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Appliqué books
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Jul
2
Little Homes
Filed Under Books, Fusible web, Improvisational appliqué, Machine appliqué, Patterns, Raw edge | Leave a Comment
While I was at Quilt Market in Portland, I saw the display by Ackfeld Manufacturing of bunches of darling wire hangers, and it got my mind spinning with ideas. I ordered some of the little hangers and as soon as I got home I set out making some little quilts. I love small things so this was a barrel of fun for me, and it also have me a chance to show off the motifs from my new book Home: A Heartfelt Nap Quilt and how you can use them different ways.
These are all machine appliquéd with a blanket stitch, and I just used scraps left over from making the original Home quilt. I didn’t really plan anything out in advance, just chose the motifs and played around until I thought, ‘hey, that looks good,’ then fused them down. It’s great working this way in between fussier projects!
BTW these little guys are for sale hangers and all, so if you’re interested shoot me an email at topdog at quiltpuppy.com.
Until next time,
Kay
Quilt Puppy Publications & Designs
May
12
Barbara Brandeburg’s machine appliqué tutorial
Filed Under Blanket stitch, Designers, Fusible web, Machine appliqué, Photo tutorial, Raw edge, Topstitch, Zigzag | Leave a Comment
I found the most fabulous photo tutorial on designer Barbara Brandeburg’s blog. She has posted a wonderful step-by-step visual guide to creating raw-edge fusible appliqué. Hurry over to her blog and look on the righthand sidebar for “Easy Appliqué Tutorial” and have it all laid out before your eyes.
While you’re there, read her posts answering questions about appliqué. It’s a treasure trove over there. Thank you Barbara! You can also shop for her highly attractive patterns.
Until next time,
Kay
Quilt Puppy Publications & Designs
May
6
APQ site is good resource
Filed Under Hand appliqué, Machine appliqué, Photo tutorial, Prepared edge, Raw edge | Leave a Comment
Not that long ago, American Patchwork & Quilting magazine launched a companion website called AllPeopleQuilt … APQ, get it? I was intrigued by a mention in the latest print magazine about quilting classes on-line, so I surfed on over to check it out.
Two appliqué classes head up their list of offerings. Linda Hohag is demonstrating a starch technique, and Pat Sloan is showing how to she does fusible appliqué. It looks like these are on-demand videos.
On the site, there’s also an area called “Try Techniques.” Click on the Appliqué section for gobs of free tips and tricks for a variety of methods.
Until next time,
Kay
Quilt Puppy Publications & Designs
Apr
1
A Spot of Tea
Filed Under Blanket stitch, Books, Borders, Fusible web, Machine appliqué, Raw edge | 2 Comments
Look at this cute thing I just stitched up to hang in my booth at quilt shows!
I made this version of “A Little More Tea” smaller than the sampler pattern in Teapots 2 to Appliqué…it has 9 of the 16 designs. I call this one “A Spot of Tea.”
The appliqué notes in Teapots 2 are all about the back-basting, or no-template prep method for hand appliqué. For this cheery sample I used fusible appliqué with a small machine blanket stitch.
Sometimes I pull fabrics and make blocks, then go hunting for a border that will work with them. In this case I started with the border fabric and pulled the teapot fabrics from there.
Cheerio,
Kay
Quilt Puppy Publications & Designs
Mar
22
Willie’s a homebody
Filed Under Machine appliqué, Stems/vines, Words, Zigzag | Leave a Comment
My little dog Willie loves to go places, and loves to come back. He’s a good traveler, but I think he’s the very happiest when all of his pack are at home.
As you know, he helps me in the studio and is my boon companion while I’m working on all of my “stuff.” Here he is checking out my latest project, Home.
Yes, that’s right, the ink was hardly dry on Teapots 2 to Appliqué when I was already hard at work on another quilt design. I’ve been in a phase of doing things I haven’t done before, and it’s great! Home is more primitive and folksy than what I’ve done before, and I love it.
I knew the word “Home” would be front and center, and didn’t worry about how I was going to get it on there until I was ready to do it. After all, I co-wrote an article about words in quilts, which appeared in American Quilter. I knew I had some tricks up my sleeve! But when it came to it, I ended up doing… guess what… something I hadn’t done before.
Okay, so I’ve made plenty of bias tape in my life with my trusty green gadget (see the post on stems and skinny stems) but I’ve usually stitched both sides, either by hand or machine. This time I just zig-zagged down the center of each strip with black thread. Then I made a trip to the store to get some fresh Fray Chek (the bottle in my drawer was ancient, probably came with me from Ohio 11 years ago). I used a tiny bit of this seam sealant on the raw ends of the letters to prevent fraying. I ended up with the folksy look I was after for this project.
Home’s going to be a booklet with full-size patterns printed in it. Stay tuned!
Until next time,
Kay
Quilt Puppy Publications & Designs
Mar
18
Machine Appliqué: A Sampler of Techniques review
Filed Under Books, Designers, Machine appliqué, Raw edge, Turned edge | Leave a Comment
One of the best books that I have on my shelf, which pretty much taught me how to machine appliqué, is Sue Nickels’ Machine Appliqué: A Sampler of Techniques.
I was lucky enough to meet Sue a few years ago when she came to my guild to speak and to teach a class in machine quilting. I took that class, and I credit Sue with giving me what I needed to actually become an adequate machine quilter. She said that the women she knew who were finally successful were those who were determined to make it work. I said that to myself over and over as I practiced, and it helped me.
