-
Appliqué books
Shop our APPLIQUÉ BOOKSTORE, powered by Amazon. Lots and lots of gorgeous books, all about appliqué! -
Subscriptions
RSS
Apr
9
Clipping
Filed Under Freezer paper on the back, Freezer paper on top, Hand appliqué, Needleturn, Turned edge | Leave a Comment
To clip or not to clip, that is today’s question.
Quilting professionals have differing opinions on how to handle clipping. Here’s my personal best advice on the subject.
NOTCHES
V’s, valleys, inside points, crannies… they go by a lot of names. Whatever you call ‘em, some teachers advocate clipping all the way to the bottom. I clip almost to the bottom. The way I stitch notches, by taking a slightly bigger bite with the needle, then snugging the stitch down, it works out better to have a couple threads to grab.
CURVES
Inside curves: Again the divide… to the line, or almost to the line. I’m a fan of a series of shallow clips on inside curves. If you’re using a small 3/16″ turn-under margin, you shouldn’t have to clip deeply to get the fabric to turn under nicely.
Outside curves: No, I say, no clip! Again, the scant margin allows the fabric to go under without wrinkling up on itself, causing “the pokies.” If you clip this outer curve, the fabric has a tendency to go loosey-goosey.
In either case, notches or curves, a full 1/4″ turn-under margin may cause you to have to clip where you don’t really need to. Go for the scanter margin. This small margin makes some quilter nervous, but fine work is achieved through this closer trim.
This information applies to hand appliqué. The machine appliqué method that uses freezer paper and glue is not among my skill set, so I’m not sure about best clipping protocols there. And of course, for raw-edge machine appliqué, there’s no clipping ever!
Until next time,
Kay
Quilt Puppy Publications & Designs
Nov
24
Straight lines
Filed Under Back-basting (no-template), Freezer paper on the back, Hand appliqué, Stems/vines | Leave a Comment
The shortest distance between two points is a straight line. Well, that’s what they taught us in 10th grade, but they were talking in terms of abstract geometry. In nature, we don’t see too many straight lines. They’re more of a man-made construct, like boxes, fences, and the sides of buildings.
Hand appliqué is not a fan of straight lines either. Gentle curves are the ticket, and nothing too perfect, like in nature. It’s when we appliqué houses, or baskets, or stems that are perfectly straight because we’ve simplified them or are interpreting them in a primitive or folk-art way, that we run into the straight line.
Straight lines are not so much an issue in machine appliqué (though you still have to mark them and cut them straight.) But in hand work, I actually find a straight line harder to get nice than a curve. Here are some strategies for dealing with stretches of the straightaway.
• The bias tape maker
Except, don’t use bias!
Cut straight strips instead of bias strips.
They wiggle less.
Below is an example from Baskets to Appliqué, where I used the tape maker and straight-cut strips with just a thin strip of fusible on the back. It looks intricate, but it was pretty easy-peasy to weave the strips, fuse them in place, then hand-stitch them down.
• Freezer paper on the back
The pot here, in this design from Growing Heart to Appliqué, is a good candidate.
Basting the margin over the template helps assure a crisp, identifiable sewing line and keeps things on the straight and narrow. For more information, see my previous photo tutorial about freezer paper on the back. Even if you’re using freezer paper on top or another method, you can mix a little of this in to deal with those pesky straight edges.
• Back-Basting
In the back-basting, aka no-template method, the pattern is drawn directly on the back of the background fabric. This means you have the sewing line marked and ever-present as a reference for your stitching. You can flip your work over to make sure you’re passing the sobriety test.
How’m I doing?
Pretty good so far.
I’ll write more about back-basting in the future.
How do you like to handle straight lines?
Until next time,
Kay
Oct
18
Ladder stitch appliqué
Filed Under Freezer paper on the back, Hand appliqué, Ladder stitch, Photo tutorial, Turned edge | Leave a Comment
I found a nice photo tutorial on Liesl Gibson’s Disdressed blog, showing the ladder stitch for hand appliqué. I’ve never used this stitching method, and I learned something. I’ll be trying it out. Thank you, Liesl!
