How to Feed a Fabric Addiction without Breaking the Bank

This past week has been tough.  I have been pulling all-nighters every single day for the past 5 or 6 days, and it's killing me softly with its song.  I did this all the time throughout college with almost no repercussions.

Forgot to write that paper?  Due tomorrow?  No problem!  Just stay up til 8am writing it, sleep for a half hour and turn it in at your 9am class.

Big test tomorrow?  Surprise b-day party for your BFF tonight? (Yeah . . . I just typed "BFF" and I'm 30.  You'll forgive me for that because you love me, right?)  Don't worry!  You can DO BOTH!  Just hang out with the crew til about midnight 4am, THEN get your study on.  I promise, YOU WON'T FEEL A THING!  After you take your test you can sneak in a power nap in the coffee shop on campus (you have plenty of time - - your next class isn't for another 45 minutes.  This is PLENTY of time, I assure you!)

One of my roommates in college thought that pulling an all-nighter was the equivalent of staying up past midnight. Not so, Cheerio.  Although now that I'm a mom I should probably adopt this position.  Let's just say that on my early sleep days this past week, I was in bed before 4. Yeah . . OUCH.

I wish I could say I've been up working on my product line for my I-swear-I'll-open-it-sometime-this-year Etsy shop or something equally exciting.  Instead, I've been up working for my actual job.  Not terribly amusing, fun, or particularly creative when running on less than no sleep, I can assure you.

Add to this the first time homebuyer thing that is constantly on my mind and you get a person who can't sleep even when she is exhausted because the brain. don't. quit.

So, where is this ramble going exactly?  And how the world does it relate to this post title (I know I know, I'm really starting to lose some of you in here)?

After this very long week of no sleep, these very long past few months of working through my own supplies of fabric doing this 100 Day Craft Burn, and general weariness from driving endlessly around the city looking for a new home, I got the BEST surprise in the mail.

It should not have been a surprise actually, but I hadn't thought about it since sometime in February when I signed up to participate.  What was it?  A 5" SQUARE SWAP.  I hooked up with some lovely DIYers out in cyber-land, cut up and sent off 24 5" squares from fabric I had sitting in the stash drawer, and today (yes TODAY) I received more than 50 back!

What to make what to make?

You know those wheels are turning, right?

All this to say, I'd highly recommend getting in on a little fabric swap-page if you can . . . you get to contribute something you haven't yet found a use for, and you get to GET MORE FABRIC.  Pretty fabric.  How is this not a win-win?

Now I have something else to keep my wheels turning at night instead of sleeping.  Maybe I'll just take a catnap for the next 45 minutes and start scouring the web for ideas.  ;)

OR

You could help me!  Yes, help me out.  What are your favorite *little* projects that would make the best use of these lovely squares?

P.S. Anyone else a swapper? Have you had a good experience with it? Want to try it again?