Appliqué - the invisible way

I’m wrapping up my 20th quilt finish of the year with a few feet of binding and a proper photoshoot to go but couldn’t wait to share all about (finally) using the spool of monofilament that came in my Aurifil artisan welcome package. 

The tumbler quilt started out a simple repetitive one block shape design. Well that didn’t last long with my attention span and love of changing things up. What better opportunity to give a new technique and thread a try as part of Aurifilartisan appliqué August challenge. 

Because I added the Dresden portion, I ended up with enough extra tumblers to insert a strip on the back.  The soft soothing palette called for a brighter bolder backing and the blocks tie it all together . 

You'll have to look closely to see the see through stitching but it's there.  I was a little nervous that monofilament might feel weird because it's not at all like cotton or wool but it sewed with ease and my Babylock didn't blink an eye.  

In previous Dresden projects I’ve inset-pieced the curves by machine with 50wt. I’ve also used 80wt for hand stitching them which is also pretty invisible because the thread sinks down into the fabric fibers hiding beautifully. 

This mid-make decision to include the Dresden shape in the center of the quilt creates a much more engaging composition. I didn’t concern myself with having the size match exactly, a slight jog fools the eye. I did however spend a fair amount of effort to position them so the center half circles were aligned. Hubby said they reminded him of the jumbo magnets that we played with as kids and I'd have to agree.

Even with three different “background “ greens, the overall color felt a bit dominant so I framed it with a fussy cut leafy edge to help the yellows pop. 

With the use of a tripod and delay timer on my iPhone and most importantly the help of a friend, we were able to get the picture below showing the entire quilt.  

Binding with a stripe at any chance I get is a given.  Inspiration is everywhere - even on my front porch. 

I hope you’re taking time to enjoy the flowers in bloom and also gives Aurifil monofilament a try. Be sure to check out my last few posts revealing many other recent finishes. 

Additional Aurifil threads used:

Piecing 2600 50wt cone

Quilting 5020 50wt cone 

Bobbin 6723 50wt large spool

Hand stitch binding 2437 40wt large spool 

76”x88” completed August 2022

Babylock Symphony 

Handiquilter Avante 

Hobbs 80/20

Baby quilts and Big Bro too

We couldn’t be more thrilled with the news of a grandson on the way and in turn the big brother status gained, necessitating not only a baby quilt but a sibling one too.   I rarely if ever use panels but since he celebrated his 1st birthday at the aquarium and is a water lover, this one from my stash was perfect. 

I puzzled together a unique composition around the whales finished and gifted early because who can wait?, not me. 

Our guild has an accuquilt cutting system available for check out. At my suggestion, they purchased the Local Color and Drunkards Path dies.  I used them along with the log cabin and flying geese in these quilts, combining as I saw fit along the way. 

Design wall designing is my favorite process. I used much of the same fabric that was featured in the previous baby quilt and my sons bed quilt. 

Once again, my DIL and her sister are expecting with due dates close together so I made this one pictured below for her with fabric and elements that are intentionally  “related “. 

A modern traditional vibe mixing vintage and current fabric lines from stash. Playing with transparency makes me just want to explore more.  I didn’t sew a sibling quilt for her but did use the Tula dear in the center as a nod to the hexi quilt that was a fun memorable collaboration sewn with my DIL.

The drunkards path die cuts in two sizes and a minimal palette and design is what I focused on with this quilt made for my friends daughter’s baby. 

I know some makers work on one project at a time and I’ve never been one of those, preferring to multitask and have quilts of different kinds in various stages to keep my interest.   It’s unusual however to be juggling four start to finish simultaneously like these four. 

All the secret sewing now revealed - one long blog post for finishes 13, 14, 15 and 17 for a very productive 2022 seems appropriate.  You can read all about quilt 16 in my last blog post   

I hope you’re following me on instagram where I share a lot more pictures but if not here are a few more :

Skipping ahead to finish #16

I've been doing a lot of secret sewing lately and that means revealing finishes a bit out of order.   With three baby quilts yet to be gifted and not wanting any spoiler alert posts,  I decided to skip ahead and share the latest in a modern medallion series of original designs for my June challenge and the threads used from my 2022-2023 Aurifil Artisan welcome package.

Measuring 42" square with similarities and differences from the previous four modern medallions that came before, I am in love with the final layout.  To say that there was a lot of thought and decisions made in the making process is an understatement.  

The brand new cone of 50wt color #2600 was perfect for piecing on my domestic machine and with 6,452 yards it'll be serving me well for many quilts to come.  It isn't often that I hand appliqué and was glad to have been sent a spool of 80 wt color #5004 because my novice stitches sink into the fabric so well it makes me feel like a pro.

 Pulling from my tried and true stash of Aurifil,  I used Forty3 in Light Grey Green color #2843 for the matchstick quilting and color #5014 in a 40wt for the hand stitched binding.

You would think that working in a series would make for a quicker finish but there are so many options that even with having made multiple there's still too much that I'm trying to pack into one quilt. Editing is key and a skill that I continually work to improve. 

The fat quarter of fabric shown above is from our local quilt shop as part of an annual contest to "make something inspiring out of visually challenging fabric".  I really appreciate that despite the store changing hands, the new ownership has carried on the tradition.  

The original fabric pull shown above felt too literal and once I settled on the Tula Pink "Hare" as the center everything else fell into place.  Using the raspberry pink and tomato red with green risks reading as as a holiday palette which just makes the challenge more rewarding to pull off.  

I think that I counted 14 fabrics added to the FQ, all from stash.  I do know that there were piles and piles of auditioned pieces that did not make the cut and had to be sorted and put away - my least favorite step.  Having two “samples “ of the 4 made available for reference and pictures of the others that were gifted was helpful. 

