Tuesday, April 7, 2015

Make It, Take It Bloghop (With Giveaway)

Welcome to my stop on the Make It, Take It bloghop!



Way back over two years ago, Krista Poppyprint told me that she was going to write a book on retreats and asked if I'd contribute a project. I couldn't say yes fast enough. I was - and am - absolutely thrilled for Krista! All of the opportunities and success that this book and her Chess on the Steps pattern have brought to her are the culmination of over 10 years of really hard work and beautiful creations and I am so delighted to be a part of it all: as a contributor, a frequent participant in her day and overnight retreats, and as a friend.

Make It, Take It is a book that celebrates retreats, and features projects for taking your equipment, and projects you can make while you're there. Have you ever been on a retreat? If you have the chance, do it. I think what makes it so special for me is that it’s not just the time; it’s the space. Physical space for basting a big quilt is wonderful but more than that, retreats afford me metaphysical space that I need, too. On my annual overnight retreat, meals are announced with a chime. When it sounds, I slowly stop what I’m doing and go eat a meal someone else has planned and prepared. I eat it in communion with other women who, regardless of who or what we all are in other aspects of our lives, share a passion for creating. I’m a wife and a mother who works full-time outside the home, so freedom from the usual obligations and responsibilities of family and home and work is what I love most about retreating.

My pattern in the book is a set of placemats designed for a round table. If you aren't into scrappy projects, these placemats would look fabulous with just two colours of strips, maybe with a fun contrasting binding? Or you could use precut strips from one fabric line. Lots of choice! If you did your cutting ahead of time, you could get a very good start on a set of 4 during a long day retreat, and certainly finish them at an overnight getaway.


I came up with the concept after a visit with my Dad when I noticed his rectangular placemats weren't really working all that well on his round table. I didn't tell him I was making them for him (because surprises are so fun!), and it took quite a while before they actually went from idea to finished project (because of course they did). Once the placemats were finally done, I proudly mailed them off and he sent me a lovely thank you email when he got them. Shortly after I got the email - we're talking minutes here - my Dad called. He told me again how much he appreciated the placemats, how lovely they were. Then he paused and said, "Felicity.....I got a new table." I'll give you one guess as to the shape of the new table. Correct! NOT ROUND! Good sport that he is, Dad uses the round placemats on his square table (and they work really well, actually).

There are lots and lots of other projects in this book, and they're all fabulous. I've made one other one so far (blog post to come). Have a look a this list of contributors and fellow bloghop hostesses who'll be sharing their projects over the course of the hop:

Friday, April 4 Blog hop kick-off: Krista at Poppyprint
Monday, April 6: Berene at Happy Sew Lucky and Amy at During Quiet Time
Tuesday, April 7: Leanne at She Can Quilt and Felicity at Felicity Quilts
Wednesday, April 8: Martingale Inc. at Stitch this! (check out their Rainbow Round the Cabin staff party!)
Thursday, April 9: Krista at Spotted Stones and Krista at Krista Withers Quilting
Friday, April 10: Lynne at Lilys Quilts and Cindy at Live a Colorful Life
Saturday, April 11: Ayumi at Pink Penguin and Krista at Poppyprint
Sunday, April 12: Kristie at OCD: Obsessive Crafting Disorder and Christina at Sometimes Crafter

Now for the exciting part: how you can win your very own copy of Make It, Take It! Two books are up for grabs: one digital copy (courtesy of Martingale, the book's publisher) and one hard copy (courtesy of yours truly).

Simple entry rules:
- Comment on this blog post.
- One comment per person, please. I'd love to know where in the world you are, so if you want to include that in your comment, that's cool but optional.
- Make sure your email is attached to your profile (or if you're unsure, just include it in your comment to be safe, using AT and DOT to avoid spam) because if it's not there, I will have to choose another entry.
- International entries are welcome.
- I'll close this post to comments at some point on Friday, April 10th, probably around 8:00 pm Pacific, then use Random Number Generator to select TWO winners. One will win the digital copy, the other will receive the hard copy.  Edited: Giveaway closed and winners announced. Thanks for entering!

70 comments:

  1. What a great idea, I'm *fairly* sure my mum has no plans to change her table!!!

    Benta,, near Windsor, UL

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  2. I really love the idea of placemats made to suit a round table! They are very distinctive! And I even have a round table..... Thanks for the chance to win a copy. It would love to be used by ME in Melbourne, Australia!

