem Crazy But We Call It Life who paired me with Anna of One Day at a Time.

Just what are some of Anna's favorite things, you ask??


All wrapped up...

Look at it all!

-Spatula with hearts on it!

-Her favorite recipe for Soft Gingersnaps...cannot WAIT to make those!

-Mary Kay Eye Primer

-Philosophy's "Amazing Grace" perfume oil

-Choxie's Milk Chocolate Hazlenut Biscotti Truffle Bar...um, yes, it was just as ridiculously yummy as it sounds
-Breakfast at Tiffany's dvd

To top it all off she included a sweet note in the "strawberries & cream" card. I love this assortment of things!

And I sent her...

-Reading material: The Unlikely Romance of Kate Bjorkman by Louise Plummer, Better Homes and Gardens magazine and "Piggies", a childrens book by Audrey and Don Wood (I love me some childrens books). Please go read all of these right now. You'll be glad you did.

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-Ocean themed file folders: I read on Anna's blog that she is very organized, so I had to include a couple of these gorgeous file folders. I LOVE ocean themed items.

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-Purple pens: don't you enjoy writing more when you are using a pretty pen? I love these purple gel pens, and I'm sure making that grocery list will be that much more fun for Anna when its in purple!

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- Lotion: Dry skin is a major pet peeve of mine, but so is greasy lotion that won't soak in. Aveeno is very rich yet it soaks right in and leaves your hands all soft, not residue-y (I hate residue).

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- Candy: I love candy. I went to the All Candy Expo last year (heaven). I just can't get enough, so I had to include a selection of my favorite candies: Cinnabon Cinnamon Caramel Pecan Cluster (oh my gosh...these are sublime), Atkinson's Chick-o-sticks and Peanut Butter Bars, and some sort of something from South Korea. I have no idea what they are called, but they are like little pieces of super fried dough with a bit of a honey taste, and they are GOOOOOD.

Yay for all the swapping! The Winter Blues Swap, in which we sent our partner 5 of our favorite things, was hosted by Josie of The Poor College Students Guide to Raising a Baby who paired me with Selissa of All Palmer.

Here are the items Selissa sent me:

- Apron that Selissa made!! (I LOVE aprons!)
- Cutie long socks! With a bit of bling, no less (that top heart is a little plastic crystal!)
- Cuuuuute headband that Selissa crocheted
- Sweet Pea bubble bath
- Peanut butter M&Ms

We each told our partners one of our favorite things; mine was the color pink and you can see that Selissa spoiled me with all sorts of pink!

And my favorite things sent to Selissa:

- Reading material: The Unlikely Romance of Kate Bjorkman and Better Homes and Gardens magazine. You still haven't read these?? Get to it!

- Bookmark: I love a fun bookmark (used to collect bookmarks when I was a little thing) and Selissa loves spring, so I couldn't resist this cutie to go with her new reading material.

- Lotion: I told you I loved that Aveeno.

- Candy: I'm just proud I had two sets of this collection of candy, and both sets made it out of the house intact. I wanted to eat them...it feels good to admit that out loud.

- Monogrammed throw: I am cold much of the time, and I love snuggling while watching tv or reading, so we have quite a collection of throws and blankets. Also I have a weenie dog and, man, do those dogs like to burrow...gotta have a blanket for the dog to burrow in, for goodness sake. Selissa loves the color red, so I had to bust out my button monogram sewing skillzzz and personalize a throw for her.

"Favorite Things" swaps are pure fun minus the pressure because you pick what you like and send it; regular swaps (while still lots of fun) can involve obsessing about whether or not you are picking things your partner will like. A favorite things swap is great for everyone, especially first timers who are looking to get their swapping feet wet.

Thank you Sarah and Josie for hosting these swaps, and thank you Anna and Selissa for great packages of goodies!

Valentine's Swap

A Thrifty Mrs. hosted a Valentine's Swap and paired me up with Rosey from Agapanthus and Goldsworthy. Rosey lives in Australia and makes the cutest softies which she blogs about at I Cant Sew and sells in her Etsy Store I Cant Sew Creations.

Look at these lovelies Rosey sent me!


