12x12 Fabric technique swap #25: Catherine van der Hoeff, The Netherlands

Thank you so much, Catherine - all the way from The Netherlands!

Creative Bag Swap Congratulations!

I have great news! All of the creative bags for our swap have been packaged up and were MAILED today, phew! I forgot that it is always a little bit of a challenge to package such varied types of items . . . . but was it worth it? Yes! I hope you all enjoy the swaps I made for you and you like what you receive as I tried to pair you with someone who's art & creativity I thought you would enjoy. This time, whomever you received a creative bag from, has your bag. It was an equal swap 1 for 1 with no switching around to make things work out. Too cool!

Speaking of CREATIVITY, I have a First & Second Prize to award two participants in this swap. Was this hard to do? YES!! There were so many really creative bags . . . you all did fantastic. The 1st prize for the most creative bag is awarded to Catherine van der Hoeff from the Netherlands. YAY!
I had some ideas of a winner before Catherine's bag arrived, but when it did I knew hers was the one! The felting, beading, sequins, bells, the button fairies - oh MY! I think Catherine's bag really stands out and she really deserved first prize! ~ : ^ ) A close up of her bag is above right . . . and her prize is below. I gathered fabrics I thought she would like, a pattern for fabric bags, bits of my favorite marbled paper, and some fabric images from Alpha Stamps.







I am awarding the SECOND place runner up prize for most creative bag to Mercedes Jiménez Campuzano of Madrid, Spain!

Oh my, Mercedes bag has so much stitching and detail . . .
just beautiful! See the bag to the right.


You can read more about it in my original post or directly on Mercedes' blog . There is a translator on her blog if you do not speak Spanish! For Mercedes' prize I gathered together fabrics and lace I thought she might like; see below - click on any photo for more detail.














Congratulations to everyone on a succesful and beautifully creative swap.
I may orchestrate it, but YOU create it!
NEW SWAPS will not be announced until I return from visiting my parents in Florida; around March 12th, but there is a teaser in the sidebar to the right about what's to come.

yours, creatively, lenna

Creative Bag Swap: Catherine van der Hoeff

Sorry to be a little late in uploading our last creative bag. Here is Catherine's bag, all the way from the Netherlands; I am so glad it made it as it is such a beautiful felted bag. Catherine's note to me, enclosed with her bag, said that she put wool and silk rovings on a scarf and felted everything together. You can see some of the original scarf hanging off either side of her bag. I don't know anything about felting really, but I do love the look!

Catherine also wrote, "When I saw the little button faeries on the ARTchix site I knew I had to make some and find them a good home (. . . or garden!). " There are 2 little button fairies on Catherine's bag, click on the photo to see them better.

Now that ALL the bags are in my hands, I have made my decision on the most creative bag in this swap and a runner up, and I have a prize for both . . . even though you ALL were so creative! As I told the participants in an email, this swap was really amazing as far as creativity - thank you!

I will wait to make the announcement of the winners until ALL the bags are packaged & on their way back to you, hopefully by late tomorrow - check back here please! below, a few more photos of Catherine's felted bag . . . . . (the back and inside, below)

The alphabet beads she added spell out "PICK MORE DAISIES" : ^ )

Garden ATCs - Catherine van der Hoeff, The Netherlands

We have beautiful Soul Flowers ATCs from Catherine van der Hoeff in the Netherlands! Click on them for a closer view.

I just love these! Catherine enclosed a note describing HOW she made them: They are made on Kunin felt and she used a method described in the book, "Pretty Little Things" by Sally Alexander. The author described a technique called "abracadabra collage technique" where you list tasks on little pieces of paper (paint, cut, chalk, wipe, ink, etc) - put them in a bowl and draw them, then do what it says!! Catherine says she translated some of the tasks to fabric (like stitch, sequin, etc) and she said it was so much fun. Then Catherine ironed on polyfilm (plastic) to keep everything in place. Catherine writes that she hopes I like the results - I DO!!! I am so happy you made an extra ATC for me!! thank you : ))

If you are in this swap I am eagerly awaiting your ATCs as 25 more sets are due to arrive . . . remember I will be without computer access July 14th - 22nd, so I won't be able to tell you until after that date that your swap art has reached me . . . . ALL ATCs must be here by Tuesday July 31st and then I may be enlisting help to swap all these gorgeous cards!

: ) yours creatively, lenna