Each year, one of the quilt clubs that I belong to has a Christmas gift exchange challenge. Everyone that wants to participate in the gift exchange puts 1/2 yard of a fabric of their choice in a paper bag with our name in it. The club president adds a number to the outside of the bag, takes the person's name out of the bag and documents the names with the number so that no one else knows whose is whose. Bags are then picked at random by the participants who can then add any fabrics that coordinate and come up with a gift using at least a 6" piece of the "owners" fabric. I thought that I'd show you what I did with the fabric that I received in the bag I picked. The fabric was a cotton floral in shades of blue and yellow....no other colors. I decided to make a hussif...a needlecase that also has places for other sewing items like scissors, thread, needlethreader, etc. I added other blue and yellow cotton fabrics, blue felt, and then crazy quilted it using various threads, beads, and buttons and embellished it with embroidery stitches. I used a light batting and to keep the "book" in shape, I added plastic mesh to two of the center sections and the "spine". This was my own design.....I used no pattern. Feel free to make one of your own, they are very handy. I'm working up another design that will specifically be used for on an armchair. When I have that done, I'll share it, too.
