Applique...The Sequel

So, right after all that about the applique, sledgehammer-style, resigning myself to it, with the paper and the template plastic and the starch and the whatever, along comes Barb 

(as in Fun With...)

posts on her Jubilee quilt progress.

What beautiful work SHE does!  And guess what?!  That's all she does to prep, is draw it on and baste it and she is ready to go!  It's needle turn applique and it's my new favorite thing to do!

Check out my little sample

Yeah, I just grabbed whatever was handy and tried out the various shapes I have usually trouble with and NO  problem!  Points sharp...check!  Curves smooth....check!  Inside curves, points....Check!

It is SO not hard to do!  What was I thinking?!!

It is so liberating a method, so straightforward and no nonsense about it!

I just hadda say...I love it!!!!  I know I am gushing but it really is such a D'oh slap head kind of thing for me at this moment.

From here, it's just more practice and that I can surely do!

(Like, Oh, wow, make me sew!  Really?! lol)

So, here's a vote for Try It!  You might like it!

Cheers, and

Happy Sewing!

Sarah

Applique Week

Epic fail on my Block 27 for the Just Takes 2 quilt!

Not bad from far away but here is closeup!

Ooooo.

Ouch!

I never thought I was so bad at applique until I tried to do this one!

Red and white solids is just the most unforgiving combination ever.

So I took it as an opportunity to learn how to do this better.

I watched a bazillion videos on YouTube and settled on this series by Erin Russek as how I might progress on my second try at this block.

This is the first video in her series on how to do applique:

It was quite painstaking to set up but once all the pieces were prepped, it was pretty easy to put together.

The sewing was made much improved also by using a thinner needle (milliner's size 9 or 10) and thinner thread also (size 100 cotton).

The results are quite passable, I think!

So here they all are!

A layout was given for this first quarter of the quilt, but I didn't quite like it, so I am still playing with my own ideas.  :  )  Likely I will wait till they are all made and put it together then.

They look good on the wall anyway!

And here, the first try found a friend (Yay! Nothing gone to waste!)

Next, I want to try this method demonstrated by Gay over at Sentimental Stitches:

She really makes it look soooo eeeeasy!  I gotta try it again!

I am thinking to resurrect the orange and grey so I can do Block 27 again with this technique!

Pray for me!

Cheers,

Sarah