Mod Swap

Last month, one of the first things the moderators at Craftster did to welcome the newest mods (including myself) was to organize a craft swap. Each new mod would be paired with an "old" mod in a mini version of a "Make a Friend" swap. We would exchange three things:  one thing we do well, one thing we love, and one surprise.

All the "old" mods are amazing crafters, and I had the fantastic good fortune to be paired with rackycoo. She tends to focus on paper crafts and assemblages, while I am mostly into sewing. That meant that I had to really dig into her Pinterest to figure out what to make for her--she didn't have a lot of sewn items there!  We exchanged messages, though, and she mentioned she would love some fabric baskets, so that's where I started.  Here's the whole package I sent to her:

The baskets are "the thing I do well."  I've done these before; there's even a tutorial for them HERE on my blog. Rackycoo's Pinterest was full of things that look old and worn, so I decided to use one of my cutter quilts for the heart and star on the front of the baskets.

I cut the bold words "happy" and "love" out of a piece of new fabric with an old look to it.  I left all the edges raw, so there are plenty of loose threads!  (Everything is securely sewn, though, so it won't be falling apart any time soon.)

For her "surprise" item, I made this zippered pouch (although it could also have been the "thing I do well", since I've made so many of these!)  This is the first one I've done like this, though, with both a pieced section and an appliqued section on both sides.  Rackycoo loves birds, and things wearing party hats!

In return, rackycoo made me some truly amazing items!  First, this elephant box that I requested; she started with a blank paper elephant form from a craft store, and with a lot of work she turned it into this piece of art!  I love it. (Yes, the box under the elephant does open.)

Altered tins are one of her specialties, so she made this one for me. The old buttons are still on their original card.  So cool!

The third item is actually three miniature treasures for my Blythe dolls.

First, she made this box of letters and post cards...they all have writing on them, and tiny stamps and post marks! The envelopes each contain a piece of paper with a letter written on it, to one of my dolls!  These are unbelievably detailed.

Next, there is this sweet terrarium.  The butterfly is a metal charm that she painted and somehow bent to give it a more realistic look.

And last, a clock!  This is so beautiful and elegant!

The back of the clock features this pretty picture, so it can be used with either side facing forward.

I jumped right into this swap but then started to feel nervous as I was crafting...but rackycoo is pleased with what I sent her, so that's all that matters!  I love what I received as well--thanks so much for the swap, Kristen!