Bed of Roses – Block 10

Posted in Bed of Roses, Uncategorized by Simple Bird Applique

March 1st is still a few days away, but I want to post Block 10 before the beginning of the month. My husband, Paul, and I are off to England and Amsterdam on March 3 for 10 days, so I am eager to ship Block 10 out before we leave. All orders received after March 3 will be shipped when I get back home. All 10 blocks of “Bed of Roses” are available on my website Simple Bird Studio.

This month’s block consists of 2 identical blocks, which are fairly easy. I haven’t stitched my blocks yet (the pieces are glued in place). I am going to take these blocks with me on our trip. It’s not that I think I will have lots of free time to stitch. Quite the contrary! Its just that I get really antsy when I do not have a needle and thread in my hand. I am sure most of you can relate!!

It made sense to prep both blocks at the same time, so that is what I did. First, I marked the pattern onto the background with a water soluble marker. Then I made some 1/4″ bias for the stems and glued them in place. You can see how I make my bias strips here.

Next, I added the leaves. Because all of the shapes in this block are symmetrical, I photocopied the pattern pieces onto freezer paper to make my templates.

So, next I added this cute little flower. I find it very helpful to draw the seam allowance onto the piece of fabric. It just makes it so much easier to line up multiple pieces. You can read more about this technique here.

Notice when I clip the inside curve I don’t clip all the way to the freezer paper.

Looking good!

As I mentioned, both blocks are the same, but the pink fabrics are not the same, so read the pattern carefully!

The way this next centre part is put together is very slick! First, cut the entire freezer paper template out, but keep it as one piece.

Since the outer ring is pink (R1) I will prep it first. I iron it onto the back of the fabric and use liquid starch and a mini iron to press the seam allowance over the template.

Ok, once I prepped the pink section, I removed the freezer paper template and cut the first section off. I am using this same template for all the pieces in this section, just like I did in my last post.

Next, I prepped the yellow section (Y1).

I traced the 4 leaf shapes onto the yellow fabric and then glued the yellow section on top of the pink section.

Next, I prepped the 4 leaf shapes, but, as you can see, I only prepped one side of the leaf, and left the other side a raw edge. I also drew the seam allowance on. See how easy it is to line the pieces up?

Hang in there….we are almost finished! I cut the next section from the freezer paper template and prepped it.

First, I prepped the outside edge.

Then I trimmed the middle section out and prepped it.

I removed the freezer paper, which was not nearly as scary as you might think….

…and voila!

Slick!

I am happy to report I have all 9 blocks of Trail Mix finished and stitched together.

I still can’t believe how nicely everything matched up!

Til next time….

Kerry

1Feb2016

Bed of Roses – Block 9

Posted in Bed of Roses, Bed of Roses BOM, Uncategorized by Simple Bird Applique

Block 9 already! Where has the time gone?

Each time I start a new block of Sue Garman’s “Bed of Roses”, I am pleasantly surprised at how easy they are. I encourage all appliquers (especially beginner appliquers) to give these blocks a try. Block 9 (along with all previous 8 blocks) are available on my website Simple Bird Studio. You can choose to order just the patterns (some of them or all of them) or you can choose to do this quilt as a Block of the Month which includes the pattern and the same fabrics that I am using.

I started this block like all the others. I traced the pattern onto the background with a Clover water soluble marker. This marker comes available with a thick tip or a thin tip. For tracing onto the background, I prefer the thick tip because it is a lot easier to see!

Next, I use a Clover 1/4″ bias maker to make the stems. I glue the stems in place with Roxanne’s Glue Baste it. The marker, the bias maker and the glue are all available on my website.

So now let me show you how I make all those templates. I must confess, I really hate tracing my templates by hand and I will avoid doing it whenever possible! First, I photocopy the pattern onto freezer paper and then I iron that piece of freezer paper onto another one to make two layers of freezer paper.

Whenever I have a unit that has many layers, I could make multiple copies of each unit so I have a separate template for each section (but you know me well enough by now to know I am not going to do that!) Here is what I am going to do instead…

I leave the entire unit intact and prep the piece as I normally would. Because I am making the outer section, I am using R3 fabric.

I iron the template onto the back of the fabric…

…and I cut it out leaving a 1/4″ seam allowance. This piece has fairly gently curves, so I clip just once. Notice I don’t clip all the way to the freezer paper.

