Cheryl Lavon Donation Swap

If you knew Cheryl Lavon aka @CherylLaVon you were a lucky person. She was one of the sweetest people on here. Someone that even though she was fighting cancer on a daily basis, was still here to swap, to chat and to crack jokes. She had a wonderful sense of humor and was a really fun gal. She is truly missed by so many. She is one of the best people I, personally, have ever known in any kind of online basis.

It's been almost a year since she passed away from cancer. Lung Cancer. I think we should make this quilt something that she would love, what do you think? I have looked over her profile and here are some things she really loved:

• Dark Rich colors of all kinds especially Burgundy, Midnight Blue, Brick Red (They don't make that crayon anymore can you believe THAT!?!?!?) Plum, Amethyst, and I love all things shiny. I prefer silver to gold and black to white.

• If I were a teenager I'd probably be one of those little Gothic creatures that roam the earth. I'm not dark in spirit, but I think Gothic things are interesting to say the least. I love cemeteries and headstones the older and creepier the better.

• On the other end of the scale I love fairies and angels, sprites and gnomes.

• hummingbird

• I love pansies and birds of paradise and hummingbirds.

• I love arctic animals like Polar Bears, Penguins, Eagles, Seals, Foxes, Whales and Dolphins.

• I love Native American things and all things to do with nature.

So I think we should have a theme to the quilt(s) of animals and/or nature. Most of what she lists has to do with nature and animals, so that fits.

This swap is for any of a range of quilters. Beginners to expert. Hand sewing to machine sewing. The love behind what you are making is the most important part of this swap.

What we are going to do:

• You are going to make a quilt square. Size should be exactly 12.5in x 12.5in (12.5 in = 31.7 cm). It can't be off even by 1/4 inch or it will mess up the quilt top completely.

• Fabrics should be 100% cotton. Fabric should NOT be washed before making.

• Square should be pressed before sending.

• You can use any pattern you want. Some good ideas: nine patch, nine patch variation, string quilt block, etc. It can be as simple or as intricate as you'd like.

• Remember the color and theme need to be nature related. There is a list of some of her favorite colors above, but you are not limited to those colors.

What's going to happen: You are going to send the finished quilt squares to me. I will put all the squares together and finish the quilt and donate it to the American Cancer Association.

To your partner, you will send either a photo of the quilt square you made or a note that says what you have went through with cancer in your life. Do you know someone that has or had cancer? Has cancer impacted your life in anyway? Did you know Cheryl? What was it about her that made her special to you?

• You are not sending any backing or batting. This is just the quilt square for the top.

• Since I will be supplying the batting (hopefully for more then one quilt...I hope this ends up being a fairly large swap!) I only ask that you send me 3-4 postage stamps. I will be sending this to the cancer center instead of driving it there, as there isn't one close to me. Or if you'd like, you can donate for supplies to my paypal account. My email address for paypal is lnjramey@gmail.com

I'm going to say if you have below a 4.85 we may have to do a private swap. I don't want anyone to flake on this swap, this is a memorial for Cheryl.

If you want to donate materials for this swap, but don't want to actually join the swap, please pm me.

My address: Jennifer Ramey

P.O. Box 177

LERNA, IL 62440

I'm going to contact Rachel so hopefully she can showcase it on the Swapbot blog!

UPDATE

You are more then welcome to incorporate one of Cheryl's major loves: DOTEES This was an idea brought up in the forums. Basically what you will need to do is make a dotee, just minus the stuffing. Then you applique(or sew it) onto a piece of fabric and poof instant quilt block! Any questions, feel free to pm me.

Just make sure there are not any 3d hard items on the block: no beads/sequins/charms/etc. I don't want to run into problems when I am quilting it.