Diggin' The Mini Quilts...

After a day of mini-quilting Monday, I was in the mood to tackle the creative part of my latest swap project. This swap involves the participant's choice of 1) 1 yard of fabric or 2) a 1/2 yard of fabric and something sewn by the giver. (I guess there are other combinations available, but after I saw Option 2, I stopped reading.)

I'm lucky, in that I was recently asked to be a swap angel for the last swap, which was for pincushions. (Read about that swap here.) The organizer for that swap was "starknits". She contacted me and asked me to make a gift for a gal who hadn't received her overseas package. The recipients name was "amylynnknits" and she lives in Athens, GA.

After she received the pincushion and other goodies I shipped out, she posted a note that she loved what I made for her and that she especially liked mt fabric choices. I have a reason for telling you this. Our swap partners are secret until after the swap packages have been received.

You can imagine my surprise when the organizer of the new swap, "celia", matched me up (again) with "amylynnknits"! I was tickled and decided today was the day to make the "creative" part of her swap gift. More Laurel Burch fabric for this swap! And I decided to make another mini quilt, but this time I would put it into a shadow box frame with other goodies. A mini quilt collage.

I have a number of hand made "beads" that I like to use in my collage work. They're simple and fun to make - and they're a perfect project when sitting in front of the television. You really don't need a lot of supplies to make them and the results (I think) are quite fun. Leave a comment if you'd like to learn more about how they're made. I'd be happy to put up a free tutorial if there's any interest!

After I finished assembling my newest mini quilt, I did the machine quilting with Hemingworth metallic thread in a beautiful aqua blue.
I completed the quilt by hand sewing the binding. I'm really happy with the results...especially knowing ahead of time that my swap partner will love the fabric!

I opened the back of the frame I'd chosen and removed the velvet-faced board. I used two pieces of velcro to secure the quilt to the velvet, and did the same with the beads. Then I glued three abalone cabachons below the beads. I replaced the backing into the frame and voila! a completed collage!

I'd love to know what you think of it! I'm planning to make more, and may just have one as part of my 100th Post Giveaway Drawing (which isn't too far off)! Your feedback will be greatly appreciated. Do you think I should include a Mini Quilt Collage in my drawing? I hope so...I'm really diggin' making the Mini Quilts!