A gift for my mom and a Happy Mother’s Day!

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I just finished this table topper for my mom today.  It will be a late Mother’s Day gift since I have to send it to her, but the card should be on time!

My mom has always supported me in everything I do and she is my number one fan.  I recently sent her some of my new  business cards and by the end of the week, she had handed them all out to her crafty friends!  Thanks, Mom, for everything you do for me!

I used fabric from Jennifer Chiaverini’s collection for Red Rooster Fabric called Elm Creek Quilts:  Caroline’s Collection.  I love the soft colors.  My favorite piece from this line ended up on the back:

The pattern is a “Tiny One” from Pieced Tree Patterns and it’s a small laminated card that sells for $3.50 at my local shop, The Granary.  They carry at least ten of these patterns and they make great gifts – both the pattern and the finished project!

This one, Center Stage,  is the perfect size for the center of a round or octogonal table and it measures 28 inches across.  I quilted a feathered wreath in the center and stitched in the ditch along the main color pathways.

It took me three days to complete and I can’t wait to make another one!

Happy Mother’s Day to you all!  I hope you get to spend time with your loved ones and maybe your sewing machine too!

Julie

Chicken and Shrimp Fajitas Recipe

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This is one of my family’s favorite dinners, and it’s so versatile!  My vegetarian daughter loves it as well as the picky youngest one.  The marinade works well with both chicken and shrimp.  On this occasion, I only used chicken.

Chicken and Shrimp Fajita Marinade Ingredients:

  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1 1/2 tsp. seasoning salt
  • 1 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
  • 1/2 tsp. chili powder
  • 1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper
  • 1 T. olive oil
  • 2 T. lime juice (fresh if possible)
  • 1 1/2 lb. sliced chicken (breast and/or thighs) OR 1 1/2 lb. lg. shrimp, peeled

Combine all ingredients.  Marinate chicken or shrimp at least two hours.  Saute in large skillet until cooked through.

The other key players for this fiesta are cheese, salsa, tortillas, beans (I used refried), guacamole, rice, and sauteed vegetables.

Here’s how I make my guacamole:  Dice 2 to 3 large avocados, and add 1/4 c. diced onion, 1/4 c. chopped cilantro, juice of half a lime, crushed red pepper to taste, salt and pepper to taste.

For the sauteed vegetables: I use whatever is in my fridge at the moment.  This time I had onions, red and yellow bell peppers, cauliflower, carrots, and zucchini.  Slice or dice them all and saute with a little olive oil.  Add salt, pepper, and a little cumin and chili powder toward the end.  Sometimes I cover it all with a lid and allow the veggies to steam for a little if they’re still not cooked after 5 – 10 minutes of sauteing.

For the rice:  I like to add fresh lime juice and cilantro to the steamed rice – it’s a bit like Chipotle’s and it’s delish.

Sometimes I make my own salsa if it’s tomato season, otherwise I buy it pre-made. Here’s everything on the table:

I have to admit, I’m a little hungry right now.  And a margarita sounds good too!

Have a great day!

Julie

 

 

 

May Day Basket Wallhanging Tutorial – Part 3

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Quilt on chair copy

My May Day Basket Wallhanging is done – I mean quilted with binding and a hanging sleeve!  Woo hoo! You can find Part 1 of this tutorial here and Part 2 is here.

Let me walk you through the final phase – adding the sashing and borders.

Supplies needed:

In addition, you’ll need 1/4 yard of binding fabric and 1 yard of backing fabric.

Instructions:

Step 1.  Lay out your blocks, sashing strips, and cornerstone (center square) according to the picture below:

As you can see in the photograph, I have not added all of the flower appliques yet. I had to use this picture for this step, because I didn’t have any other!

Step 2:  Attach sashing to blocks and cornerstone; press towards sashing.

