October “Cute & Quirky” Swap – Part 1

As mentioned in my previous swap this month I took part in a swap through a Ravelry group.   The subject of the swap was either Happy Halloween or Amazing Autumn.   I chose to receive a parcel containing items under the theme of Amazing Autumn as I just love this time of year with the wonderful colours from the changing of the seasons and cosy feeling you get when the nights start drawing in.

I would like to say a big thank you to Katie (Odds0cks) who sent me this:

Everything is so cute!   I love the ribbon and the sparkly thread (everything I make for the next few weeks is going to be covered in it!!) and, of course, chocolate is always warmly received.   But the piece de resistance was ‘Bernie’ the Conker which Katie made herself.

I have really enjoyed this swap and am looking forward to doing another one soon.   And if you’d like to see what was in the parcel I put together then follow this link to inittoknitit’s blog – I’ll post a bit more about my Halloween makes later this week.  J

A new lease of life….

I’ve done something a little different this month and it’s proving to be rather inspirational.  

A couple of weeks ago I logged onto Ravelry for the first time in ages and I had a couple of emails.   One of them was asking if I would be interested in joining a “swap”.   For those that don’t know a swap is pretty much what it says – you are assigned a partner and then you send them a little package of crafty and/or handmade items up to a certain value and in return you receive a package back from them.   I had read about swaps before but not really taken much notice but for some reason this really caught my attention and so I decided to be brave and have a go.

And I am very glad I did!   The theme of the swap is "Happy Halloween / Amazing Autumn” and I can’t believe how inspirational it has been.   I am making things that I would not necessarily have thought about making if it weren’t for this “brief” and it is really sparking my imagination for future makes.   I am using different mediums and techniques from my usual work which is stretching my skills and encouraging me not to give up on my dreams of being a full-time crafter.   One of my shortcomings is that I get excited about things very easily but then loose interest just as easily when they don’t work out or start getting too repetitive.  Maybe I need to start setting myself briefs or themes each month to stretch my ideas and keep designing/ creating different items?  (any ideas very welcome!)  

I would love to post photos but that would spoil the surprise if my swap partner were to see this post but as soon as I know it’s been received I will share some pictures.   So, to conclude, I would just like to say a big “THANK YOU” to Jordan (inittoknitit94) for enticing me to get involved.    I will definitely sign up for more swaps in the future and encourage everyone to hunt one out as I have had a lot of fun putting my little package together – I can’t wait to see what I get in return.  J