… for a friend’s Etsy shop and a giveaway.  Melanie (wiccked on Etsy) makes really beautiful things.  I have some of her ATCs but, until I looked at her Etsy, I hadn’t realised she did PMC – check out the Sun Pot, Bugs on a Screen door and By The Rivers of Babylon in particular.  This week, she has donated the prize for The Aussie Handmade Giveaway, so check that out too.

Before I get on to what I am doing today, I want to mention that a friend from Swap-bot, lisajhoney, is doing a blog giveaway. She makes wonderful felt food and other felt items.  The giveaway runs till September 2nd, but if you are reading this too late, please visit her blog and Etsy shop anyway.

So, back to me … today I am making mini-book charms for a series of charm swaps on Swap-bot.  I made the first one a few weeks ago using traditional sewn signatures (groups of folded pages), but cutting the pages accurately enough for such a small book is a slow process, so now I am experimenting with mini accordion books.  If this works out, I’ll post pictures soon.

I’ve been interested in quilting for a long time, but my previous attempts to get started have faded away.  I still have a half-finished lap quilt top from too many years ago to remember.  Then I joined Swap-bot and discovered fabric ATCs and postcards, and I’ve been having fun ever since.

Last year I finished my first quilt, also for a swap. It is only a doll-sized quilt, but it was a start. I chickened out of quilting that one and just used buttons to ‘tie’ it, but …

… as far as blogging is concerned.  Part of the problem was that most of what I have been making lately has been for swaps on Swap-bot and I’ve been reluctant to post pictures or details here in case my partners saw them and it spoiled the surprise.  I’ve decided to put a spoiler warning on my Swap-bot profile and leave it up to my partners to decide whether or not to look.  I’m still leaving my Flickr pictures as private until I know the items have been received, though.  So, I’ll try to get some pictures of some of my latest projects uploaded soon.

In the meantime, kitty eye-candy …