Hugs and Kisses Almost Finished:)

Posted in Hand-Quilting Techniques, Hugs and Kisses, Uncategorized by Simple Bird Applique

Yesterday I had some time on my hands so I went into my sewing room and shut the door. I was on a mission:)

You may recall in my last post I explained how I wash my finished blocks. Once that step is complete, and the blocks are dry, it is time to trim the blocks to the correct size. Since these blocks finish at 12″ x 12″, I simply used my 12 1/2″ square ruler. I placed the ruler on top of the block and centered it. Take your time with this step. You don’t want to mess it up:)

Next, I carefully trimmed the excess fabric away. Easy Peasy!

The pattern calls for 20 appliqued cornerstones, which didn’t take nearly as long as I thought it would. I cut my sashings and away I went!

So far, so good!

Right now the quilt measures 52″ x 68″. Once the appliqued borders are on, it will measure 71″ x 87″. I am intending to hand quilt this beauty and I am excited to get started! So scrumptious…

“Hugs and Kisses” is a Block-of-the-Month that will begin in January 2018…that is just next month! Each month you will receive the pattern and fabric (same fabric as shown) so that you can complete one block a month. Also, as a bonus, I am including (free of charge) 5 spools of Mettler 60 weight to match the fabrics. You have until the end of December to sign up on the website. Also, for those that have asked, you are able to purchase a full set of patterns to stitch along with us, using your own fabrics. I am wondering what this quilt would took like in Civil War fabrics. Or browns and pinks. Or totally scrappy. I could go on and on!

Til next time…

Kerry

6Dec2017

Washing my Hugs and Kisses blocks

Posted in Hand-Applique Techniques, Hugs and Kisses, Sue Garman Pattern, Uncategorized by Simple Bird Applique

My goal was to have this quilt, Hugs and Kisses, finished by the end of the year. I am trying my best, really I am. I have finished stitching all 12 blocks. Yipee! Now it’s time to wash my blocks. For those of you who have been following my blog, you will already know the routine. For those of you who are new to the blog, this post is for you. After I finish each block, I toss it into a sink filled with hot water and a bit of soap. This step will remove the glue, the blue marking pencil and anything else that might be on your block. Cat hair, maybe? You will be amazed at how yucky the water looks once your block has soaked for a while. But before you toss your block into the sink, take a really good look at it and make sure every itty bitty piece is stitched in place. Trust me, this is an important step:)

Once the blocks have soaked for about half an hour, it’s time to rinse them under the tap to remove the suds. Then gently squeeze the block to remove the excess water. Your block should be fairly wet, but not dripping.

Next, lay the block out on a thick towel to air dry. Easy Peasy!

Hugs and Kisses (designed by Sue Garman) is a Block of the Month that will start in January. The blocks are fairly simple so this is a good quilt for a beginner. I think this quilt is an excellent example of a quilt made up of simple blocks, but looks rather stunning when all the blocks are assembled. Mind you, there are appliqued cornerstones and a swag border to follow. Yes, stunning is a good word to describe this quilt.

Til next time….

Kerry

9Aug2017

What a Difference a Binding Makes!

Posted in Uncategorized by Simple Bird Applique

At the top of my quilting “To-Do List” is to bind every one of my quilts or wallhangings that isn’t bound. I must confess that putting the binding on is my least favourite activity. I’m not sure why, but I suspect it has something to do with knowing that my time with the quilt (or wallhanging) has come to and end. Makes me sad. Like not wanting to finish a good book. But, the stack of unbound quilts is growing so I decided “It’s Time”.

I started off with my 2 class samples from last year’s Academy of Applique. I like to stitch the bindings on with my machine and finish them by hand. As usual, once I finished one, I wondered what all the fuss was about and quickly started to get another one ready to bind! My samples now look…well…finished. Not to brag, but both wallhangings also sport a hanging sleeve. And labels are in the works! Kits for these 2 wallhangings are available on my website Simple Bird Studio.The exquisite machine quilting is done by Rose Bell of Fancy Feathers.

