Friday, June 3, 2011

Lolly's Mailroom

Sometimes, when my husband telephones,  I say silly things when I answer the phone, depending on what I'm doing at the time. If I'm cooking, I might answer "Carla's Bar and Grill". Or if I'm taking care of my grand children, I might say, "Lolly's Day Care". My favorite is, "The Orchid Room, we curl up and dye for you!"( I stole that from a hair salon in my home town!) Well, for the last few days, my answer is "Lolly's Mailroom" because it seems that opening,sorting and sealing packages is all I've been doing! Getting those I Spy charms traded and mailed for the 42 participants took a bit of thought and organization!
 Here's a glimpse of how I did it.....
 Around and around the table, I walked! I wish now that I had worn my pedometer to track how many steps I took! I didn't need to worry about getting my exercise, that's for sure.
 My method seemed to work. In the end, I was able to (hopefully) trade out all 2460 charms so that 42 participants will get back different squares than they sent me. There were few duplicate sets and lots of variety, so it was a fun way to spend the day (and night!). I even found some personal messages from one swapper! (Thanks, Shea!)
The postmaster's eyes got really big when I arrived today with my tote bags full of envelopes! I felt sorry for the people in line behind me, but this was important stuff!  Check your mailboxes, ladies; your I Spy squares are on the way! Thank you all for making this such  a great swap. And be sure to send me a picture of your quilt once it's finished! In case any one wonders, the charms were collected from 17 different states and two other countries: Canada and Norway!
Now, I'm going to go look through all my newly collected I Spy charms. If the phone rings, I'll probably answer "Fo Yummy!" (The name of an Asian restaurant in Seattle!) I need to put my feet up!

15 comments:

  1. Thanks for organizing this, Carla! I see some of the charms I sent on your table. Looking forward to working on this quilt.

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  2. Thanks for all your hard work! I also see some of my charms. Can't wait to see my new swapped charms!

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  3. Carla, you must be an organizational wizard! I was wondering how one might go about doing this...

    THANK YOU for all of your hard work on our behalf! And thanks for letting us take a peek at your process. I will happily anticipate arrival of my packet. :)

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  4. THANK YOU for everything you did to make this swap happen, Carla! I can't even begin to imagine the organization and patience that the process took. And, I saw the little note you wrote back on my label. You are a clever one! ;) See you soon!

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  5. Wow, what a big job! Thank you so much for connecting so many quilters together!

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  6. Thank you so much for doing this Carla! I can't wait to get my charms!

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  7. Thank you so much for organizing this swap! I can imagine it was quite a task!

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  8. What a big job! Thanks I am looking forward to my package in the mail.

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  9. Oh this is so exciting! NOW I really wish my husband didn't try to die on me! ;0)
    ... just one more thing he messed up (he loves the guilt trip!) ... Mothers day, Finals for the kids and this! {excuse my twisted sense of humor, it's how we get by}

    If you do this again, I am in!
    so very cool ~ lady's i look forward to seeing your finished quilts!

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  10. This is so exciting!! I can't wait to see all my fabric. What a lot of work on your part........thank you!

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  11. I can't imagine the mathematical calculations you had to make to get those 2460 squares divided! Thank you for all you did. You're as amazing as ever!

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  12. Woo hoo! I received mine yesterday. Thanks, Carla!

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  13. Got mine on the west coast today! Thanks so much, Carla!

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  14. Thank you so much for putting in all those miles and getting this all together! Received my squares yesterday and loved leafing through them. This'll be a fun one to put together!

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  15. Hi Carla. Just popping in to say that I made my first two blocks yesterday. I love this pattern for I Spy!! I'm wondering if there is a flickr page or anyplace people are posting blocks or finished quilts.

    Thanks again! Liz

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