Appliqué - Sew First, Cut Last

This illustration is in another of my old books, Dressmaking and Needlework by Catherine A. Place, published in 1953.  I bought it a few months ago, readily parting with a very small amount of cash when I saw how excellent the diagrams are, line drawings with red detail.

It was only yesterday that I spotted these illustrations, showing the method of appliqué recommended for adding decoration to clothes.  In brief, place the material to be applied on top of the background material, transfer the design onto the material (it doesn't say how), then stitch the two layers together, as shown in red above. 

Once all the stitching is completed, trim away the excess from around the stitching.

This all sounds strangely familiar.  It must be about four years ago that I thought long and hard about how best to do appliqué using a straight stitch sewing machine, and came up with the method I dubbed Vintage Sewing Machine Appliqué.  This is the first book that I have seen that shows a sew first, cut last method.  I knew the end result had a vintage look to it.  Having found these illustrations I feel somehow vindicated (the posh word for smug).

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The Cockerel is Taking Shape

It seems to be taking ages, but I'm getting there.  At the moment he looks a bit of a mess, but he will look a whole lot better once I have finished the blanket stitched outline and given him a beak, an eye and a pair of legs.

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The Cock's Comb

This is the cockerel I started last week.  I have stitched around the red for his head, using darker red for the lower part and brighter red for the top.  He will look a whole lot better once I have done his beak and eye..  At the moment he is faintly reminiscent of one of the scarier scenes in Chicken Run.

Doing the blanket stitch around the zig zags for his comb was no fun at all.  Unfortunately I am not one of those calm and serene people who find hand sewing relaxing.  I find it all a bit of a chore.  I swore never to do fiddly edges on appliqué ever again when I did the thistle leaves a couple of years ago, but this cockerel got the better of me.

Now that I am about five eighths of the way through this piece of appliqué I have reached the seriously bored stage.  It might have something to do with the sun setting at 4.30 pm. Perhaps I need to hibernate.

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A Strutting Cockerel

Eighteen leaves are now finished, and I have been getting a bit bored.

So I spent ages on the internet on Sunday evening looking for a bird to add to the appliqué, and eventually I found a photograph of a very smart colourful cockerel.  I ended up tracing him on greaseproof paper, and then making a pattern for appliqué, made in the same way as the pattern for the leaves, but rather more complicated because I have used five different colours.

This is as far as I have got.  At the moment it looks like a whole load of nothing.  I hope that it takes proper shape once I have trimmed the pieces and hand stitched around the raw edges.

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Twelve Leaves Done...

... and six in place ready for the hand stitching around the edge.

It is a while since I did any appliqué, and I had forgotten how time consuming it can be.  The fiddliest part of the process is sorting out the tiny scraps to make the leaves, but I am enjoying all the different colours, trying to make each leaf slightly different.

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Machine Stitched Detail

Today I feel as though I have spent a long time doing not very much.  Adding machine stitched detail to appliqué leaves should be a quick job.  The problem was the tension with the machine I was using, the Singer 128K.  No matter what I did, the bobbin tension was loose.  In the end I decided to try another shuttle, so I hauled one of my other Singers off its shelf and swapped shuttles.  Problem solved.

The first lot of stitching I did on this leaf had the bobbin thread showing in places, so I unpicked it and did it again once I had changed the shuttle.  I am so glad I did.

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Colourful Appliqué Leaves

Having finished the stems on the central panel of the big quilt that I am making, I have started work on the leaves.  I am using up small scraps left over from old projects, many of them not wide enough to make an entire leaf, so I am making the most of the colours and using different shades for each side.

This photo shows the method I use to get the shape of the appliqué with a stencil made with the sewing machine to give a perforated line, as shown here.  Once the paper has been removed (see here)...

... then it is time to do the blanket stitch edging by hand, trimming away the excess as I go.

PS. To Sharp-Eyed Viewers.
Yes, I know the tension in the machine stitching on the last photo is rubbish.  I have adjusted it since applying that leaf.  It doesn't matter too much anyway - that stitching is taking no real strain, and it is covered and reinforced by the blanket stitch.

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Stitching at Home and Abroad

At the moment I am doing an appliqué using the Jubilee Rose pattern.  While we were away on holiday in Poland I did the blanket stitching around the appliqué, and now we are home again I am adding detail with the sewing machine.  A few lines in dark green are enough for the veins on the leaves, and can be done without slavishly following the pattern.

The detail in the flower itself is a different matter.  I have had to follow the pattern exactly, and have done four lines of stitching side by side so that they show up sufficiently against the red.

If I get my skates on I should have it finished by the end of the week, but knowing me...

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Good-bye 2012

To see the old year out, here is the Queen's Diamond Jubilee Quilt, made entirely on two vintage machines, my 1927 99K hand machine and 1945 15K treadle, with hand stitched blanket stitch around the appliqué.  I finished it a few days before Christmas.  So far this is the best photograph I have been able to take.  Big quilt, small house, poor light...