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  3. Love those place mats! Very original. Thanks for the chance to win.

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  4. Good morning from snowy and cold Halifax, Nova Scotia. Love your placemats. I have a round table and I think I need to make these soon. What a fabulous book of projects.

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  5. The book looks fantastic! Hugs from Florida! carolann427@aol.com

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  6. I have a round table so I know what you mean about the rectangular placemats. I am in Alabama.

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  7. Round placemats are BRILLIANT! I know two sisters with round tables who would LOVE those...:) I am in middle Tennessee, just west of Nashville.

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  8. Great book,hope I win one. I need the placemat pattern to use on my two tables!

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  9. The story about the new table made me laugh!

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  10. I am enjoying this blog hop! Fun projects! I am in Georgia-currently dealing with our spring "snow" issues as everything is covered in a blanket of pollen!

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  11. Your concept of the table mats is perfect. I bet your Dad loves them. Luckily I am heading to a retreat on the 17th of this month and it would be handy to have a fresh project if I am the lucky selection.

    I too am covered with a 2" blanket of snow this am. I've had enough of that. oh well, more time to sew and quilt.

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  12. I love the idea of round placemats! I think they would look fantastic on any shape of table! I live in tennessee...a warm and cloudy day...did I say warm?!

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  13. I love the round place mat. it will be a perfect gift for a friend. The more examples I see, the more I have to have this book. I live in Maine where there is still snow on the ground. ritasiavAThotmailDOTcom

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  14. If I had a round table that would be great.....maybe on my oval table. Here in South Dakota we are finally getting a little much-needed rain.
    mf23209@gmail.com

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  15. The projects in this book look fantastic! I am in BC Canada.

    silverthimble@shaw.ca

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  16. I like those placements! How ingenious. I will have to buy this book if I don't win it!! I'm from WV jolisgsd@gmail.com

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  17. I do love your placemats! They would look great on my patio table once the weather brightens up here in Windsor ON.

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  18. Ok, it totally cracks me up that you made special placemats and then your dad went and bought a new table. It really is a great idea though! I'm about an hour away from Washington DC.

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  19. HELLO from Montana> a little snow last night!
    Love your blog+projects! Thanks for sharing!
    msstitcher1214@gmail.com

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  20. I live in a small Georgia town 30 miles east of Atlanta. I'd love to make the round placemats for my round table.

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  21. Mwah!!!! You're the best Felicity. I love that we get to hang out on a regular basis at guild meetings, retreats, workshops and international quilting conferences ; ). Thank you so much for sharing your creativity in Make It, Take It and for saying such lovely things!!! xoxox

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  22. This is such a great book. Thanks for the giveaway.

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  23. Love the placemats! What a cool idea.
    nikilsend(at)outlook(dot)com

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  24. I'm enjoying the blog hop :-)
    Best regards from Germany,
    Kathrin :-)

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  25. That is a funny story about your Dad's table! I could use round placemats for my patio table. I'm in Calgary, Alberta.

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  26. Cool placemats! Snow finally melting here in NY.

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  27. Visiting from North Carolina. I love the thought behind your round place mats. Too funny that your dad got a square table! Thanks for the chance to win!
    sarah123quilt AT gmail DOT com

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  28. great book that i would love to have

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  29. Great story of the placemats. I should consider them for my round table. I am in south central Kansas.

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  30. The book looks really nice. Thanks for having a give away.

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  31. The weather is finally getting warmer here in Wisconsin. A few spring flowers are starting to peak out of the ground.

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  32. I'll be going on my first mini quilting retreat with two friends in June. We'll be doing our own cooking though. I like the circular placemats.

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  33. Love round placemats! Stopping in from Victoria B.C. Canada!

    g(dot)dunn(at)shaw(dot)ca

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  34. I have a round table! :) I made myself some kidney shaped placemats for my table several years ago, but I have since redecorated and I need some new ones. I love the shape of yours, so a copy of the book would be fabulous! Thanks for the giveaway.

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  35. Windy and cold in Chicago! Thanks for a great giveaway.

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  36. Hello from the central coast of California! This book looks like it has fun, fun projects inside, thank you for the chance to win a copy!

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  37. I love your placemats for a round table. Such a great idea! I'm from Surrey, BC just outside of Vancouver.

    lin.web.28 at gmail dot com

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  38. What a fun story about these placemats for your dad. I love your idea! I'm from Munich, Germany. Thanks for the chance!

