I had previously been using the top of my headboard to hold all my books, but that just wasn't working anymore, so I decided to build myself a bookcase.  It is pretty simple, but I love it.



and with  my books...

I was thinking of hosting a children's kick off the summer swap.  There is about a month left of school and then my kids are home for the summer.  I don't know about you guys, but the first few weeks of summer vacation are a bit chaotic... kids who were used to a school schedule find themselves "totally bored"... lol.  So I thought it would be fun to put together a package of crafts/activities/whatever to help our children kick off their summer vacation!  Anyone interested?   

We have a sender... hopefully Munora will be recieving in the next few days.

[YES Info sent to Craftydame]

Swap name:  Fill A Purse Swap Round 4
Craftster member who is organizing this swap:  stitch81
Sign-up date range:  3/31/09-4/15/09
Date to send item by: 5/15/09

Limited to a certain number of people? : NO

Restricted to people who all live in the same country? NO, but I will do my best to pair up those who live in the same country.

Age requirement? 13

Swap Organizer herself meets these conditions:
- Has fully read the Swap Info Guide: YES
- Has successfully completed two swaps as a participant: YES
- Is not organizing more than three swaps right now: YES
- Will recruit a co-organizer or give all details to a Swap Moderator if this swap has more than 25 participants: YES  Info sent to Craftydame


Swap Organizer will check each participant to make sure they meet these conditions:
- Has been a member for at least one month: YES
- Has posted at least 15 times: YES
- Has completed one swap successfully before signing up for multiple swaps at a time: YES
- Is not currently signed up for more than five swaps: YES
- Does not have any negative feedback: YES
- Participant has agreed that he/she is at least 13 years old: YES
- Participant lives in the United States: YES
- If yes, understands that Delivery Confirmation number is required for this swap: YES
- If no, understands that a mailing receipt copy is required for this swap: YES

Details of swap:
Each participant will make one purse (all types of purses/bags are included) according to their partner's likes/preferences AND place in it at least 5 items that their partner needs/wants in their purse all the time. The 5 items may be a combination of crafted & purchased. Items could be things like: wallets, keychains, candy, glasses case, ipod case, camera case, lipbalm, tissue cozies, cellphone holders, and anything else you can think of that your partner will like.   Make sure to beef up those wists to help your partners out!!!


Links to previous rounds:
http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=105700.0
http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=178496.0
http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=239195.0

Kleenex cozy tutorial
http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=215629.20

Chapstick/lip balm cozy
http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=97503.0

Key Fob Tutorial
http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=250386.0

Manicure Roll tutorial
http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=283072.0

General purse organizer
http://www.thegivingflower.de/patterns/Purse_Organizer_Recipe18_11.pdf

If you want to participate, please PM the following information to the organizer.

QUESTIONNAIRE TO ANSWER:
Name of swap Fill A Purse Swap Round 4
Craftster username
Email address
Your real name
Mailing address including the country
Would you be willing to ship to an address outside your own country?
What are your favorite colors?
What are your least favorite colors?
Are there any patterns that you particularly like? (ex. Flowers. Stripes, plaids)
Are there any patterns that you can’t stand? (ex. Flowers, stripes, plaids)
What would you like to find in your purse? (what do you typically carry around all the time? If you list any electronics, please also list demensions)
What size purse are you looking for (please give approximate measurements, as just putting Large, medium and small can be a bit confusing –what one person may consider large may not be what someone else considers large… )
Do you want a sewn, knit, crochet, or felted bag? or maybe an alternative bag like a book purse, LP bag, Does it matter to you?
What kind of purses can you make?
Are you stalkable? (do you have a wist?) If yes, provide the link/s…
If your partner sends sweets, what are your favorites?
Do you have a theme you particularly like?(ex. Tv shows, movies, characters, sayings)
Anything you find really distasteful?
Allergies?
Anything else that you want your partner to know about you?

****Please take note:****
You are required to post at least once a week in the thread.  Lack of communication and/or late sending (without a valid reason) will result in temporary negative feedback.   Please understand that you are making a commitment to your partner.  It leaves a bad feeling to work hard on a package for someone and then get flaked on.  There is a month of crafting time, so please plan accordingly.  There should be no reason to send late!  Please be considerate to your partner and send a package of a quality that you would love to receive in return.  And as always, Dc numbers are a requirement!!  For you international participants a copy of your mailing receipt is needed.

IF YOU WANT TO PARTICIPATE, REMEMBER TO SEND YOUR INFO TO ORGANIZER VIA PRIVATE MESSAGE AND NOT TO REPLY WITH IT HERE.

Also remember to read the Swap Info Guide (http://www.craftster.org/swapsinfo.html ) to find out how to ship your item and other details about participating in a swap.

 Looking forward to a wonderful swap!!