I prep the pieces using a stiletto, a mini iron and liquid starch.

So, now it is time to remove the freezer paper.

Now, I take that same template that I just removed, and cut the first section off.

Next, I am going to repeat everything I just did, except on a different fabric…

I should mention that there are two identical units on this block and I am making both at the same time using just this one template.

I just keep cutting the outer section off and reusing the same template….

So here we have 10 separate sections I prepped using just one template. Sweet!

Here is another layering tip that I am happy to share with you. It will make your life a whole lot easier! When you place one piece on top of another, you need to leave that part of the seam allowance un-prepped. I take my template and draw the seam allowance on with my marking pencil.

When I place each piece on the background, the line I have drawn replaces the line on the background that I have just covered up.

Voila!
Now its time to start adding the leaves……

……and berries. Lots of berries!

And finally, a funky little vase! Love it!!

Til next time….

Kerry

27Jan2016

Third block of “Love Is In the Air”

Posted in Hand-Applique Techniques, Hand-Quilting Techniques, Love is in the Air, Uncategorized by Simple Bird Applique

Yesterday afternoon I started to prep the third block in “Love Is In The Air” a pattern designed by Lori Smith. I thought the blocks were a tad small (8 1/2″), so I enlarged them 125%. I cut my background blocks 15″ square and I will trim them down slightly when I decide what kind of sashing to make. I love working on a quilt this way. So many unknowns and so many possibilities!!

I am using a fat quarter bundle of shirtings for the backgrounds (each square will have a different background). And I am trying really hard to make this quilt as scrappy as possible. Very liberating!

Like most blocks, it all started with the stems and leaves…..

…..and then a pretty flower!

I love using as many greens as I possibly can for the leaves. I try to include as many different patterns and textures as I can.

The whole time I was prepping all the leaves and buds, I was worrying (yes worrying!) about what kind of fabric I should use for the vase. The vase fabric shouldn’t be the focal point of the block, but it shouldn’t disappear into the background, either. I searched until I found a fabric that I think fit the bill.

And here is the prepped block waiting to be stitched!

So far, so good!

I have been making some pretty steady progress on my hexie quilt. I am hand quilting it with the Baptist fan design. So relaxing!!

Til next time….

Kerry

9Jan2016

Everything I Know About Making Bias Strips!

Posted in Uncategorized by Simple Bird Applique

I love (love!) when people ask me questions about something I post on my blog. For that reason, I am going to show you how I make my bias strips, which I use for stems. First, let’s start with my pressing board…..it is a wooden board approximately 18″ x 18″ x 1″ that I have covered with a few layers of cotton fabric, so that the surface it still hard. I have tried making bias strips on my ironing board (it has a very soft, thick pad on it) and it does not work at all.

When I use my 1/4″ bias maker, I cut my strips 1/2″ wide. If you cut your strips even a 1/16th of an inch narrower, the strip will not go through the bias maker properly.

Next, I spray the strip with starch. I like to do one strip at a time because the starch dries fairly fast and you do not want the strips to be dry. Your strips should be very damp when you put them through the bias maker.

Using my stiletto, I guide the strip into the bias maker.

Next, I turn the bias maker over and continue to guide the strip so that the end comes out the other side.

Now I lay everything on my pressing board and place a pin through the bias and into the board. You will be glad you did this!

I take my iron in my right hand and slowly move the bias maker with my left hand and press along the folded bias strip. Important note: I don’t leave any space at all between the bias maker and the iron. Also, I use the flat edge of the iron, rather that the tip of the iron.

It’s as easy as that!!

This is a post you might be interested it. It shows how to use up your short pieces of bias so that no one will be the wiser!!

Til next time…..

Kerry

4Jan2016

Bed of Roses – Block 8

Posted in Bed of Roses, Hand-Applique Techniques, Hand-Quilting Techniques, Hexagons, Inklingo, Uncategorized by Simple Bird Applique

My husband, Paul and I arrived home today after being away at “The Farm” for the past week. “The Farm” is lovely piece of rural property belonging to Paul’s brother and sister-in-law situated right in the heart of Craighurst, Ontario. It was an awesome place to ring in the new year!

Of course, I packed every quilt-related thing I could think of….my sewing machine, iron and ironing board, so I could work on Trail Mix. I managed to get 2 complete rows sewn together.

