PT{S}9

The Pillow Talk {Swap} Round 9 is finishing up this week and this time around I was able to take part.

My secret partner says she loves the look of linen and text, with a splash of color.  She also hinted that something in reds would look nice in her house, and that a rectangular pillow for her bed would be appreciated.  I changed the plan for this pillow over and over again in my mind, and this is what I ended up with.

Do you think she'll like it?  This was my first time working with the neutrals/ text/ linen combo and I think it comes off very "clean".  The pillow measures 12"x20" and takes a pillow form of the same size.  I didn't have a pillow form of that size to test it out on so instead I took these pictures after stuffing the pillow with fiberfill.  I used Kona solids that I got in the I <3 Kona charm swap at Pile O' Fabric I participated in a while ago for the applique.  It was nice to have so many color options in small sizes so I didn't have to run out and buy fabric.  It was especially nice to not have to buy Kona since I had to go out and but all the neutrals, the text prints, and the linen specifically for this pillow.

I don't know if you can see it very well but I used tiny buttons for the door knobs on the houses.  Three "door knobs" are red and the fourth one is green.  I thought it added a nice little bit of color in there.

I had had plans to add a beautiful thick Ruby Kona piping around the edge of the pillow but when it came down to it my sewing machine wouldn't cooperate so it didn't work out.  I just couldn't get my presser foot close enough to the piping to get a tight fit, and it looked pretty dreadful loose, so I took it out.  This was also my first time doing "quilt as you go" and I have to say I really liked it. 

BTW, if anyone is looking for a good source for text prints I bought mine from Sew Me a Song on Etsy.  Her prices were very reasonable and she had quite a few FQ bundles all made up already that you can choose from, and she was kind enough to let me swap out some of the prints in the bundle for prints from a different bundle.