Speaking of The Academy of Applique, the catalogue of classes was released this past weekend and is now on the website. If I wasn’t teaching, I’d be taking classes! So much to learn. If you have never been to The Academy, please give it some thought. There is something so awesome about an Academy devoted to Applique. Don’t worry though, you will have time to eat (and maybe sleep). Here are the samples for the 2 classes I will be teaching in 2018. The first one is called Giddy for Gerberas.

The second sample is called Bird of Paradise. As you can see, neither of the samples are quilted yet. Or has a binding. But that is next on my To-Do List!

Til next time….

Kerry

Getting It All Together!

It’s still really hot. Really, really hot. So I am spending as much time downstairs where it is very cool, which is good, because I am getting lots done! I finished stitching all of my blocks together…I must say I am thrilled with how wonderful the assorted pinks and greens go together. I mean, when you veer away from the original quilt (Sue Garman’s quilt is made up of various red and greens) you really never know what you are going to end up with!

For those of who who have inquired, yes you can still sign up for Bed of Roses. In fact, you can order one block at a time and work at your own pace, or you can order a few blocks at a time, or you can even order the complete set (which is your best bet to save on all that shipping!)

I mentioned a few posts ago that I will be teaching two(!) classes at Barbara Blanton’s Academy of Applique. What an honour!! The catalogue of classes is now online so you can check it out here. Here are my class samples. I urge everyone who is even remotely interested in applique to consider taking a class at the Academy. Don’t worry if you don’t know too much about applique….that is why you are taking classes….to learn more! And if you are worried about going alone and not knowing anyone, well, stop worrying about that! The Academy of Applique is the place to be if you want to meet fellow appliquers and maybe even make some lifelong friends.

I am gearing up for the new BOM which starts September 1. You can check that post out here. That means you have exactly 10 days left to order! So if you want in on this BOM, you’ll have to order soon. We will be starting with The Woven Flower Basket. You will receive the pattern, the same fabrics I am using, a Color Chart so you will know which fabrics go where (handy!) and I will be doing a very detailed blog post to share the tips and techniques I am using. I hope you will join me in making this awesome (but very doable!) quilt.

I started working on the first block yesterday, so I just wanted you to get a sampling of what the detailed blog post will look like.

OK…here we go….First I started by taping the pattern together. You can make a personal photocopy (for your use only) so that you have a master copy. You never know, you want to make these blocks more than once. Next, I traced the pattern onto the background with a clover Water Soluble Marker (the thick one). Take note that I only trace the outlines of a design and I don’t trace the inside detail. Once you place the first unit on the background, you will cover up the inside markings. And you will say to yourself… “Well, I just wasted my time tracing things that didn’t need to be traced”. Trust me.

So I was laying in bed the other night thinking about baskets. Specifically, baskets that are made from strips of bias. And the fact that they are usually appliqued right onto the background. And I wondered…”Where are the stems? If the basket shows the background, shouldn’t I see stems.” So then I thought…”I wonder what it would look like if I added a layer of fabric to the background, and then applique the bias strips on top of that. And then the stems would be “in” the basket”. So that is what I did. Which is why I did not trace the stems onto the background (just in case you were wondering haha!).

Maybe you have never made bias strips before. You probably think it is really difficult. Well, I am here to show you how easy it really is. First, you lay your ruler on the edge of the fabric so that the 45 degree line is lined up with the edge of the fabric. It should look like this. Here is a post you can read about how I make my bias stems.

By the way, we are cutting our bias strips on a 45 degree angle. Each one of those lines on your ruler represents a different angle, so make sure you are using the correct line

When I cut my freezer paper template for the light blue piece, I did not include any seam allowance along the sides, but I did include it on the top and bottom.

Next, I removed the freezer paper template and traced the stem lines from the paper pattern.

Then I glued the light blue piece in place making sure the top and bottom were lined up properly.