- Penelope the softie bird (bigger picture below)...look at the beautiful pattern and colors of that fabric (um, yes she can sew)
- Softie heart (more evidence of ability to sew)
- Sweet cherub
- Dressed up chickie
- Candy and vegemite! The hearts (there were more...that have been consumed already) were made in Melbourne, Australia, and the other chocolates have been made since Rosey was little. She said they used to be wrapped in foil, and the kids would try to collect all the designs. And vegemite! I was so excited to see this as I've heard of it before ("Land Down Under" by Men at Work, anyone??) but never tried it. Rosey recommended a very thin layer spread on buttered toast, so that is what we did for part of our breakfast this morning.

Verdict: It reminded me of a beef buillon cube: salty and meaty (yes, I have eaten one of those before...in middle school I was curious and went through my mother's spice cabinet trying all manner of things; she was gone at the time as I'm sure she would not have condoned the wanton eating of random spice cabinet items. Yummy = packet of Equal poured into a spoon with a chocolate syrup layer on top. And Fruit Fresh crystals are yummy all on their own. I bet she wondered where stuff was disappearing to). Hubs sampled the Vegemite and said, "Very salty" and "If I didn't have any meat to put on my sandwich...".

Look at cutie Penelope! She came with a little card telling her story. You can get a wee softie like Penelope in Rosey's Etsy shop, I Cant Sew Creations. You can't see it, but Penelope has a ribbon attached to her back for hanging in some cute little nook.

This little bird makes me laugh...I pecked at hub's cheek with it when I took it out of the box. So CUTE!

Click here to read Rosey's post about the swap. What a sweet box of lovely items; thank you so much, Rosey!

I sent Rosie:

- Softie kit: Sewing tin, fabric, thread, ribbon, buttons, crochet hearts (from Etsy seller Annie Design)
- Edible love notes: edible paper and edible ink...how fun is that!
- Stained glass hearts from Etsy seller LdyIsis
- "Love" banner I made: Rosey's favorite color is yellow and for Valentine's she chose pastel pinks.

I have to share my adventure with this package. When I took the package to the post office it weighed 4 pounds 3 ounces and the lady said, "Postage will be $45." It was like one of those cartoon moments where your head whips around and your eyes bug out...

"$45...seriously?!?"

"Seriously!" she said all cheerful like.

"I-I-I can't DO that...", so I found out how much postage would be at 2 pounds and 3 pounds and I went home and ripped open my snug little box and took out a big ole vanilla candle that weighed over 2 POUNDS! I know this because my repackaged goodies weighed 2 pounds 0.7 ounce and postage was under $20: I can DO that. Learn from me: research international postage rates before you get all attached to everything you've packaged up...it hurt me to take that candle out of that box. Rosey likes flowery scents anyway, so I think it was all for the best.

Thanks to Thrifty Mrs. for hosting this swap and thank you, Rosey, for my lovely Valentine's treats! They are so sweet!

Very Vintage Valentine Swap

Heidi of Foxgloves, Fabric and Folly organized another in her line of Very Vintage swaps, this time of the Valentine kind. My partner was Lisa of Antiques and More.

First up, here's what Lisa sent me.


Sewing pattern used as packaging: such a neat touch!

Ooooo, what's in there??

Check it out!

-Love puppy

-2 sweet tags

-Chocolate covered raspberry sticks

-Heart doily

-Delicious earrings (Look at them! They are DE-licious)

-Button heart wreath

-3 mercury glass ornaments (swoon!)

What a cute display idea! Lisa sells lots of different styles of earrings in her booth. She made the display card! Already wore these to work and got a compliment!

What a sweet wreath!

Lisa, thank you so much for a great box of goodies!

Now for what I sent Lisa:

-Red mercury glass-look candle stick with plain candle

-Red mercury glass-look votive cup with cinnamon candle (Lisa likes cinnamon scent)

-Red vintage-look rhinestone brooch for wearing or crafting

-Rhinestone heart picture frame

-Red heart ornaments

-Little set of cherub wings

-"Love" banner (I made it!)

-Irresistible Valentine cherub card (It was...just wait, you'll see)

Here's the banner I made...I love making these things! Although I always want to keep them...

