Wednesday 2 November 2016

Dishcloth Swap 2016

Back in June, I signed up for the Dishcloth Swap 2016 which is run by Kimberley from Creative Chaos. The rules were to knit a dishcloth or sew a mug rug, choose another couple of kitchen items and something sweet to send to your partner. The parcels were to be sent off late July.


I was paired up with Tracy from Mad About Bags and so much more.......... Tracy has had a busy time over summer so she was a little delayed in putting a parcel together but I received it recently so I thought I'd show you what I received.


First of all, two fabulous dishcloths, aren't they pretty? I don't think I'll be able to bring myself to use them so I might just have to display them for decoration. The same goes for the lovely tea towel. I also received a pretty card adorned with a rose.


Tracy told me she'd sent extra goodies for the parcel being a little late, they were all things I love. A fabulous writing set, always handy as I still love hand writing letters even in this age of technology, a lovely diary which has a great layout as there's lots of space for writing, some cute note cards, these will be very handy for when I want to drop someone a line or two, a bath bomb which smells divine and some Toffifees, yum.


As you can probably guess from the name of Tracy's blog, she's Mad About Bags and actually makes them herself. She sent me the most gorgeous shoulder bag which I'm thrilled with. The fabric is fabulous, especially for me who loves gardening.


It's lined with even more pretty fabric which coordinates perfectly.


Thank you so much Tracy, it was a wonderful parcel and well worth waiting for.

Would you like to see what I sent to Tracy? I thought so.


First of all, the dishcloths.


Here you can see the two different patterns.


A pretty tea bag rest, an egg cup, a shopping list pad and some sachets of Taylors rose lemonade tea.


The swap was posted just after I got back from Cornwall so it was on my mind whilst I was there. I thought it would be nice to include some yummy hand made fudge so I picked some up whilst I was on holiday.


Thank you for organising the swap, Kimberley, it was great fun, and thank you, once again, for my gifts, Tracy, you're a great swap partner.

42 comments:

  1. Everything looks fabulous, Jo - both the gifts given and the gifts received! :o)

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    1. I was thrilled with everything I received, such lovely gifts.

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  2. What a great swap!
    You both sent each other such lovely goodies :-)

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    1. It was a lovely swap, fun to shop for, and I received some fabulous goodies.

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  3. Beautiful swap gifts Jo, received and sent. I love swaps and I love knitting dishcloths, hope Kimberley runs the swap again next year.

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    1. I always use hand knitted dish cloths these days, I much prefer them to bought ones, but I think the ones Tracy sent are too lovely to use.

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    2. an annual thing Kim - we all love mail and happy things. There are so many crafty talents out there to share around the world :)

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    3. I love taking part in swaps, who doesn't love receiving a parcel full of lovely things through the post.

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  4. You got some wonderful gifts, she's a talented lady.

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    1. She is, I loved everything I received, especially the hand made goodies.

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  5. Such a great swap, thoughtful and beautiful gifts.

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    1. The gifts were very thoughtful, they had a bit of a gardening theme running through them which is perfect for me.

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  6. A great exchange, such lovely gifts you both sent. Love the cloths that were made for you, so pretty.

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    1. The cloths are beautiful, aren't they? They'll definitely be displayed rather than used.

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  7. What beautiful parcels both given and received. I've never thought to make anything other than a plain white dishcloth before. You've inspired me now. X

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    1. I usually make plain white dishcloths for myself but the coloured ones are so pretty, I think I'll start and spoil myself a little.

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  8. What a lovely swap, you both made such pretty dishcloths I can see why you'd only want to display and not use them xx

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    1. I think they'll look so pretty on display in the kitchen, they're far too nice to use.

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  9. What a lovely swap between the two of you, thank you for sharing your photo's.

    I'm with you when you said "I still love hand writing letters even in this age of technology" ... it is still so lovely to receive a hand-written note / letter / card and I do fear that in the age of technology / text / emails etc this wonderful age old custom is going to slowly disappear.

    It's mid-week already and November too - so sending good wishes for this new month, to you and yours.

    All the best Jan

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    1. I don't think there's anything nicer than receiving a letter through the post. I've always enjoyed letter writing, I had lots of penpals as a child and used to write to family who didn't live close by too. It seems to be a dying art these days.

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  10. I would not use the clothes either, having them on show is a much nicer plan.

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    1. They're far too nice to use but they'll look lovely on display.

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  11. What a lovely surprise bundle to receive through the post. I'll definitely get involved in more things now I'm retired. Tracy will be over the moon with her bundle too.
    .

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    1. I was thrilled to receive so many lovely things. I've only been taking part in swaps for the past year but I thoroughly enjoy it.

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  12. What a lovely idea. I love all of those items. I'd be happy just to display them in my kitchen.

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    1. It's a lovely swap, I like pretty things for the kitchen so it's perfect for me.

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  13. I don't think I could bring myself to use those dishcloths either, aren't they pretty.
    You both sent some gorgeous things, your new bag is so cute.
    Lisa x

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    1. The dishcloths are lovely, I've never attempted anything like that in crochet myself. The bag will be so useful and the fabric is perfect for me.

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  14. What a lovely gifts, both, that you received and sent. Hope you both get much enjoyment from them. Take care.

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    1. It was a great swap, I enjoyed shopping for it and of course, receiving all those lovely things.

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  15. Such wonderful gifts, both given and received - that shoulder bag is gorgeous! I smiled when I saw the Toffifee...obviously Tracy knows you quite well :)

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    1. I love the bag, if only I had a pink spotty wheelbarrow like the one in the fabric. Yes, I'm quite partial to Toffifee.

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  16. what a wonderful write up with fabulous cleverly crafted items on both sides! Thanks for taking part - I'll run it again next year. Packages every few months are great fun! (Tracy sent me a parcel a month or two back - it seems to have gone awol sadly - I'm devastated as I know her talents well!)

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    1. That's such a shame, perhaps it will turn up yet. I was partnered with Tracy in a swap last Christmas, I had to send to her but she then had to send to someone else. It's funny how the same names seem to crop up on different swaps.

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  17. Fabulous fun had by all, I'd say! Both boxes look divine!

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    1. I love taking part in swaps, they're so much fun.

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  18. How lovely, your 12 days of Christmas will be my first ever swap and this has made me even more excited. I'm all wrapped up with my 12 now...

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    1. I hope it will be lots of fun for everyone. I've done a few swaps now and I'm still excited by them.

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  19. What a fabulous swap, I think you were both very lucky to receive such thoughtful and wonderful gifts xcx

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    1. I received some fabulous things, I was very lucky to be partnered with someone as generous as Tracy.

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