Now I am ready to glue the strips in place. You will notice that there is a bit of “over and under” going on with the stems so you’ll have to pay attention. Clearly I wasn’t paying attention, so I had to loosen the glue a little, but now it’s all good!!

Yes…..it’s all good!

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

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

10Oct2015

Wait til you see this!!

Posted in Uncategorized by Simple Bird Applique

When I (finally) finished the applique on “To Everything There Is A Season”, I handed it over to Rose from Fancy Feathers with my usual set of instruction. My instructions were: “Do whatever you want. Surprise me.” I am that kind of quilter!

So when Rose called Thursday to say the quilt was ready, I could not wait more than a day before I went to get it. To say Rose did a spectacular job is putting it mildly…extremely mildly!!

I love everything about the way Rose quilted it. I especially love how the feather borders inside each block do not go all the way around the block, and have a random feel to them. Love it!! This pattern was designed by Marilyn at MT Designs. Marilyn has not seen the finished quilt yet, but she will see it tomorrow at Thanksgiving dinner! The individual patterns for each of the blocks are available on my website Simple Bird Studio as paper patterns for digital patterns.

So….here you go!

The centre medallion will take your breath away. I wish you could see this quilt in person!

Spectacular…right?

Till next time….

Kerry

1Oct2015

Bed of Roses – Block 5

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

My goodness! I must say the 1st of the month seems to sneak up on me! I am just putting the finishing stitches on the fifth block of Sue Garman’s “Bed of Roses”, a BOM I started back in April. I love this quilt because the blocks are actually easy (oh yes they are!) but the blocks don’t look easy. I hope that makes sense!

Ok, so first I traced the block onto the background with a Clover water soluble marker. Notice, I don’t trace what is inside the shapes, for example, the big flower. The reason I don’t do this is because once the prepped piece has been glued in place, it covers up all the inside markings and then you can’t see them.

Next, I added all the bias strips. I use a Clover 1/4″ bias maker to do all of my stems. I glued them in place and then I stitched them before I added any more pieces.

Next, I prepped the three pink flowers in the usual way. I iron my freezer paper templates to the wrong side of the fabric and press the seam allowance over the templates with liquid starch and a mini-iron. (Note to self…maybe its time to replace the fabric on my pressing board with something less grungy.)

Once the piece is prepped, I take the freezer paper template out…

…and then I place the template shiny side up on the prepped piece and mark any remaining seam allowances. It makes lining up multiple pieces soooo easy. Trust me!

Next, I prepped the big flower that sits right in the middle of the block.

Notice the marked seam allowances? Now I know exactly where the next pieces go. Easy Peasy!

I prepped a bunch of the yellow doo-dads and glued them in place. I even marked the seam allowances on them!

Now I placed the green pieces in place. See what I mean about being an easy block?

So, now I added the tiny leaves and four smaller posies.

Now it’s time to add some circles….

Lots and lots of circles!

And, to top it all off, a sparkly little vase. I am giddy with excitement!

Here are all 5 blocks so far. All these blocks are available on my website Simple Bird Studio.

Last weekend was the quilt show at the Simcoe County Museum. Ruth, from Stitiching Impressions, kindly displayed my “Friends of Baltimore” quilt at her booth.

My friend Kathy and I go to the show every year. Not only do we love to see the awesome quilts, we love to have a piece of Sugar Pie! Of course, we did a bit of shopping at the Merchant Mall. New fabric and pie….does it get any better?

What else am I working on? Oddly enough, I am enjoying sitting at my sewing machine working on a scrappy quilt called Trail Mix, designed by Edyta Sitar of Laundry Basket Quilts. So much fun!

Til next time….