Step 3:  Sew rows together; press towards sashing:

Step 4:  You will be adding the border strips and corner squares next.  Your strips should be 4″ wide and the length should be 22 1/2″.  Before you cut them to that length, measure your quilt top through the center (vertically and horizontally) and cut your border strips to that measured length.  Lay out your pieces as shown below:

Step 5:  Attach the borders to both sides of the quilt and press towards the border.  Attach the corner squares to both sides of the top and bottom border strip, pressing towards the border fabric:

Step 6:  Attach top and bottom border units, making sure to match seams and pin.  Press towards border:

Now you’re done with the quilt top!  You still need to quilt it and add binding.  I’ll share some pictures of the quilting that I did on my wall hanging.  It’s fun to quilt on small projects like this one.  They’re easier to handle and they don’t take all week month to finish.

First, I stitched in the ditch along the sashing, borders and baskets.  Then I added the pebble quilting around the flowers:

This kind of dense quilting really makes the applique pop out.  Here is a picture without the quilting:

See how flat the applique is?  What a difference!  You can see the “invisible” machine applique stitching more before the quilting is added. Afterwards, it virtually disappears.

I used one stencil in this quilt (in the sashing); everything else was drawn and/or stitched free hand.  Here’s an example of a section that I drew a design on with a purple air-erasble pen first and then quilted shortly after:

And here is the feathered border (that I drew first) and then stitched:

In the outside corner squares, I just traced the applique flower and stitched.

I added cross-hatching to the baskets and a little feather swirl on each side:

These were marked with a blue water-soluble pen (my favorite marking tool) and afterwards a few sprays of water from a spray bottle and they’re gone!

I used Sulky and DMC 50 wt. cotton thread for most of the quilting.  For the pebbles, I used Superior’s King Tut 40 wt. and it was too heavy for such dense quilting.  It’s hard to tell the difference in the pictures, but the thread sits on top of the fabric too much, instead of sinking in. So after quilting three basket blocks with it, I finally switched over to a Clover silk thread and it turned out much better!

Thanks for joining me on my May Day Basket tutorial.  And I just found out that I was featured on CraftGossip.com!  Check it out!

They are talking about me at CraftGossip.com
Happy Quilting!
Julie

Turned Edge Applique Tutorial (May Day Basket) Part 2

applique close copy

Today, I will be focusing on the applique technique I used for this project.  It’s a turned edge applique as opposed to a raw edge applique.  With turned edge applique, you don’t need to finish the edges of your applique shapes with a blanket stitch or satin stitch.  But, you do need to stitch it down to the background and this can be done by hand or machine.  I chose machine stitching using a stitch that is very similar to a blind hem.  I’ll get to that in a bit.

You can find Part 1 of this project here.

Here are the tools you’ll need for the applique:

  • Fabric scraps
  • Fusible lightweight interfacing
  • Straw (the wider the better)
  • Ball point bodkin (yep, that’s not a typo)
  • Seam ripper
  • Wooden pressing tool
  • Monofilament or “invisible” thread
  • Perfect Circles, by Karen Kay Buckley (optional)
  • Applique placement diagram – see pdf link in Step 1.

A ball point bodkin is the tool shown at the top of the picture above. This one is made by Dritz and you can find it at most fabric and craft stores or online here.  You could also use a small crochet hook or even a plastic swizzle stick (martini anyone?)

Steps for making turned edge applique shapes with fusible interfacing:

1. Print out the Flower Placement Diagram and trace applique shapes onto smooth side of fusible interfacing using a pencil:

 

2.  Layer right side of fabric to fusible (rough) side of interfacing.  Stitch on drawn line using a short stitch length – 1.5 to 1.8.  Make sure your curves are smooth as this is what determines how smooth your finished shape will be.  Pivot frequently!