I also brought along my hand quilting supplies (including my hexi quilt top, batting and backing, every quilting needle I own, 3 different thimbles, my small hoop etc.) just in case I had time to baste my layers together. Not only did I find the time, I found the perfect space to baste! I started this quilt about a year ago when I first discovered Inklingo. You can read about that post here. Spoiler Alert: Stitching hexies using the Inklingo method is addictive. Very addictive.

Each day I set myself up in front of the window and quilted for an hour or two. Heaven!

And, (of course!), I brought along Block 8 of Sue Garman’s “Bed of Roses. So, if you have been following along, you already know what I do first. First, I trace the pattern onto the background with a Clover water soluble marker. Block 8 (along with Blocks 1-7) are available on my website Simple Bird Studio.

Next, I made my bias stems using a 1/4″ bias maker. I like to put my stems in a plastic container (this particular container used to hold mushrooms!) and then I spray the starch into the container. That way I am not wasting any starch and the spray is contained to one area.

Once I glue all of the stems onto the background, I stitch them in place before I add any more pieces.

These next little flowers were easy to do. Notice I drew the seam allowance on the pieces before I placed them on the background. I find this such a simple way to make sure that all of the layers line up.

Next, I added a few leaves…..

….and a few more flowers! Now it’s starting to look like something!!!

This next piece has a pretty deep curve in it. Yikes. Just take a deep breath and go for it!

Now for the fun part. Circles. Lots of circles!!

And, to top it all off, a cute little vase!

And here is the completed block. Lovely!

So far, so good!!

Til next time…

Kerry

2Dec2015

Bed of Roses – Block 7

Posted in Bed of Roses, Bed of Roses BOM, Bed of Roses QAL, Hand-Applique Techniques, Uncategorized by Simple Bird Applique

Simple. Easy. That is how I am going to describe Block 7 of “Bed of Roses”. Seriously. Take a good look at the shapes and I think you will agree!

Let’s get started! First, I traced the block onto the background with a water soluble marker.

Next, I used a 1/4″ bias maker to make all of the stems.

After I finished stitching the bias stems in place, I went along my merry way prepping the many pieces. Instead of tracing my templates, I simply photocopied the pattern onto freezer paper. All of the pieces in this block are symmetrical, which means you do now have to worry about making mirror images.

So now its time to start gluing the pieces in place. I started with the small flowers and leaves.

Next, I added the pretty pink flowers.

I love these dark pink centers!

Looking good!

Now I started on the larger flowers.

The excitement is definitely mounting!

Now I am going to show you how I tackled the center section. The center consists of 5 separate pieces, which if layered one on top of the other, would be very bulky. So this is how I eliminated the bulk.

I prepped all of the pieces in the usual way.

Next, I glued one section on top of the other…

…and stitched it in place.

Once I finished stitching the piece in place, I very (very!) carefully trimmed away the first layer, leaving a 1/4″ seam allowance.

Okay, now I repeated those same steps with each new layer. I glued the yellow piece in place….

….and stitched it in place.

And I trimmed out the second layer.

And here is the second last piece stitched in place.

And trimmed.
And, finally, the last piece!

The rest of the leaves and……Voila!

You can find Block 7 (along with the 6 previous blocks) of Sue Garman’s “Bed of Roses” on my website Simple Bird Studio.

Til next time….

Kerry

19Nov2015

Save those scraps!

Posted in Hand-Applique Techniques, Love is in the Air, Uncategorized by Simple Bird Applique

I have been working away on the second block of “Love is in the Air” a pattern designed by Lori Smith. I purchased this pattern a couple of years ago and put it away with the rest of my patterns. Honestly, I forgot all about it. About a month ago, I went through my patterns and books in search of a simple applique pattern that would lend itself to a really scrappy feel. As soon as I “found” this pattern in my box of (far too many) patterns, I knew “Love is in the Air” was exactly what I was looking for! For those of you who may want to stitch these blocks along with me, the pattern is available here.

As I mentioned in my last post, I am using a collection of shirting for the backgrounds, so that means that each background square will be different, which I am not going to lie has me a little unsettled. But I do love a challenge!

Also, I enlarged the patterns by 125%. I cut my background squares 16″ x 16″, but I am not sure right now what size they will end up. I never have all the details figured out before I start a quilt….what fun would that be? Sometimes you have to listen to the quilt!