But back to machine appliqué! It wasn’t Sue’s topic that visit, but I did buy her machine appliqué book, and when I became determined to learn how to do it in order to make samples a little more quickly, I turned to Sue’s book. Let me tell you, it’s fabulous. I gravitated toward raw-edge fusible appliqué with a small blanket stitch. There’s also detailed information on two other methods — turned-edge “invisible appliqué” and “template and starch” appliqué.
Sue’s book, published by the AQS, is lovely to look at throughout and gives step-by-baby-step details on everything you need to know. There are close-up illustrations of where each stitch should go in each scenario. I’m pretty comfortable with machine appliqué now, but when I was still learning, I hauled out this book a bunch of times to refresh my memory. Thank you Sue!!
Sue has another book on machine appliqué, written with her sister Pat Holly: Stitched Raw-Edge Appliqué. I don’t have this one yet but I imagine it focuses even more on the method I like. Hmm… I’ll have to put this one on my wish list!
Until next time,
Kay
Quilt Puppy Publications & Designs
Mar
10
Laura Wasilowski on Quilting Stash
Filed Under Designers, Fusible web, Improvisational appliqué, Machine appliqué, Raw edge | Leave a Comment
Annie Smith of Quilting Stash sat down and had a long talk with incredible art quilter Laura Wasilowski. Listen to the podcast at the Simple Arts website.
Of all the episodes of Simply Quilts that I DVR’d, Laura’s was one I watched back a couple times. Her information about fusible appliqué came in the form of several revelations for me, and I wanted to make sure it sunk in.
You’ll enjoy listening to this interview.
Until next time,
Kay
Quilt Puppy Publications & Designs
Mar
4
Giveaway for kids
Filed Under Books, Fusible interfacing, Introduction, Machine appliqué, Prepared edge | 4 Comments
Due to a printing glitch and subsequent reprinting, I ended up with way more copies of In a Twinkle: Youthful Quilt Designs than I needed. It’s time for them to move away from home!
If you’re a member of a group that makes and donates quilts for kids in need, email me at “topdog at quiltpuppy.com” and tell me about your group. I’ll send you 6 copies (as many as I can stuff in a bubble mailer) by the “slow boat to China,” Media Mail. If you feel like paying me back for the postage, you can PayPal a couple bucks to the same address.
If you’re not a member of such a group but you know somebody who is, feel free to spread the word.
This book includes step-by-step. illustrated instructions for five easy quilts and a comfy cozy flannel blankie, plus detailed instructions on the fusible-interfacing method for machine-appliquéing big, simple shapes.
Until next time,
Kay
Quilt Puppy Publications & Designs
Feb
17
Fun with thread color
Filed Under Articles, Blanket stitch, Designers, Guest posts, Machine appliqué, Raw edge, Threads | Leave a Comment
Here’s a fabulous guest post by Diane Dixon of Metro Quiltworks about how your choice of thread can work a little magic on the look of your machine appliqué. Thank you, Diane, for this wonderful article!
Let’s Have Some Fun with Thread Color!
Thoughts about thread choices by Diane Dixon of Metro Quiltworks
The color of thread can be a very important feature for you to consider with your next appliqué project. The way the thread color interacts with the fabric can make the stitching either stand out in a bold contrast, or it can create subtle outlining of the appliqué piece without much contrast at all.
Some basic points to consider:
Matching thread color to fabric color:
Do you want the thread color to match the color of the fabric? This will create a subtle look that blends well with the appliqué pieces and may emphasize the overall look of the project since the thread color blends much more into the background.
Here’s an example of a lily flower having the thread in the same color family as the fabric. By using the blue thread in the center, the flower is more formal and contained. Notice the use of yellow thread on the yellow petals. Although both fabric and thread are in the same color family, there is still a subtle contrast because the fabric is lighter in some places than in others. Subtle, but not dull! Also, the lily pads are sewn with green or brown stitches to keep the pieces from getting too “busy” since the batiks used here are quite wild.
Contrasting thread color to fabric color:
Do you want the thread color to contrast with color of the fabric? Using contrast can create a wonderful visual look that can define edges and give excitement to individual appliqué pieces.
Here is an example of two pears on a plate. The purple stitching in different shades really defines the green pear from the green plate. Notice the yellow stitching on the green leaf, the outside plate stitching, and the effective purple on the stem as well.
In the close-up of the red floral appliqué example, there’s a combination of techniques to make this flower sing! Notice the center has a bright red center that uses the same thread color on both the center, and on the interior petals. By using the same thread color on different fabrics, another subtlety comes out. The bright blue stitching on the outside petals, and the red on the green leaf brings all of the colors to another level!
I sometimes enjoy using this technique specifically with smaller projects such as miniature wall hangings, pillows, or table runners because the thread choices really stand out in a more intimate piece - but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try this out with larger pieces as well!
Thread colors play important roles and can change the look of any project. Don’t be afraid to go for it and have lots of fun!
Diane Dixon
Kay here again — be sure to visit Diane’s website to check out her colorful contemporary patterns for quilts, table runners, and wall hangings at Metro Quiltworks - A fresh look at quilt design. Thanks again Diane! I’ve been a “matcher” so far but now I’m inspired to try mixing it up!
Until next time,
Kay
Quilt Puppy Publications & Designs
Jan
18
Bethany Reynolds’ magic mirror hearts
Filed Under Blanket stitch, Designers, Fusible web, Machine appliqué, Photo tutorial | Leave a Comment
I found this fun photo tutorial on Bethany Reynolds’ website about how to use Stack-n-Whack® to make an appliqué heart!
Until next time,
Kay
Quilt Puppy Publications & Designs