3.  Trim 1/8″ away from stitching.  Clip just to the stitching on inside points:

4.  Using a seam ripper, carefully make a 1/2″ slash in the center of the interfacing:

5.  Next, you need to turn the shape right side out.  Here is an easy way to do that without having to create an enormous hole in the interfacing.  Insert the straw through the opening until you reach the stitching.  Next, use the ball point bodkin or similar tool to push the applique shape into the straw (a picture speaks a thousand words):

6.  Remove the straw.  Now you have an edge of the applique turning through the hole:

7.  Repeat the same process, but going up to the other edge of the applique:

8.  At this point you should be able to turn the entire shape right side out.  Use the ball point bodkin to smooth the edges from the inside (through the same hole).

9.  Because there is fusible interfacing on the back of the applique shape, you will need to use a wooden pressing tool or your fingers to smooth out the edges from the top/outside:

10.  Repeat the above steps for the remaining flowers and leaves.  Now you’re ready to press your shapes onto the background fabric.  Using the applique placement diagram as a guide, arrange shapes on the basket block and press with a hot iron.  Press again from the back side.

11.  The circles for the flower centers can be made with a variety of techniques. For this project, I used a template circle from Perfect Circles and traced it onto the wrong side of the fabric.  You can also use a file folder or similar heavy paper for a template.

12.  Trim 1/4″ away from drawn line.  Using a needle and thread, make running stitches in the seam allowance.  Leave a thread tail at the end:

13.  Insert the plastic circle template into the middle of your circle and pull the thread tails to form a circle.  Press.  (The template is made out of heat-resistant plastic).

Sorry for the blurry picture.  Here’s another one:

14.  Loosen the thread tails just enough to remove the plastic circle and then re-tighten and press again from the front:

15.  You can trim the thread tails at this point.  To adhere the circle onto the flower, use a basting glue such as Roxanne’s Glue Baste It. Just place a little glue near the seam allowance.  You can barely see the white dots of glue in the picture below:

If making circles seems like too much trouble, you could always use buttons – just as cute!

16.  Now you get to stitch this all down! When I use this technique, I’m aiming for an invisible looking stitch.  I’ve even had people think that it was done by hand (that’s a great compliment!)

I think the key to achieving this look is using “invisible” or monofilament thread in the top of your machine. (I use a cotton bobbin thread that matches my background fabric). I have used many brands of invisible thread: YLI, Superior Mono-poly, and Sew Art International.  These are all good choices, but only Superior is made out of polyester – the others are made out of nylon.  This doesn’t matter too much, except when and if you iron your applique, you need to make sure you’re NOT using a hot iron or you could melt the monofilament thread. Use a medium heat setting instead.

The other key to this technique is using the correct stitch on your machine.  I usually use the vari-overlock stitch on my Bernina.  Not all machines have this stitch, but it’s very similar to a blind-hem stitch only it’s reversed and it has fewer straight stitches in between the “v”.  I mirror image the stitch and then it works for me.

You want the straight stitches to fall in the background fabric right next to the applique and the bite or “v” to go just inside your applique shape.  The bites should be spaced about 1/4″ apart.

In the above picture, the needle is taking a straight stitch just next to the flower and then it will take one zig zag stitch to the left, into the flower.  This is what it looks like from the back:

My stitches are pretty small and the setting on my sewing machine is at 1.6 stitch length and 1.1 stitch width.

If your sewing machine does not have a blind hem or vari-overlock stitch, you can use a zig zag stitch with great results.  You’ll want the width to be as narrow as possible and the length should be longer than “normal”.  I don’t remember what my settings were on my machine, but I finished one of my basket block appliques with this stitch and it came out great.

Here’s what the back of it looks like:

The front should look pretty good too!

Because of the invisible thread used on top, you really can’t see the stitches from the front. Some people like invisible thread for this reason – it’s very forgiving.  But, it’s also hard to see as you’re working with it, so be patient.

This type of applique is great for projects with larger and simpler shapes. I hope you  give it a try!

I’ll be back with Part 3 – putting it all together with sashing and borders.

Let me know if you have any questions!

