LMP+QG august challenge: kelly's pincushions

Each month, my friend Kait and I are making a project from the book, Last-Minute Patchwork and Quilted Gifts ("LMP+QG" for short). You can see previous projects here. 

 

Last weekend, Kait and I spent the afternoon together and did this month's project---an adorable scrappy pincushion---in just a few hours. For me, the hardest part was figuring out what color scheme to go with, and in the end, I opted for navy and aqua.

Kait was super industrious and wound up making two pincushions in the time it took me to make one, using colorful scraps (pictured above and below).

The project was simple and quick and I loved the results---it'll be a great project for Christmas gifts!

You can see Kait's post about our sewing afternoon together here.

Coming up next month: Color Wheel Quilt

crocheted pincushion

A pretty little pincushion (a birthday gift!) arrived in the mail last week. It's so pretty in fact, I'm kind of hesitant to stick an actual pin in it...

cross-stitch goods for the wondercraft

A package of new Salty Oat goodies is currently on its way to The WonderCraft, just in time for the holiday season and EtsyAustin's November Craft Riot. 

The package includes cross-stitch wall pieces, cross-stitch pincushions, and cross-stitch pinback buttons!

If you haven't already, be sure to stop by The WonderCraft's shiny Airstream trailer and take a gander at all of the awesome, locally made things they stock; they're open every Friday and Saturday.

cross-stitching on gingham

I've been experimenting with cross-stitching on fabrics other than aida cloth, and lately I've turned my attention to gingham. With its built-in grid pattern, it's the perfect backdrop for cross-stitch---and so much fun to stitch on!

pincushion swap: what i received

So in exchange for the succulent pincushion I sent my swap partner Ina, she sent me an absolutely ginormus patchwork pincushion (it's about four inches tall and seven inches in diameter!).

The huge pincushion was actually the second one she made for me; the first was the tiny one pictured above, which Ina also included in my package, along with some pins, buttons, and ribbons.

Both of the pincushions are beautifully pieced together, and I especially love the buttons sewn around the top edge.

pincushion swap: what i sent + new giveaway winner

In March, I took part in a pincushion swap organized by Claire over at Claire's Crafty Blog. For my swap partner Ina (who lives in the Netherlands--my first international swap!), I made this succulent pincushion out of felt.

The pattern is taken from this excellent tutorial for an appliqued succulent sachet, created by Laura of Bugs and Fishes (I love Laura's blog and felt projects!). All of the elements are handsewn, and the pincushion is stuffed with leftover quilt batting.

In other news, I never heard from Kristin, the gal who won my giveaway day pinback buttons (sorry, Kristin!), so I've gone ahead and drawn another winner.

Congratulations, Kitten Delicious! I'll be contacting you to get your address so that I can get the buttons out in the mail to you ASAP. Thanks again to everyone who entered!