Approved Swappers!         * = first time swappers

1. stitch81
2. SapphireGypsy *
3. wx2dzug
4. jloveg
5. SlyFox *
6. Munora
7. SnazzyJazzy *
8. thunderchild
9. RyverChyld *
10. mrs.benjimadden
11. dannispring240
12. Lovely Leslie
13. HippieKender
14. GlassSpider *
15. Shareel *
16. TheSapphireMoon
17. photochickkds
18. shout4joy
19. mrs.cullen
20. moonshae
21. Sweety
22. GrindHouseHussy19
23. Lique
24. Faux_Valentine
25. bergman
26. fusbdgt
27. PaleAngelLex
28. SkitzoLeezra
29. luckdragon
30. Craftastrophe
31. melmakespretty
32. BugPop*
33. spotnik
34. Lylanni
35. queenxxxdee  
36. crendon
37. mljohnston
38. sg1psychopath
39. javede
40. hardcoremothball
41. cinnamon teal
42. HandsyMalone
43. danirene
44. ariaya
45. OhThat
46. princesspimp81
47. sarahsews
48. twistedbeader
49. phoenix_michiko
50. MsMia
51. iheartzb
52. stafishtaylz
53. pinupmommy
54. Sandra22
55. jukebox

------------------------------------------------


Okay, here we go.  Please check in with your partner if you have any questions.  When it gets time to send out, you must send a pm to both me (the organizer) AND your partner with the Delivery confirmation number (or copy of mailing reciept for those of you international participants for whom delivery confirmation is not available).  And again, you are required to check in via pm (to me) OR post to the thread at least once a week.  I will be keeping track.  Communication is key to a successful swap.  Okay! Let’s have some fun!

Sent
Recieved
Sent & Recieved
FLAKED
feedback given
contact me ASAPPartners

jloveg < - - - > Lique
dannispring240 < - - - > GlassSpider
HippieKender < - - - > melmakespretty
Shareel < - - - > bergman
SapphireGypsy  < - - - >  mrs. cullen
stitch81  < - - - > Munora
wx2dzug < - - - > thunderchild
GrindHouseHussy19 < - - - > BugPop
fusbdgt < - - - > luckdragon
PaleAngelLex < - - - > mljohnston
javede < - - - > sg1psychopath
cinnamon teal < - - - > crendon
SkitzoLeezra < - - - > spotnik
photochickkds < - - - > Craftastrophe
shout4joy < - - - > Faux_Valentine
Sweety < - - - > moonshae
Hardcoremothball < - - - > danirene
Sly Fox < - - - > Lovely Lesley
SnazzyJazzy < - - - > mrs.benjimadden
RyverChyld < - - - > TheSapphireMoon
HandsyMalone < - - - > Lylanni
OhThat < - - - > MsMia
iheartzb < - - - > phoenix_michiko
sarahsews < - - - > queenxxxdee
pinupmommy < - - - > princesspimp81
ariaya < - - - > stafishtaylz
ROUND ROBIN GROUP
twistedbeader  - - - > Sandra22 - - - > jukebox  - - - > twisted beader



GALLERY LINK
http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=302231.0

After taking a few months off from sewing I decided to get back into the swing of things.  This is Butterick 4919.  This pattern was very easy.  All I had to change was the top, I'm not very blessed in that area..but anyway... on to the pics.

Front:

Side:

Back:

Actually on Me:

I really need a tan....lol

I love bella's mittens from Twilight... however, I am a very beginning knitter and honestly, I still suck at it. 

I was wondering if there was a crochet version for the cables shown on her mittens.  I believe they called it a horseshoe cable.  Can anyone help me?  I've search for different crochet cable stitches online, but am not coming up with anything...   

I was browsing through the crochet board today and saw this hat and pattern...

http://www.rheatheylia.com/index.php?page=patterns&id=10

I decided to give it a try... here's mine.  Definately not as glamorous looking as the original poster, but I like it.

I saw these here on craftster and I wanted to try them.  I used freezer paper and a bleach pen.

Okay, i know I'm late in the game to be getting into twilight, but I'm completely hooked!  I was going through the galleries of all the Twilight swap rounds and saw this messenger bag that someone had stenciled.  She was also kind enough to share the stencil so I thought I'd give it a try.  I stenciled the back first, and learned to just leave it alone until it dries a bit.  I was impatient and pulled the paper off too soon and ended up with a bit of smudging, but I learned my lesson for the front... Here's my new Twilight shirt!  Thanks to Wal-mart I got this shirt for $5 on the clearance rack! Can't beat that!


Front:


Here's the back...you can see some small smudging by the first i and the g

Hi.  First off, I apologize if this has already been discussed, there are so many pages of questions that it would take forever to go through, and I don't know if there is a search option for questions...

I am planning to organize my first swap in a couple of months once my schedule clears enough to do so.  This will be my first time organizing.  I would like to protect myself as well as those joining my swap as much as possible from flakers, non-communicators, and procrastinators (I've recently had to deal with these problems from a partner).  Is it okay to add questions like "Do you understand and agree that you are required to post (or pm me) once a week?"  "Do you understand/agree to contact your partner to determine their likes/dislikes, ask questions, or just to introduce yourself to acknowledge them?"  " Do you understand/agree that the send out date is CONCRETE? (certain circumstances will of course be considered)"

I take my commitments very seriously and almost always send early.  It bugs me when I am in a swap with a reasonable crafting time and yet there are late senders.  I know organizing a swap involves a lot more time and effort than just participating in a swap, but is it okay to "cover all bases" with the questionaire so that they have no excuses later?