Kerry

25May2015

Bed of Roses BOM

Posted in Bed of Roses BOM by Simple Bird Applique

I decided a while ago that I would like to start a new quilt. Something a little simpler (ok…a lot simpler!) than “Friends of Baltimore” and “To Everything There Is A Season”. But challenging enough to hold my interest. After giving it a lot of thought, I have decided to start Sue Garman’s “Bed of Roses”. You may think I am crazy, but let me explain! At first glance, it looks like a very complicated quilt, but it really isn’t. In fact, I was blown away by how easy (yes…easy!) the first block was.

The patterns for Bed of Roses are available on my website. You can order the complete set, or you can order a pattern or two a month. The choice is yours. I have added another exciting option….I am offering this quilt as a Block-of-the-Month, complete with the pattern and the exact same fabrics that I am using. I will post a detailed tutorial of each block from start to finish on my blog around the first on the month and you can stitch each block along with me. Check out my website for the details! Also, make sure you check out my Youtube videos where I show you how to make bias stems, circles and some other neat stuff!

Before I started to work on this block, I pre-washed all of my fabrics including the background. The fabrics I have chosen for this quilt are Toscana and Shimmer, both are from Northcott.

Ok, so here is Block 1. If you can make bias strips, make circles and stitch some gentle curves, then you can do this block. It has some very simple elements in it, but the arrangement of those simple elements makes it look like a very complex block. Watch closely and you will how easy this block is…

First, I made the bias strips and glued them in place. It doesn’t look like much now, but keep reading! By the way, I have traced the pattern onto the background using a Clover water soluble marker. I am using a crisp white background, so I do not need a light box to trace my pattern. I simply placed my background fabric on top of the pattern and traced away!

Next, I added some more stems. These stems will be covered up with another stem, so I like to trim the edge on an angle.

So, here all the bias strips glued in place. That wasn’t painful at all, was it?

Next. I started to prep the pieces and put them into place. I started with the centre pieces. I prep my pieces using liquid starch and a mini-iron. Once the piece is prepped, I remove the freezer paper template. You can see that the seam allowance is ironed in place, so there is no need to turn the edge under as you are stitching.

Next, I use Roxann’s glue (instead of pins) to hold the pieces in place until I can stitch them.

Once I glued the centre pieces on, I came across my first “uh oh…now what do I do?” I am not sure how well it shows in the photo below, but the yellow fabric is quite a bit lighter than the dark pink fabric it is on and the dark pink shows through. So…..I went to put the kettle on and made myself a cup of tea. Let’s be honest, you have a few options here. You can leave it alone and love your quilt just the way it is. Or you can fix it and love your quilt. Either way, you (and only you!) have to be happy with your results. I knew I had to fix it.

So this is what I did…I took the yellow pieces off and added another layer of yellow fabric to the existing piece (without the seam allowance). I just tucked it inside the piece with the seam allowance.

I glued everything in place again and look!….no shadowing!!

So, now I just started to add all of the prepped pieces. This is a very simple tip that I like to use whenever I have a few layers that need to line up. Once I prep my piece, I remove the freezer paper template and place it on top (shiny side up) and draw on the seam allowance wherever there is a raw edge. I do this to all of the pieces.

So, now when I start to place the pieces on top of each other, I have a nice crisp line to use as a guide. Very precise!

Now I have a line so that I know exactly where to place the next piece. Magical!

I did the same thing with the smaller flowers…

Here are most of the pieces glued in place and ready to stitch. Depending on the number of pieces in a block, I like to prep some pieces and then go and stitch. Some people like to prep the entire block before starting to stitch. The choice is yours!

Next, I added the leaves.

It was when I was at this point in the block that I realized that there wasn’t anything that I would describe as “difficult”. Quite the contrary…pretty simple.

Now onto the circles. When I do my circles, I like to use Perfect Circles. One afternoon I decided to go on a “Circle Marathon” and just do all 72 circles in this block…you know…get it over with! I lined the completed circles up in rows so I could see my progress. Thank goodness for audio books, that is all I can say!

Once all the circles were ready, I glued them in place and started to stitch them. I don’t recommend gluing all 72 circles in place before you start stitching. The thread gets caught up in the circles and its annoying!