Thursday 31 March 2016

International Quilting Day - Harvest Challenge

It's not often that I can get to do applique these days.  I'm not sure why - I think my schedule isn't allowing for it like it used to.  What I mean to say is, my schedule is changing as the girls get older, and I need to find a new schedule.  In the olden days (pre children) I would stitch long into the night once dinner had been done.

Now it's different.  There are books to read, baths to have, and as they get older, the girls are staying up later.  So it's well past nine thirty by the time I get to sink into a lounge chair, and then I go to bed not long after that. 

It doesn't allow time to stitch like it used to.  And there's something so decadent about stitching in the middle of the day.  I need to shake that feeling.

But - International Quilting Day had a challenge and as a committee member, I needed to do an entry.  Our theme for the day was Harvest, and we had to stitch a twelve inch block.  

I chose pumpkins.

I found a lovely picture online (and this version is everywhere, so I feel confident I'm not depriving one designer of income) and 'dumbed it down' a little, just for applique purposes.  I did that by tracing roughly over the outer lines, adding a few feature lines where I knew I would use different colours.


I lay some plain paper over the top and drew my own template, following the texta lines.


I had great intentions of piecing a background, so I pulled all these lovely creams, but when I got down to the nitty gritty, it wouldn't work.  There just wasn't enough background there to play with.  So I put the creams away, and just used one piece of background fabric.


Part of the pleasure of starting a new project is pulling all the fabrics you need from your collection.  I quickly found that I didn't have enough oranges.  So I had to buy more.  That was a shame.


And so, it begins.  I did the usual thing - traced vliesofix templates, ironed it onto the fabrics, laid it in place.


The brown stems were the most tricky, but I think I coped okay with them.  I'm a little out of practice at this sort of fine work, so it was good to get back into it.




Now it was just a case of stitching it all done in place, which didn't take too long.  


Bound it in the same orange I had used in the design, and it's done!

I didn't win.  But that's okay, it's done and finished and I think it's beautiful.  I'm quite keen to do something else.  Maybe an apple or something.  I love the cropped view of it, the perspective appeals to me.

Anyway.  That's it for today.  It's a glorious day today - beautiful, clean, crisp Autumn day.  Perfect weather for a day of craft. 

Hope yours is a good one too!

4 comments:

  1. I love how you took a simple picture and created a beautiful block! Amazing!

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    1. Thanks, Anne! It really was a rush job but I was pleased with how it worked out.

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  2. I like it....sometimes we must go back to something we have done before...just to see if we still like doing it...What a lovely little pumpkin you designed.....

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    1. Thanks, Rosie! It's pumpkin season here in Australia, so I'm seeing them everywhere!

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