I started this block by tracing the pattern onto the background with a water soluble marker. Next, I made a bunch of leaves, using many different fabrics, just for the fun of it and then I auditioned them. Some I like. Some I don’t. Some of the leaves are competing with the background, so I will save those leaves for another project!

OK, next I added my stems. Notice I used the same fabric for all of the stems, just to give a bit of consistency.

Next, I went searching through my scraps and I found this piece of fabric I have had for about 8 years. I love this fabric! So I decided to use it for the 4 main flowers.

Then I went through my scraps and found a fabric that went with the flower fabric.

Next, I went through my blues and golds and chose a few fabrics that played nicely with the main flower fabric. So far, so good!

This patterns has a circle in the centre that I could make with a piece of bias and a 1/4 bias maker, but I chose to make a template instead and prep it in the way I prep all of my templates. So much easier! Instead of tracing the circle from the pattern, I used a compass to get a more accurate shape.

I cut the circle out and ironed it to the wrong side of the fabric. I decided not to cut the centre of the fabric out just yet, to keep it more stable.

Using starch, a stiletto and a mini-iron, I prepped the outside edge.

Next, I trimmed out the centre and prepped the inside edge.

Taking the freezer paper out is always fun (and kind of scary!) but it works like a charm every time!

Once it is glued in place, it looks very neat and tidy. Whew!!

So, I auditioned several fabrics for the centres of the main flowers…brown, black, burgundy, blue…nothing appealed to me. Then I tried gold. Gold it is!! But wait….

I thought the gold circles were a tad too big, so I made them a shade smaller.

Ahhhh. That’s much better!

Here’s a fun fact… I used three different golds in this block. After all, it is a scrappy quilt!

And here are both blocks. Sweet!

Keeping with the scrappy theme, I am working away on Trail Mix, a quilt designed by Laundry Basket Quilts. I chuckled when I saw this block.

In this block alone, there is a scrap from my hexie quilt I worked on last winter,

…a scrap of the background of my Civil War Bride Quilt….

….and a piece of the background of my Reminescence. Memories!

Til next time….

Kerry

10Nov2015

Trail Mix Progress and a new project!

Posted in Uncategorized by Simple Bird Applique

I have been making steady progress on my Trail Mix quilt, designed by Laundry Basket Quilts. I must say it is rather addictive cutting and stitching all those tiny little pieces. Sometimes when I start a new quilt, I set up some rules or guidelines for that quilt. The rule for this quilt is that I can only use fabrics I have on hand. It certainly is a nice feeling to use the last bits of some of the fabrics I have had for…well, a really, really long time!!!

Ok, so, you make 4 of these units….

…..and stitch them onto these scrappy blocks.

Here is the first one which fit like a glove!

Here are the second and third units….

I was absolutely delighted when the fourth unit actually fit where it was supposed to without any puckers or pleats! One down, eight more to go. Yikes!

So, keeping that scrappy theme, I have started a new applique project that will also have a scrappy feel. The pattern I am using is “Love is in the Air” by Lori Smith. I enlarged the patterns by 125% to make the blocks bigger than the original size (8 1/2″). I am also going to make a scrappy sashing, but more about that later!

For my background fabrics, I am also going with a scrappy look. I have had this collection of shirtings long enough. It is now time to use them up! I’m going to use a different background for each block. Can’t wait to see what that looks like!!

I started this block like I start all of my applique blocks, I traced the pattern with a blue Clover water soluble marker. Then I made some bias for the stems (using my 1/4″ bias maker) and I started to make some leaves. When I do go fabric shopping, I am always on the look out for green fabrics (especially olive greens) that would make awesome leaves.

Next, I chose the fabrics for my flowers.

Each flower has a “bud” and so I chose this darker purple (on the right) as the bud. I thought there was enough contrast….

…but, as you can see, there really isn’t much contrast. Unfortunately, the bud gets lost.

So, I opted for a darker, more tone-on-tone bud for both of the flowers. So far, so good!

Next came the tail feathers for the bird.

And finally, the rest of the bird! Do you recognize the blue fabric I used for the bird body? It is the same fabric I used in my Mom’s quilt. You can read that post here.