Oct
5
A nod to history
Filed Under Freezer paper on the back, Hand appliqué, History, Prepared edge | 2 Comments
My appliqué friend Pam Crooks is a member of the American Quilt Study Group (AQSG), a national organization devoted to quilt-related studies, especially the history of quilts, the women and men who made them, and the fabrics they used.
A couple of nights ago, Pam spread her AQSG study quilt out on the floor for show and tell. Oooh!
AQSG does a "quilt sudy" every other year based on a particular focus. The current study is of red and green quilts of the mid 19th century. Members wishing to participate look into the historic styles of the designated era and create a new quilt paying homage to that time, sometimes to a particular quilt.
For this study, Pam found inspiration from a quilt in the book "Minnesota Quilts: Creating Connections with Our Past" from the Minnesota Quilt Project. She used a prepared-edge technique with the fabric basted over freezer-paper templates on the back (see my photo tutorial), and hand-appliquéd them in place.
The completed study quilts tour for two years to various quilt shows and museums. For more information on the AQSG, please visit their site.
Pam is an appliqué artiste extraordinaire, oui?
Until next time,
Kay
Sep
22
An early heart
Filed Under Freezer paper on the back, Hand appliqué, Photo tutorial, Prepared edge, Turned edge | 1 Comment
Upon graduation from my beginning quilting class (think 1992), I took off like a rocket on my own. I made a big sampler quilt, hand-pieced and hand-quilted, and loved every minute of it.
Here’s one of the blocks I made using a freezer paper template on the back. This is a good method for a beginner, and lots of appliquérs prefer to appliqué this way.
For this method, trace the shape on the paper side of the freezer paper.
If the design is asymmetrical, you’ll need to reverse the pattern first.
Cut out the template on the drawn line and iron it to the wrong side of the appliqué fabric.
Tip: Ironing on top of a piece of cardboard creates a better bond. 
Cut out the fabric, leaving about ¼” beyond the template. 
Turn the fabric over the template, basting the margin to the freezer paper as you go. Clip any notches almost to the template, and sparingly clip any inside curves. (This heart doesn’t have any inside curves.)
Here it is, partially basted.
All basted-ed.
This is a method of prepared-edge appliqué, as the edge is turned before you start to stitch. However, it’s only roughly turned, and there will be bumps (aka “pokies”) along the edge that you will need to work out as you go.
Back view.
Baste the motif in place on the background fabric.
Now there are two rows of basting.
Appliqué the motif, using the needle to smooth and refine the turned edge as you go.
Here it is, all stitched.
There are three ways of removing the freezer paper. As seen here, you can completely stitch the motif, remove all basting stitches, slit the background fabric, and pull out the template. Here the template has already been pulled out.
Instead of just slitting the background fabric, you can cut it away, leaving about ¼” inside the stitching.
Or, to preserve the back, you can remove the basting and pull out the template before you have quite finished stitching the block, finishing up the stitching with no template inside.
All done!
BENEFITS
- Edge is turned for you
- Easier to place motif accurately, since edge is turned
- Freezer paper template provides a crisp, well-defined sewing line
- Accurate results
TRADEOFFS
- More prep time (double basting)
- Freezer paper feels stiff and crackles while working
- Sometimes you sew through the paper
- Extraordinary measures must be used to remove template
Every quilter weighs the benefits and tradeoffs of any particular method, and it is up to you to decide which way the balance swings. The “right” method is the one that’s right for you.
Making this heart was a nice trip down memory lane for me. Since I made the sampler quilt I’ve learned a few other appliqué methods. And, let’s just say I’ve also learned the benefits of more quilting in a quilt!
Let’s hear from you appliqué fans about this method. Is this your favorite? Any tips? Did I leave something out? Chime in!
Until next time,
Kay