APPLIQUE TIPS

GOOD DAY TO EVERYONE!

I have not been in blog land for awhile....I get caught up in other faucets of life and forget to keep track of what I am experiencing through quilting and what my friends are doing.

Right now, I am working on a quilt for my daughters Godmother.  I am having a grand time and have the feeling that this is going to be a beautiful quilt with a touch of playfulness.  I chose to do a quilt as you go method with the 12 blocks and borders.  At first, I was really stuck on how to do the borders.  I chose applique because I enjoy the process and a plain white border just did not hit the spot.

I am hooked on fusibles and using the satin stitch.  I continually try various other methods of applique, but come to this method more often than any other.  But, while sewing this morning....blogging has been coming into my thoughts....it is now afternoon and I had to take a break and thought I would share some of my tips and remind myself of them also.

APPLIQUE TIPS FROM BRENDA......

1.  Chose a pattern that you know you will enjoy and have fun with.
           Simple shapes are easy to work with and arrange in so many designs....let your imagination run wild   
           and  move them around until you find a design to your liking.

2.  Take the time to play with your scrap fabrics and mix and match until you feel wonderful with what you 
     have chosen.  I love to look at what other quilters do with their applique ....such beauty and styles.  But, I
     have to continually remind myself that I am different... I continually work towards having a Super Blue
     Ribbon winner....but my goal is to have fun and enjoy what I am doing before worrying about the
     perfection that goes into having the perfect winning quilt.

3.   Once you have chose the shapes, designs and fabrics.....it is time to chose threads.  I myself am on a
      tight income, therefore, I do not have experience with many various types of threads.  My thread choices
      are what I can get for the least amount.  One  of the types of threads that I have has a tendency to leave
      a lot of lint and every so often it knots up between the threading sections and the needle and breaks.
               Just a hassle, no big deal.....but pay attention to your thread choices and per say learn from them. 
               Do not let them distract you from what you are doing.  It is kind of an all around mission at this
               point!
                                  A.  Is the thread breaking because of tension.
                                  B.  Is the thread breaking because of a needle issue.
                                  C.  Is the thread breaking because of the speed you are trying to go at.
                                  D.  Is the thread breaking because your sewing machine flat out does not like it.
                                              I know that one seems like a very odd statement, but I know my              
                                              machine does not like metallic thread..........it just wants to eat it and spit it 
                                              out. 
                                  E.  Is the thread breaking because lint is interfering with the bobbin, feed dogs and its 
                                       all around working process.

4.  Remember that each choice you make in applique does have an impact on the project and it is important
     to work with each individual piece as if it were the only piece.  The thickness of the interfacing plays a
     role, the fabrics thread count, bias cut, straight cut, weight, type and so on plays a role in how it will all
     work.  The thread, plus the stitch that we chose to use.  The tension adjustments.  Plus, our attitude will
     make the biggest impact of all. 

                        I truly believe that our individual attitude have a huge impact on our applique styles and effect
                        our stitches and the final outcome. Which leads me to a strong belief in a couple of tips....

                        Make sure you are having fun!  Applique takes time and effort, just like with any part of
                        quilting.  It requires practice, patience and time. 

5.  Posture is a major role in applique...especially if like me, you have to get up close and personal in order
     to see what you are doing and to feel the fabric and machine working together.

            Sitting with your lower back right against the chair back and then bending over at the shoulders to
            have your face/eyes within veiwing distance is quite straining.  I can not stress enough that you have
            to be in a great comfort zone that is right for you.  Every part of you becomes involved and you have
            to pay attention to what your body is telling you. 

             Make sure that you take plenty of breaks.  Limit yourself to say 15 minutes to at the most a half hour; then get up totally walk away from the project and stretch.  Lift your arms above your head, flap them up and down a few times.  Reach over and try and touch your toes a few times (my arms are not long enough to do that....I only manage to get a tad below knee level   LOL).  Lift your legs up off the ground and stretch on your tip toes.  Really anything that makes you release the tension of your muscles.  Plus, do not forget to stretch each of your fingers and your wrists.  They are just as important as your back....remember they are also in a position that causes tension and it is easy to forget that they need stretching also.


I have quite a few other tips....but I believe I have touched on enough for the moment.  I hope that these are helpful to you as they are to me.  It is time for me to get back to my applique project.  Have a great day!