Cohesive scrappy and symmetry for a modern traditional design occupies my creative space more so than improv lately.  I enjoy having a broad spectrum of what I make and what makes me happy. 

I'm especially excited that the corners lined up - four out of four!

Slice & Stitch: Handmade Barrettes

I’m so pleased to kick off the 2022 Slice & Stitch Summer Series, a collaboration with Aurifil threads and OLFA tools featuring small on-the-go projects.  You can read all about it on the Auribuzz post HERE.

I thought it would be nice to also post here on my blog a bit of the behind the scenes of making the barrettes and more pictures of the project. 

If you have an old not-so-pretty barrette laying around the house, it would work just as well the ones I bought at the dollar store. My fabric choice was a sample ombre linen that I had picked up at FabMo for a small donation and the scrap of bamboo batting was a strip trimmed off after quilting.

OLFA generously sent to me a 45 mm OLFA Quick-Change Rotary Cutter and 12” x 18” Mat in Aqua and I received the Stitching with Wool Aurifil Thread Collection by Jo Avery from Aurifil - lucky me :)

I had been eyeing Jo's new book ever since it came out and ordered myself a copy that arrived just in time. Of course I had to go on a walk to the beach for a photoshoot once I was done - but let's back up a minute so I can share how I made them in case you want to make your own.

It might have been smarter to use a temporary marker to roughly trace the rectangle shape onto the linen rather than just the circle motif.

Well you know me, I just started stitching a design somewhere in the hoop until it looked about the right size and then moved the hoop away from it and started stitching another.

When I got back home, I compared each of the them to the target size and expanded as needed to correctly position the hardware. I didn't want them all to be the same or fill the entire space, so there was some flexibility.

If you haven't tried Aurifil 12wt wool before, you really must. They come in such pretty colors and look at the visual depth of the fibers. I was pleasantly surprised how easy wool was to work with.

The first two were completely freeform so for the third and final one shown below, I marked a rectangle and had a specific inspiration for the abstract design - can you guess it?

Before attaching the linen to the barrette, I cut a piece of the bamboo batting and used tacky glue to stick it to the flat surface, flush to the sides. I suppose you could skip this step but having a cushion helps smooth the understitching.

Cutting the linen oversized so that I could wrap it around and whip stitch it by hand as shown in the picture above wasn't the perfect technique but did the job. If I knew where I put my glue gun I may have given that a try but I prefer to use thread anyway.

Be sure to head over to Auribuzz to read the full article and see a ton of pictures and the link to the OLFA expert's projects on their blog.

Playing tourist in my hometown was kind of a fun bonus. It was an honor to be featured and have the opportunity to expand my creativity beyond quilting.

Happy stitching - enjoy the summer, Karen

Aurifil Artisan 2022-2023

What a thrill to be selected one of the 40 Aurifil Artisans for the 2022-2023 season. My welcome package arrived and I’ve already dipped into the cone of Forty3 Sandstone to quilt a secret sewing project. 

I’ve learned a lot and branched out to experiment with thread weight and type this last year and look forward to the new challenges and showcases ahead.  Hint hint, you won't have to wait long. 

Following the #aurifilartisan hashtag on instagram and signing up for the Auribuzz newsletter and both great ways to discover makers and be inspired by their projects.  

I especially love the wealth of information to be learned on the Thread Matters tab. 

Here's a peak inside the box - it's an amazing assortment.  

Be sure to check out the bios and creative style of the other 39 Aurifil Artisans on the announcement post.  To learn even more about each throughout the year, the Aurifil Instagram feed  "Take Over" weekend is fantastic.  I'm already gathering ideas of what to include when it's my turn. 

I used the same photo for my bio although I really do need to figure out how to take a selfie with my glasses on without glare. You might see some familiar faces but also find new friends like I have. 

Happy Stitching, Karen 

Contraption - a dozen done

 

At this rate, 2022 is providing to be a productive year with the finish of my 12th and new favorite quilt “Contraption”  54”x 67”

It doesn’t have a label and hasn’t been on a proper photoshoot but the quitting, facing and sleeve are done and it made a debut appearance at my recent in person lecture trunk show “Motivation and Method”. The irony is not lost on me that the topic spurred motivating me to get a bunch of tops turned into completed quilts  

After adding some breathing room to the sides with pieced neutrals and pink to tie in the center, the claustrophobic sense that I’d been feeling dissipated and I could get on with matchstick in a matching gray Aurifil 2620 Forty3  

There’s plenty in the design to occupy the eye so adding texture was the goal and a chance to finally use this modern technique on something larger than a mini seemed about time.  

There were many- many renditions of the layout as you can see here on the design wall during construction  Parts were sideways and upside down from where they ended which isn’t all that unusual in my process.  Because there's no hard right or wrong in my opinion when it comes to a composition it tends to feel unresolved when so many great choices were left behind in and that can lead to a future quilt making it a win win. 

Started in a zoom workshop with Maria Shell, I thought the top was completed June 2021 and even made my top-nine liked posts for the year.  There was more to just letting it percolate and I'm so thankful that I allowed myself time to identify what was nagging me and resolve it with the border.  The unfinished top that is pinned to the door in the picture is from an in person workshop with her in 2018 still feels narrow and awkward so it's going to keep brewing until I come up with a solution. 

Here’s a look at a couple layouts that I considered: 

On the topic of delays, my 10 year Blogiversary came and went March 16th without fanfare so I'm going to document it here and now, whoop whoop for double digits.  If you're wondering about the other finishes I'll be sharing the ones not already blogged about in no particular oder. 

Thanks for stopping by - Happy Stitching, Karen