FQs in the Mail

I received my 2 Fat Quarter (FQ) Swap partners from Darci this weekend and collected and cut fabric to send to them. The packages went out in the mail today. For those wondering, a fat quarter is an 18" x 22" piece of fabric. Where a standard quarter (of a yard) would be 9" (by the length of the bolt, usually 42-45" for quilting cotton), a fat quarter is a half-yard cut in half. This means it's a wide, almost square rectangle, rather than a long, skinny rectangle. FQs are often better for one's stash because they are more versatile: one can cut many more shapes and sizes out of a fat quarter than a regular quarter yard.

The theme of this FQ swap is "wishing for spring" (which I did a lot this weekend when snow blanketed the area on the heels of last week's warm melt). I chose mostly blues, greens, and florals.

The first package included green ironworks (a Michael Miller design), a pale blue-on-white fabric called something like "Looking for the seeds" (which seemed rather appropriate for the theme), and an extra almost FQ of a heavier weight floral. I thought I had a full half yard of the floral to cut into 2 FQs, but after cutting, I realized it wasn't quite 18" so I couldn't count it as a FQ. But it's always nice to include a little extra something (as many quilters seem to do, if blog posts are any indication), and I figured I'd hop along the generous train.

Here's a close-up of the pale blue on white:

It's a very delicate-looking design, and I think it has a lot of potential in a quilt with other light fabrics. Or possibly with brighter, darker ones. Maybe one of my recipients will let me know where it ends up.

The other package includes blue ironworks, a frog/dragonfly/fly on blue (one of my favorites for baby quilts, but I've used it a lot, and I thought it would be a good one to pass on to others to use to make fun things), and an almost FQ of the same floral fabric mentioned above.

Each package also included another surprise treat, primarily because once I start making packages, it's fun to fill the envelope/box. Once I know that my recipients received their packages, I'll post a link to their blogs.