Sep 14 07
New Free Video Tutorial Posted on YouTube!
It all started with the quilt above…I can’t show a picture of the whole quilt because I’m not allowed to yet, but it was very fun to do the free motion machine embroidery on the gingko leaves after I’d added some color highlights with colored pencils and singed the edges of the silk with a burning tool. So, I thought it might be fun to make a video tutorial on how to do some of those techniques! The quilt that I make in the tutorial is this one:
I’m not so wild about the background quilting on it, but I like the rest of it and it was fun to make! This picture shows the fused leaf after color has been added to the fabric and the edges were singed:
These gingko leaves are pretty large-they measure around 28 inches long by about 18-20 inches wide. I like the drama of over-sized objects!
Now this next picture shows that original gingko leaf after it’s been free motion embroidered and the area around it has been quilted:
Isn’t it just so neat to be able to make all these added details to make a quilt so interesting?! You can watch the 2 part tutorial at the following addresses: (N.B. These are addresses to cut and paste, not actual links!)
Part 1:
Part 2:
And if you missed our previous 2 part tutorial on trapunto, you can also view those on YouTube at:
Part 1:
Part 2:
In other news, I also had a really great weekend dyeing fabric. I always start getting nervous in the fall, feeling that I need to dye a lot of fabric to get me through the winter, just like squirrels hoard acorns! My first afternoon was spent dyeing blues, purples, and greens:
And my second afternoon I spent dyeing reds and oranges:
Aren’t these colors just mouth watering?! I dyed mainly cotton sateens and egyptian cotton but I also dyed some silks as well. Next, I dyed some silk roving and bamboo roving…
And last, but not least, some wool/rayon felt:
If you are having trouble finding reasonably priced fabric, roving, and felt to dye, you can find a lot of this stuff at either Joanne Fabrics or Hancock fabrics. Joanne’s has Egyptian cotton for $6.99/yd, (incredibly smooth-it has a great hand to it!), as well as 100% wool, ($14.99/yd) and a 65/35% wool/rayon blend. They also has a cotton sateen for $5.99 and it dyes up beautifully, although I don’t like it as well as I used to because they’ve changed it this year and it’s not nearly as soft or luminous. Hancock’s has a great cotton sateen for $4.44/yd and also has a wool/rayon felt, and that’s the felt I dyed above. It dyes beautifully with procian dyes but looks pretty ho-hum with acid dyes. I got my silk roving and bamboo roving at Earth Guild in Asheville, NC. Happy dyeing!
Oh, and I almost forgot! The next DVD, “Free Motion Fun…With Vines and Leaves!” has been at the replicators for awhile and should be back soon…expect it to be available for sale in the next 1 1/2 weeks! I’ll post a preview video clip and also post some new free downloads when it goes live!
Patsy I cannot get the Youtube.com/watch to come up. I’m also axiously wating for the other leave and vine video. I really like what you are doing. I’ve signed up for more free motion classes in town.
Evelyn
Sorry I did not make that clear! These are addresses to cut and paste into the address bar, not true links! I am not particularly computer literate, so I don’t know any html!
Patsy
Hi,
Those colours are just—–juicey!!!:o)
Looking forward to seeing the whole ginkgo piece. We planted one but it is growing so slowly. The leaf shape is lovely isn’t it?
Hi,
thank you so much for sharing those wonderful videos. Your work and how you teach it is marvelous. I like to look at your blog very often.
One hint, the link for the first video about trapunto is http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_wgE74Mro4&mode=related&search=
Accidentally there is mentioned the link for part 2 of your new ginkos.
Best wishes from Germany
Hi Cordula,
Thank you for all your nice words and thank you for alerting me to this error! I think I fixed it!
Patsy
I love your work and have learned so much from your site and your DVD’s. I have just discovered Superior Threads “The Bottom Line” for use in bobbins thanks to your site. It makes for the cleanest, lightest work on quilt backs, but I am a bit concerned about using a polyester thread with all cotton quilt fabrics. I’ve always read that using polyester thread is a no-no. I understand that the thread needs to be weaker than the cotton fabric, and the 60 weight of this thread definitely seems lighter. Is my polyester angst valid?
Hi Patsy
I am so happy I found your web site. I have enjoyed all four short video’s on trapunto and hope you will come up with more in the future.
I’m a 72 year old grandma, who started quilting just one year ago. Everything is so interesting and I hope I will not run out of time before I try several techniques. Thank you
Alice