Design your own Stencil/When the words *I Love you* are not enough

*Ethnic Heart*

stenciled, hand-embroidered and machine quilted

If you have read my previous posts you will know that I been making my own stencils in a Silhoutte Cameo machine. In this case, I combined and modified two of their designs to achieve this particular one, which I called *Ethnic Heart*.

After the stencil was cut, I decided to do a monochromatic quiltlet and chose two shiva paint sticks to colored in on a white piece of satin fabric.

With the help of the sewing machine I sewed with thick Aurifil 12w thread all around the shapes. Once finished, I chose a 28w thread from the same color family to embellish with hand-embroidery.
This was an excellent project to do while watching the Winter Olympic Games...pausing my work when the ice skating performers were on, since it is my favorite part!

 I never chose white thread to sew on white fabric. I love to choose a light colored thread to give the piece a lightly colored background. Especially good are 28w Aurifil thread, which gives you just enough coverage that it plays beautifully with the light and adds interest to your piece.

Started sewing freely around the heart.

This is the finished quiltlet. It is for one of my dearest friends, to let her know how I feel about her because the words *I Love you* are sometimes not enough!

Happy Valentines Day!



Working with Thick Threads by Hand and Machine combined with Beading

*Compost*

 30" inches by 44" inches

It has been quilted with thick Aurifil 12 weight and 28 weight thread.
 

I wanted to do a quilt with one of my favorite fruits as the main design *The Apple* and show off how beautiful it can be even when it is in it's rotten stages.

After I designed and painted each block, I didn't like the *too white* background around each apple, although it can be ideal for showing off the true colors of the paint. To fix this, I chose a light green 28 weight thread to do the quilting around each apple. It gave it just enough color to tame down the white and, in my opinion, give it more depth.

Then I chose a black 28 weight thread to quilt on top of the black and white dotted fabric and red 28 weight thread for the curved red inserts; it gives enough coverage to allure the viewer.

Let me show you how I did it:

I designed the stencils in my Silhoutte Cameo machine and with painsticks I painted the designs on white muslin fabric.

I loaded my sewing machine with 12 weight Aurifil thread and started sewing/drawing around each shape.

With the same thread I did hand embroidery.



And then some beading.



When I was happy with each apple, I sewed the blocks together. Then I loaded the sewing machine with 28 weight thread this time. Although there are so many quilting designs to chose from, I decided to use the *classic* meandering around each apple and loops on the dotted fabric.

(looks like white thread but it is actually a light green color)

Detail of one block.

As you can see, the thick threads adds extra dimension to your work, calling the viewer in, surprising them with the texture achieved and the unexpected hand embroidery and beading. I hope you will give it a try.



Make your own Stencil/ Free Motion Quilting Practice

"Armadillos"

This is the end result of a series of NEW techniques for me. If you have read my previous posts you will know that I been making my own stencils in a Cameo machine. In the earlier project I modified one of their designs but now I've figured out how to do stencils from my own drawings. What a joy. 

I did a set of two: one for the main body and the other for the details. Used paint sticks over a silk-screened fabric. (do not pay attention on the lettering since the words has nothing to do with the armadillos (It is a leftover piece from another project that I wanted to use...ahem to make room for more fabric!!?).

Just bought a new sewing machine (Janome 7700), since my old one is behaving badly. It is a first for me to sew with this brand and I LOVE it! It accepts any weight thread without sacrificing the quality of stitch. Browsing the web, looking for tips on how to work with the Janome found a great site http://freemotionquilting.blogspot.com   where Leah, the quilter in charge, teaches different quilting designs. I watched some of her videos and decided to practice two of them in this small quilt. 

This piece was hung beside a window where the sun was shining to show off the texture that creates this quilting design. Again, I used two kinds of batting: cotton and a split wool on top, 50 weight thread for the top half of the quilt and variegated 30 weight for the bottom half. I'm pleased with the end result.