What a peaceful feeling this morning while doing my applique. Even Minnie was getting a spa treatment on the hassock....
She's such a character that it's hard to imagine her sitting still for a bit of grooming by the kitty, but I guess this is proof.
I made some progress on my tree on the lower border of FlowerGarden. Only about an hour to go on the remaining branch...
I was correct in thinking this piece would take about a week to applique. I did take a little break midway through to stitch at something a bit less intense. This is the fountain that will be in the middle of the lower border...
Do see the little circles drawn on the background to represent the water coming out of the fountain? They are about 1/2" in diameter and there are 24 of them! I'm not looking forward to these. I think I may try a method of doing circles that a couple of my friends use....doing a gather stitch around the seam allowance and pulling it tight around a small template. I haven't been successful using this method in the past but I think, in this case, it's worth another try.
Something else I'd like to try this week is Back-basted Applique. I really don't understand the concept or why it would be better than how I do things now, but I figure I should at least try before totally ditching the idea.
I even have a book on the subject....but never tried it....
The author is Barbara J. Eikmeier and looks quite well done. So that is my goal for the week, to try back-basting on one of my little daily hearts for Quilty365.
I did try something new yesterday. Usually when we go out to a cafe my beverage of choice is a Chai Tea Latte. Yum! Lately I've been trying to cut down on refined sugar and when I had a latte last week I couldn't even finish it as it was just too sweet. Quite disappointed that my favourite treat was ruined!
Yesterday we stopped in Beamsville at a lovely spot called
Conversation's Cafe & Bistro. I explained to the barista that I needed to find a new favourite beverage and she suggested a London Fog but with only one shot of vanilla as to further cut down on sugar...
It was delicious! I don't know what kind of tea bags they were but you can see in the picture that it was huge! What a nice, frothy drink. I have to say that I do like something special when going to a cafe and not just order a coffee!
Have a visit with
Kathy's Quilts to see what others are poking at on this grey morning!
Gather stitches sound just perfect for all those tiny circles. You can use washers if you have some in the right size. I've never quite gotten back basting either, but I hope that you figure out the benefits. Great tree progress. So many twists and turns!
ReplyDeleteOh your block looks wonderful! It would be a great candidate for back basting. I love making circles with perfect circles I give them a spritz of starch before I press them. It's important to let them cool completely before pulling out the template.
ReplyDeleteThe tree and fountain are looking good! I have been interested in trying back basting as another tool for applique. I have read that once you get comfortable with back basting, you will love it. You have cute companions.
ReplyDeleteYes, what Carla said. I also starch my circles then press them with a HOT iron. I normally let them cool overnite before removing the template. You are going to love appliquing the Sweet Surrender blocks. They applique really fast! Blessings, Gretchen
ReplyDeleteWhew, 24 circles! I think what you are talking about is similar to how they make yo-yos for a yo-yo quilt. It should work quite well once you get the hang of it.
ReplyDeleteYour applique pieces look wonderful! Good luck with the tiny circles! The "perfect circles" technique does help make them easier. Do give back basting another try. I took a class using the Eikmeier book and I love the technique. I always struggled with plain needle-turn applique, but I find back basting works great for me.
ReplyDeleteI'm with you on the Chia Tea Latte. Most of the specialty coffee and teas are just a flavour added with lots of sugar. At Second Cup I order the London Fog using the Chia tea and it tastes so much better than the syrup.
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