Soon enough I hope to have better photos and will tell you a bit more about it, but we are expecting visitors today so I can't linger.

So whether your plans are for a quiet time or a riotous one tonight

Happy New Year!
Love,
Muv  xxx

Making Appliqué Stems

Appliqué stems are easier than I anticipated.  This is how I do mine...

First, fold and iron the fabric on the bias and cut a folded strip.  Decide how wide the stem is to be and add approximately an eighth of an inch for the seam allowance.

Pin the strip to the background fabric.  I use tacking stitches to plot the position of the stems, but the stems themselves are kept in position just with pins. Lay the pins over, not through the strip.  Because the strip is cut on the bias you can lay it in a gentle curve and the material will ease itself along under the pins.

Machine stitch an eighth of an inch from the raw edges.

When you have done that, all you need to do is iron it over and sew down the folded edge by hand.

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Quilting a Butterfly

Here is the brimstone butterfly again.  I have just finished quilting around the edge of the appliqué.

To give it a bit of extra body I added an extra layer of wadding to fit the shape of the appliqué.

Once the extra layer was tacked in place and trimmed, I used pins to hold the layers in place around the butterfly and stitched around it, using the method shown in yesterday's post. 

So there you have it.  Stuffed butterfly.  Sounds like a delicacy from the declining Roman Empire.

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Quilting Around the Edge of Appliqué

After all the work I put into the appliqué on the Diamond Jubilee wall hanging, I had to work out the best way of quilting around the edges before I launched into the free-motion quilting.

The ideal foot to use was the adjustable cording foot, usually used for zips.  Not only is it adjustable, but also it is hinged, so it rides easily over the inevitable bumps.

The red arabesque at the top of the hanging was nothing but curves and corners, but the cording foot made relatively easy work of it.

I was pleased with finished effect - the blanket stitch edging really stood out in relief.

Oak Leaf

This oak leaf is on one of the panels representing England on the Queen's Diamond Jubilee quilt. Today I am adding the machine stitched veins on the leaves, using a dark mustard yellow cotton. This particular oak leaf can lay claim to having been made in three different countries - mainly at home in England, with most of the blanket stitch having been done in Poland, apart from about six stitches which were done in the Czech Republic.  It says it enjoyed its holidays and is quite happy to stay at home now.

Thistle Leaves

Today I have been adding a bit of machine stitched detail to thistle leaves.  One of the panels on the Diamond Jubilee quilt is of a thistle, representing Scotland. 

Looking at the leaves again, now that it is a few weeks since I completed the blanket stitch, the centres seemed empty, so the machine stitched veins in the middle were today's job.  I didn't bother with a stencil.  I drew the central veins on the back with fabric marker, so the bobbin thread shows on the front. 

Another Yellow Butterfly

Here is the last of the three appliqué butterflies, in a darker shade of yellow.

Yellow Butterfly

This appliqué butterfly is based on a brimstone.  It was fun doing the pointed wings.

Blue Butterfly

I have just finished this appliqué butterfly this morning as a fill-in detail on the Queen's Diamond Jubilee quilt that I have been slaving over for the last few months.  Two more butterflies should be taking flight over the next couple of days.

Stitching in the Pub

Since March I have been working on a quilt to commemorate the Queen's Diamond Jubilee.  At about the same time a new topic started on Quilting Board, the Patriotic Challenge, started by a couple of Canadian ladies who were looking forward to Canada Day in July.  The idea was that we should all encourage each other on our patriotic projects.

Because of all the hand sewing I have been doing, my project is taking months, but the end is in sight!

Having been abroad twice in the past few weeks, I didn't want to fall behind with the project, so on each occasion I took my sewing with me.  A couple of appliqué flowers were blanket stitched in Spain, and the pine cones and some acorns and oak leaves were blanket stitched in Poland. Because we were so close to the Czech border I took my sewing with me on a trip we made there and did five or six quick stitches on an oak leaf in a Czech car park.

The ladies on the Patriotic Challenge all thought it was a great lark, and then a voice piped up from Indiana.  "Why don't you do some stitching in the Pub?", followed by another from Canada saying "Yes, and take pictures to prove it!"

So here's a picture.  A couple of pints for the lads on Saturday afternoon, and a lemon tea and the chair with the Union Jack cushion for me.  A very relaxing little sewing session.

The Finished Pine Cones

Here they are, back from their travels, edged in a rather daring shade of lime green.  The idea was to give a hint of the greenness that you see in young immature cones.  Also, I didn't want them to look too heavy, which wouldn't be in keeping with the rest of the quilt, where I have used lighter, fresher colours rather than the autumnal tints of this particular panel.

Blanket Stitch - Joining in a New Thread

To demonstrate this little trick I have used green for the new thread.

On the back of the work, pass the needle through the loop of the new thread...

... then bring the old thread to the back of the work with the next stitch. 

Now take the needle off the old thread and put it on the new thread, and carry on sewing.

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