Category Archives: applique

Applique Samples

Posted on by under applique, Level 3 Stitch

I have been working on a list of types of applique for class. I took some photos of samples from past classes and made a new one. It’s good to look back and see which ones I have already sampled and look for other types that I haven’t tried yet. All except the last sample were made in my Level 2 Stitch class.

These two are Broderie Perse. I have not stitched the one on the right because the flower fabric frayed and fell apart every time I tried to stitch it. So I just ended up fusing it down.

These two are shadow applique. The one on the left is felt and silk organza. The one on the right is cotton and silk organza.

These two are turned applique. The one on the left uses a fusible and the one on the right is a needle turned applique. These are probably two of my least favorite types of applique.

Here’s a stacked felt sample. These are fun because you don’t have to worry about the edges of the felt fraying.

This is a machine stitched cut back applique.

This is the sample I stitched this week. It is reverse applique. It’s created with three pieces of hand dyed linen and blanket stitch. It is a raw edge applique but actually the blanket stitch keeps the linen from fraying as much. I still have at least one more sample that I’m going to create and another larger piece that will be based on bark. So more applique to come.

Cone Flowers Applique

Posted on by under applique, Level 3 Stitch

I have been busily working on my Level 3 Stitch homework. Each morning for the last couple of weeks, I have been working on my machine stitched applique piece. I based it on one of my paintings that I completed in Level 3 Art and Design.

Here’s the original painting. It was done with a mix of techniques and I thought it would make an interesting applique. I wanted to make the surface very textural to mimic the “texture” in the paint.

I finished it today. I stitched the tree trunk and the cone flowers today. I had a really good time with the background and used loads of loose threads, torn up burlap and cheese cloth in a variety of colors. The cone flowers were especially fun to stitch and I love the texture. So now it’s hard to decide whether I like the original better or the fabric applique piece. What do you think?

Stump Rings Applique Completed

Posted on by under applique, hand stitching, Level 3 Stitch

I finished stitching the stump rings piece that I showed the design work last week. It seems a little busy to me but I am leaving it alone for now. I really like how the colors shift into the next and the overall look from a distance. I just don’t care for it up close.

Here it is with cropping. Somehow I ended up with the center of the spirals too close to the center of the piece. The camera has a hard time capturing the sheer fabric and the shift in colors.

Now on to my machine stitch applique piece.

Design Work on Stump Ring Applique

Posted on by under applique, Level 3 Stitch

Last week I showed you the beginnings of my stump ring applique piece here. This week I have been working further on the stitching design and some stitch samples to make up my mind about where to go from here.

Here you can see some of the work in my studio journal in figuring out the design and color scheme.

I then worked some different stitch design ideas on paper to see what I might think will work best. I decided I would try four different stitch samples to try out the stitches, weight and color of thread.

Here are the stitch samples. They still have the basting stitches in so you have to ignore those.

I decided I was going with couching and french knots for the final piece. I will also be doing shadow applique where possible with tiny stitches that won’t show much. I want the emphasis to be on the lines of stitching and the green french knots that remind me of lichen or moss.

Now to start on stitching the final piece. I did begin the shadow applique but it is really hard to see so I didn’t try and take a photo. I will show you the progress next week. Have a great weekend and thanks for stopping by!

Applique Stump Rings

Posted on by under applique, hand stitching, Level 3 Stitch

I am back from my Level 3 Stitch class. The class was great although the return trip was a bit of a struggle due to weather. We sat for two hours on one of the passes due to snow and crazy drivers. But we made it safe and sound.

I started this applique piece in class. It’s based on shapes and rings from stump photos. I have a bunch of those types of photos and this isn’t really one stump, it’s a combination of several. This has been basted down but I haven’t started stitching yet. I have to work out where I want the lines of stitching to go, what color and size of threads to use and what hand stitches to use. Lots of decisions yet before I jump in and start stitching. Hopefully, by next week, I will have made some progress.

Have a great weekend!