Mug Rug Swap

I participated in a fun swap for mug rugs hosted by Michele Foster at the Quilting Gallery. I'd never heard of a mug rug, but the concept is pretty simple: it's like a coaster on steroids or, alternatively, like a miniature placemat. It's big enough for a large mug of coffee (tea) and a treat. Right up my alley! I LOVE LOVE LOVE these!! Whoever originally thought of the idea is brilliant!

I made a coffee-themed rug for my swappie. I fussy-cut sections from
Debbie Mum's Coffee Break and set those pieces into the coffee bean
on blue. I really like how it came out. It looks simple, but the piecing
required quite a bit of math. I like that difficult piecing looks simple in the end.



My swap partner really likes selvages, so I wanted to incorporate
them into one of the rugs. I really love this fabric line: Rainy Days
and Mondays by Riley Blake. It has really pretty selvages which
I never noticed until I started looking through my fabric to find one
to work with. I don't know if I will use selvages in the future, but it
was really fun to incorporate them in this and I like how it turned out!

I got this beauty in the mail from Eindhoven - in the Netherlands.
Oh, it's gorgeous isn't it!! Maya, from Maya's Scrap Basket did
an amazing job! I love the fabric - reminds me of apple picking. I
plan to keep this one on my sewing table for the cup of tea that
rarely leaves my side. My little tea pot fits right beside it! Nice!

This is rug #2 from Maya. So fun! I really love this one, too!
Watermelon is a real favorite of mine and I love that I have a fall
and a summer rug - though I'll use both all year round! This one
is heading to work with me to grace my desk and allow my
little work teapot to rest upon it. Now this is living! Thanks Maya!!

The Battle of the Nature-Themed Quilts

Hello all! I have just completed the quilt for my swap partner. I will be sending it off to her on Tuesday when the post office opens again. The site that hosted the swap, Quilting Gallery, is also hosting a contest for the best nature-themed quilt. I would like to enter, but I can't decide which quilt to enter, so I thought I'd ask for your help.

The first contestant is the quilt I made for the swap. It's titled Lily Garden, Year One and commemorates my first year as a gardener and features three lilies, similar to the ones in my little lily bed, and 42 individually cut and appliqued blades of grass (yes, that's correct, 42 - not 41, not 43, but 42).

The second contestant is the quilt I made for Michele for our anniversary. It is titled Dragonfly Dance and features a dragonfly centerpiece and lots of little bugs and flowers, each on its own pieced background.

I, of course, love both and would love to enter both, but can only enter one. Michele's already voted for her quilt, but she might be just a bit biased. What do you think?

On a related note, once I enter one of these lovelies and voting starts, I'll let you know. The prizes wouldn't satisfy a voluptuary, but I think they are pretty great and I would love to win one of them. But, first, of course, I need your help to decide which one to enter!