Recently I have been drawn to hand applique. I am not exactly sure why, except to say that my current knitting project is giving me fits. After putting the knitting project into a temporary time out, I needed a project that was portable. I decided to re-try hand applique. I took a hand applique class about 6 years ago. While I enjoyed the peacefulness of hand applique, it wasn't something I could easily tote around with smallish children. I chalked it up to experience and moved on. I have tried several forms of machine applique and while the results are certainly not ugly, they are not always pretty. Needless to say I have steered clear of applique projects for the most part, until just recently.
I started working on this applique for The Easy & Breezy quilt found in Spring/Summer 2010 Better Homes and Garden's Quilt Sampler. I had gathered the pieces together as a back up project for a car trip we took last summer. Since then the pieces have sat and gathered dust in my sewing space. With back to back soccer tournaments and a trip to Philadelphia planned I decided to pull it out.
The bright and bold fabrics were a delight to work with. I finished this up in just a couple of weeks. I noticed just yesterday that the basket is tilted to the right, ever so slightly. I decided to call it whimsical and leave it be.
I haven't decided what to do with this panel. I initially was going to make the entire quilt. The more I experiment with unplanned quilting the more I love it. I thought perhaps I could add some 4x4 blocks around the panel and make a table runner or even larger blocks for a smallish wall hanging.
I still need to pull out my embroidery floss and add eyes, beaks and feet to the birds. But for now its tucked away once again waiting for inspiration to strike.
Well done for mastering hand applique- it's something I'd like to learn.
ReplyDeleteI love the bright colours you've chosen for your block- it looks very pretty!