I like to include a card listing the package contents and any explanation I feel is needed. Here's the card/booklet I made for Lisa. I used two cardboard hearts that came covered with red glitter on one side (got a package of 6, different sizes, at Wal-Mart). I covered the back side of the hearts with magazine pictures of roses (Lisa's favorite flower), traced the heart shape a couple times on white paper using those as pages in the card, punched a hole through the whole booklet and tied it together with a strip of tulle. Sweet!

Can you resist this little guy?? Now you see why I had to buy this card?? I didn't want to use it because the message says something about "From all of us", but I had to include it in the package. I have one in a little frame as part of my Valentine decor.

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Heidi set a $20 limit (before postage) for this swap which I really enjoyed. I didn't feel self conscious about whether or not I sent enough, and I had a GREAT time seeing what good deals I could get for my money. I can't even tell you how excited I was when I totaled up my expenses and found that everything except the card and the banner (I already had the materials for that) totaled exactly $20. Hey, its the little things and life, you know...Also, while none of this is actually vintage I had a lot of fun gathering things I thought looked vintage.

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I enjoyed this swap SO much; thanks Heidi for a great swap and for pairing me with a great partner. Thank you, Lisa, for all my goodies!!

Completed: Winter Whimsy Mitten Swap

So have I mentioned: I LOVE SWAPS!! Yes, I do worry every time that I picked weird stuff or didn't send enough stuff, but every swap I've done thus far has turned out so well that I end up forgetting the worries and being so excited to sign up for the next one. Jenny of The Red Bulletin Board was my partner for A Swap For All Seasons' Winter Whimsy Mitten Swap. As the title suggests we were to swap mittens we had either made or embellished along with some "wintery/whimsical" goodies. First up: the loot I got from Jenny!

Look how cute everything was wrapped! She could have wrapped up bricks and empty paper towel tubes, and I wouldn't have been too mad because they came wrapped looking so CUTE! (For the record: Jenny, I appreciate the lack of bricks and paper towel tubes :P )

Once I could bring myself to actually mess up the wrap jobs, here's what I found:

--not 1, not 2, but 3 pairs of mittens! You can see Jenny embellished one pair with my initial in pink buttons (favorite color!). Which made me laugh out loud (for real, not just saying that)...when you see what I sent her you'll understand. The black pair features a gorgeous white button on the cuff and I do believe the blue/pink/white pair might be vintage?? I say that because the cute stripes remind me of 80s running shorts. LOVE my mittens!!

--Mitten ornament
--Mitten stuffed with Sugar Cookie bath goodies (YUM)

--Nutcracker Sweet holiday tea (Jenny's favorite)

--January magazine with mittens on the cover

--Vintage crochet booklet with instructions for making all sorts of winter projects (hats, gloves etc)

--Pink reindeer ring

--Pendant that Jenny made!

She used part of the swap button graphic; how creative is this! I was so impressed when I opened it.

She included a little nod to the pink reindeer I posted about several weeks ago; how cute!

I really enjoyed going through this box and felt so special; it was obvious that Jenny put a lot of thought into each item. I really liked how she carried the mitten theme throughout so many of the items and added those little touches that showed that she read my blog. Thank you, Jenny!!

Here's what I sent her:

--Mittens with red (a nod to her favorite color, fire engine red) buttons in a snowflake/star design

--Scarf with a "J" and another snowflake in red buttons...we had no idea that we were both doing button initials; great minds think alike!
--flying pig suncatcher (Jenny loves flying pigs)

--big, green forest scented candle (Jenny likes pine scent)

--hot chocolate

--Peppermint Peep marshmallows for floating in the hot chocolate (What...you've never had peppermint peeps? Oh, you gotta get some of those. GREAT in hot chocolate)

--"Whimsy" banner (I made it!)

--Snowflake stickers for Jenny's little boy

I was quite proud of these! I've not done much sewing, so I was very pleased when these turned out so cute. Let me tell you (and, Jenny, you know this now, too) sewing inside of a mitten is hard! I finally found a method that worked, but goodness it stumped me the first few tries.

Wintery whimsy banner.

I love this fat little pig with its teeny, tiny wings. This came from Maggiegirl's Etsy shop.

What a great swap! I really enjoyed getting to know a little about Jenny through this swap, and I think that's the main point. The fun stuff is just a nice bonus :)

Go check out A Swap For All Seasons' Vintage Spring Sweetness Swap open until Feb. 7 for signups; you gotta get in on this swap fun!