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New Quilt Project - Affairs of the Heart

Well, its winter and the weather isn't pleasant so that means its time for a project that I can work on in the evenings away from my machine. I decided I'd work on some applique blocks for the Affairs of the Heart quilt. I prep the squares and grab my batik scraps and get sewing.  I didn't think I was doing a whole lot but I've already got 8 blocks done.


This quilt has some sashing between a group of blocks and the large border and I've decided it would pretty to embroider the sashing. The sashing is 1.5" and I'm thinking it should stay that width and not any bigger. I did some testing and I didn't like it wider.  I want to enhance the blocks not detract or under or overwhelm them.


Since these blocks have a ton of colors in them an the background is entirely white, I thought I'd find a nice embroidery patterns with flowers and/or heart themes since that's what in the blocks and maybe use a variegated rainbow type thread. So begins the auditions of thread to see what would look best with the blocks I've got done. There's a lot of different types of thread and I picked up one that I thought might work.  Its Superior Rainbows metallic thread Forest 811 that variegates between every color of the rainbow as far as I can tell and then some.  Here's my first stitched sample using this thread.


I wish I liked it better but I don't. I may need to find something brighter. Its' fairly underwhelming. This probably looks really good on a navy blue or black fabric but on white it just doesn't do anything for me. It's a test piece so maybe I'll try it out on another color. I still like the design and I think it'll work out fine. Instead of lots of colors, I should probably go with a solid. I think I have a gold thread that might work. 

Hand stitching the applique or needle turning these designs has been challenging yet fun. Some of the designs are quite difficult and I may have to restitch some pieces or entire blocks. I always seem to start off bad but by the end of the quilt, I'm in the groove and so I'll go back and redo some of the early blocks I did. 







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