Appliqué is a quilting technique which involves applying layering one fabric above another and sewing it on. The term appliqué comes from the French word appliquer, which is a French verb meaning "to put on." Even though the word comes from the French, the technique has been used in many cultures and throughout history, with the earliest examples of appliqué being found thousands of years ago. Learning the uses and how-tos of appliqué will expand the possibilities of quilting enormously for you. Appliqué is a versatile technique which is useful for design options regular quilting can't accomplish.
The first step in learning appliqué is selecting a design. Small, intricate shapes will not work well for this technique, at least not when you are first learning. Start with a simple shape for your beginning appliqué project. Something basic like a circle or heart will serve you well for your first attempt. In order to create a pattern for your appliqué design, many people choose freezer paper, because it is stiff without being too thick. Trace your design onto the freezer paper and cut it out and then you can easily trace your appliqué onto the fabric you've selected cotton is a good choice). Next, carefully cut the appliqué design out, leaving 1/8th inches all around.
In order to stabilize the appliqué, you can either glue the freezer paper to the fabric design, or pin it. Now you will have to deal with the raw edges. Since the fabrics are being layered atop one another, as opposed to being sewn in seams as with traditional quilting, it's very important to learn to finish the raw edges so they won't unravel and be unsightly. One way to do this is to take your scissors and carefully snip to the marked line and then press the seam allowance under all the way around your design. Use the tip of a Popsicle stick or a chopstick to help smooth the little edges of fabric down.
Now position the appliqué design where you want it on the base fabric and hand stitch it down. There are several possibilities for stitching your appliqué. Do you want to hide the stitches or use it as a decorative element for your appliqué? If you want to hide the stitching, blind stitch or hem stitch are good possibilities. For decorative touches, try buttonhole stitching. You can use any embroidery stitch that strikes your fancy, but with some of the more complicated stitches it's a good idea to anchor your appliqué with a hem stitch first.
The last step is to very carefully cut a small slit in the background fabric only, behind the appliqué. Be certain not to cut through the appliqué itself! Then gently reach in and remove the freezer paper. Now turn your appliqué over and press it, smoothing the edges and taking care if you've used a decorative embroidery stitch. That's it! That's how easy it is to learn to appliqué. Once you've tried your hand at appliqué, you will be glad you've added it to your quilting repertoire.
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Embroidery is enjoying a resurgence in popularity, much the same as quilting and knitting and other hand crafts. Many crafters who enjoy quilting also end up enjoying embroidery and might feel as if they have torn loyalties-which craft to pursue in the small amount of time available for hobbies? The good news is that quilting and embroidery make excellent companions. Crafters who love quilting but are attracted to the depth and color that embroidery stitches offer can follow both their loves by combining the two crafts.
A quilt embellished with embroidered stitches is one of the most beautiful hand-crafted creations imaginable. Take a look at some of the "crazy quilts" from the Victorian era. These quilts are most often made of silk, often from leftover men's ties or other bits of fabric, and were pieced together in a random manner (hence the name) and then heavily embellished with embroidery. Even if your interest in quilting slants more toward traditional quilts, it's worth taking a look at these crazy quilts to get ideas for using embroidery to embellish your quilts. Crazy quilts use embroidery extensively, in many cases covering nearly every bit of the quilt's surface, but you can use touches of embroidery here and there on your quilts or quilted clothing to give it depth and texture.
Embroidery stitches are easy to learn, and you may even know some already. Browse through sites on the internet, and you'll find many with clear photos or pictures of embroidery stitches. Some common embroidery stitches you might want to use include blanket and chain stitch for outlining, and feather, herringbone, lazy daisy, straight and cross stitches for decorative touches.
Many quilters enjoy doing appliqué as part of their quilting techniques, and embroidery is a natural partner to appliqué. The process of appliqué involves layering one fabric atop another, as opposed to sewing pieces of fabric together, and embroidery stitches such as the blanket stitch can be used to decorate the edges of the appliquéd piece. Or perhaps you may want to use embroidery on the background fabric, to emphasize the appliquéd pieces. The manufacturers of embroidery floss have kept pace with developments in the world of crafting, and now offer floss in an array of fibers, including perle cotton, rayon, silk and even linen and hemp. They also feature brilliant colors, with some even offering hand-dyed and variegated flosses.
Many quilters prefer to do their quilting by machine, instead of hand, and these same quilters may also prefer to do their embroidery by machine. With the huge variety of incredibly powerful sewing machines on the market, this is a snap. Many sewing machines have embroidery functions with extensive lists of stitches, which are as easy to accomplish as flipping a switch on the machine. As with embroidery floss, there are many specialty threads available for machine embroidery.
Look into adding embroidery to your quilting and open up a whole new world of quilting and crafting pleasure to your life.
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