Til next time……

Kerry

2Nov2015

Bed of Roses – Block 6

Posted in Uncategorized by Simple Bird Applique

Here we are at the half-way mark! We have stitched 6 blocks (and a few corner triangles and side triangles) and so now we only have 6 more blocks to go!

I have said it before and I will say it again…these blocks are easy and very suitable for a beginner. You can use whichever method of applique you choose. I use the freezer paper with starch method. You can check out my videos here. Always good for a laugh!

Block 6 started out a little differently than the previous blocks. The leaves were glued in place first and then the bias stems.

Next, I added some simple leaves.

And some pretty pink flowers with yellow centers. I love the added detail of these yellow centers. The square edges give some contrast to all the curvy pieces.

I decided to work on the center section. The yellow piece is the most challenging piece in this block, but you shouldn’t have any problems with it! As I mentioned earlier, I use freezer paper as a template and press the seam allowance over the template with starch and a mini-iron. When I am done prepping the piece, I pop the freezer paper out. It is that simple!!

Now I add a small drop of Roxanne’s glue to each petal and place it on the block.

It’s starting to look impressive, no? (I bet you are saying to yourself…”I bet I can do this!!”)

So, next, I prepped these pieces and stitched them in place.

I don’t like to add all the circles at once. I find the thread can get tangled up in the circles that are glued in place and not stitched yet. So first I added the dark circles and stitched them.

I added the lighter circles in each section and stitched them in place, one section at a time. Sometimes I like to break things down in parts or sections. That way I don’t get overwhelmed:)

One more section to go. Yippee! I have come to the conclusion that Bruin is my Vanna White.

And, finally! Here is the finished block. Beautiful!

So here are all 6 blocks, which are available on my website Simple Bird Studio. I also sell all of the notions I use including my favourite mini-iron.

I have been slowly working away on Trail Mix, a pattern designed by Laundry Basket Quilts, which is available on Craftsy. The online class is awesome with lots of helpful hints on how to use up those scraps.

Sweet!

Til next time…..

Kerry

17Oct2015

Washing my Baltimore. Yikes!

Posted in Uncategorized by Simple Bird Applique

Last weekend was Thanksgiving in Canada and, like most people we had a super busy long weekend. We had the family over…just 26 of us! I cooked a huge turkey and all the fixins! Hubby bought himself a new camera, so we headed north to Meaford and Thornbury to take some awesome photos and to get some apples. Is it my imagination or are the leaves really spectacular this year?

I also had a few spare hours, so I decided it was time to bite the bullet and toss my Friends of Baltimore into the washing machine. Let me explain why I did this.

I am not sure if you remember this, but when I washed one of the borders, some of the fabrics ran (red and dark blue) which shocked and upset me. I was shocked, because I am very careful about pre-washing all of my fabrics. Since I used all the same fabrics in the blocks as in the borders and this was the first time any of the fabrics had run, I was really puzzled. I was upset because my quilt had very distinct red and blue splotches on the background. I finished the top and had it quilted, knowing that one day I was going to have to deal with those darn splotches. Well…that day had come!

I talked to Colleen from Elite Quilting who knows everything there is to know about bleeding fabric and how to fix it. Imagine the look of sheer horror on my face when she nonchalantly suggested I wash the entire quilt in the washing machine with Synthrapol. It took more than a little coaxing on Colleen’s part to assure me that all of the bleed marks would come out and my quilt would not be ruined.

So I gathered my quilt up, added a whole bottle of Synthrapol, put it in the washing machine using the hottest water possible, crossed my fingers and prayed to the Quilt Gods. I stood there for 40 minutes and watched the quilt go round and round. I called Colleen for some support…twice! This is a picture I took of the quilt spinning around. You can see that Bruin is as concerned as I am!!

I am not sure why I felt compelled to stand there and watch. I stopped the washing machine and opened the door just to check up on it a few times. I was very thankful that all looked good!

Once the washing machine stopped, I gathered the quilt up in a clear bag, and whisked it over to my husband’s shop where we laid it out flat on some tables to air dry. I was so very thrilled to see that all of the marks had completely vanished and, more importantly, my quilt had not fallen apart!! Yes, so much to be thankful for!

I am also working away on a scrappy quilt designed by Edyta Sitar of Laundry Basket Quilts called Trail Mix. It is a great stash-buster. Here are the strip pieced diamonds, which I am now going to go and stitch together!