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  39. Hello from Fairfax, Va. We're waiting for the cherry blossoms to bloom for the annual festival.

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  40. Greetings from Kentucky! I got a laugh out of the story about your Dad's table. Isn't that the way things go? Thanks for sharing and for entertaining me for a bit!

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  41. Looks like a great book! I would love to win a copy. Mary
    mburnette912@bellsouth.net

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  42. I like your placemats for a round table--that's what I have and these would be great for it. Hope to win a copy!
    Thanks

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  43. I am in Auburn, AL, the "Loveliest Village on the Plains!" Funny retreat story for you: the very first retreat I went to I was trying to finish up my college degree (20 yrs after I finished high school..geesh). I was taking an online Spanish class, and the retreat location had NO SERVICE!! I had no idea! So I ended up driving to a stop sign closer to town where I had cell service, calling my husband, and walking him through my Spanish homework over the phone. It was crazy, but I ended up with an A in Spanish that semester!!

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  44. Hello! I'd love for you to send a copy up to Kamloops ; )
    Thanks for all the inspiration your blog provides

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  45. Hi, I love your place mats as I do have a round table! Would love a copy of the book or the e-book. Thanks, dc at dcholley dot com.

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  46. I am in Lansing, Mi. Trying to enjoy a rainy spring break. I haven't been to a retreat but love to get together with my friends for a day of sewing. Thanks! sewgood414athotmaildotcom

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  47. I have had that exact same situation with my sister's table. Sigh.

    And I'm in Victoria, and looking forward to Krista's talk at my guild (MQG Victoria) next month!

    Congrats on being published too.

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  48. Love your placemats, on my project list for this spring! Thanks for being a part of this.

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  49. Your placemats provide another project for using my growing pile of scraps. So many projects to like in Krista's book.
    swalker287(at)aol(dot)com

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  50. I love the placemats! Great idea!

    suzettestockley AT gmail DOT com

    from Newfoundland, Canada

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  51. What an awesome idea! Love your placemats!

    Greetings from Northern California.

    usairdoll(at)gmail(dot)com

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  52. That's so cool that your dad uses the round-table placemats on his square table. So sweet! I am in Dubuque, Iowa where spring is taking it's time getting here. The high today was only 48* and I was wearing a winter coat. Brrrr....

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  53. The round placemats are great. I have 3 families i want to make them for right now. I am in Pasco Washington

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  54. I am in NC. I can't wait to see this book, looks like a lot of great projects.

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  55. Those round placemats would look great on my MIL's table in Austin, TX where I feel at home too, but I live in Berlin, Germany ;-)

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  56. Think this book would be a great addition to my library. From sunny and warm Charleston, SC...

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  57. It's a lovely sunny day here in Vancouver; those fancy placemats would look nice on my patio table...
    distantsub at gmail dot com

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  58. Every project I've seen from this book is fantastic, and your placemats are included in this praise! Thanks for the giveaway, and hello from Saskatoon!

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  59. Your place mats are great. I want to make these for some gifts I need to make. They would fit perfectly on their tables. (mine too if I can finish the others) I'm in North Carolina.
    ncjeepster@aol.com

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  60. The placemats would be perfect for my round patio table. Hi from the IE (Inland Empire) in Southern California. -- soparkaveataoldotcom

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  61. Luv the round placemat idea for my patio table and hello from Arizona.

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  62. I have a round table in my dining room---I love your placemat idea! I also love attending retreats because I find it so inspiring to be among like-minded friends!

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  63. Your placemats are great! I loved seeing Krista's trunk show at the vmqg meeting!

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  64. Great idea for the placemats! I'm in sunny England :) x

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  65. Hello to you and your very international group of blog followers! I am joining the discussion from (increasingly chilly) Sydney, Australia! I am fascinated by your great idea for the place mats: as a child we dined at a beautiful old circular table brought from Scotland by a forebear. Somehow, the rectangular place mats that were used at each meal never looked quite right - edges hanging over the majestic carved curve of that table. Happily I now own the table - and am excited about making your shaped mats. I'd be so delighted to win the book: thank you for the opportunity!

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  66. From the isolation of a farm in eastern Washington, I'm thinking that your placemats would look fabulous on my great grandmother's round oak dining table! wild_blue_farm at yahoo dot com

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  67. I am in southern Ontario in Canada. I would love to win a copy of this book. I like to have some quick projects that I can accomplish in a short time.

    susanmcg999@gmail dot com

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