Julie

May Day Basket Wallhanging Tutorial Part 1

Angled Finished_edited-1

Instead of a tutorial on just turned edge applique using fusible interfacing, I will be presenting a tutorial on this May Day Basket Wallhanging in three parts.  Part 1 (today!) will be supplies and piecing the basket blocks.  Part 2 will focus on the applique technique used and part 3 will show you how to put it all together.

My inspiration for this adorable wallhanging came from Nancy Lee Murty and her book Sisterhood-A Quilting Tradition: 11 Heartwarming Projects to Piece & Applique.  I recently posted about it here.  I made this wallhanging straight from the book:

I am using my own basket block and applique for my version – The May Day Basket Wallhanging. The finished quilt size is 29″ square.  So let’s get started!

Fabric Requirements:

  • 1/4 yard cream fabric (basket background)
  • 1/4 yard yellow check (basket background and corner squares)
  • 1/4 yard brown floral (basket block and sashing corner stone)
  • 1/8 yard green print (sashing)
  • 1/2 yard peach floral (border)
  • Assorted scraps for flowers and leaves (approx. 1/8 yd. each)
  • 1/4 yard binding fabric
  • 7/8 yard backing fabric
  • 35″ square batting

Other:

  • 1/2 yard lightweight fusible interfacing
  • invisible monofilament thread
  • drinking straw, optional
  • ball point bodkin or small crochet hook, optional
  • wooden pressing tool

Cutting Instructions:

Cream Fabric:

  • Cut (1) 7 1/2″ strip.  Subcut into (2) 7″ squares; (8) 2 1/2″ x 8 1/2″ rectangles.

Yellow Check:

  • Cut (1) 5″ strip.  Subcut into (2) 5″ squares, cut each in half on the diagonal, (4) 4″ squares, and (6) 2 1/2″ x 4 1/2″ rectangles.
  • Cut (1) 2 1/2″ strip.  Subcut into (2) 2 1/2″ x 4 1/2″ rectangles and (4) 2 1/2″ squares.

Brown Floral:

  • Cut (1) 7″ strip.  Subcut into (2) 7″ squares, (4) 2 7/8″ squares – cut in half on diagonal, and (1) 2 1/2″ square.

Green Sashing:

  • Cut (1) 2 1/2″ strip.  Subcut into (4) 2 1/2″ x 10 1/2″ rectangles.

Border Fabric:

  • Cut (4) 4″ x WOF (width of fabric) strips; subcut into (4) 4″ x 22 1/2″ strips AFTER measuring quilt center.  Adjust the length if necessary.

Here are the basket block pieces needed:

And here are the sashing and border pieces:

Piecing instructions for basket blocks:

1.  With 7″ squares of cream fabric, draw a diagonal line from corner to corner on each. Match each cream square with a 7″ square of brown floral.  With right sides together, sew 1/4″ on each side of drawn line.  Cut in half on marked line:

2.  Press towards brown floral. Trim half square triangle (hst) to measure 6 1/2″ square:

3.  Lay out your pieces for the basket block as shown below:

4.  Sew the brown floral triangle to the yellow check rectangle and press towards the triangle.  Repeat on adjacent side:

5.  Sew triangle/rectangle unit to large half-square triangle.  Press towards rectangle unit:

6.  Find the center of yellow check triangle by folding in half and creasing.  Match the center of triangle to the center seam on basket and stitch.  Press towards triangle.  (The triangle is over-sized and will need to be trimmed down):

7.  Trim the basket to measure 8 1/2″ square:

8.  Attach cream basket borders (2 1/2″ x 8 1/2″ rectangles) and yellow check square as shown, pressing towards cream rectangles:

9.  Matching seams, stitch upper basket border to basket block. Press towards border.  The final basket should measure 10 1/2″ square:

You will need to make four basket blocks, so repeat the above steps four times!

I tried to make the how-to images into a readable pdf file and this is as good as I could get it: May Day Basket Steps.  That’s another techie lesson I’ll have to master another time.

Now you’re ready for the next lesson which will be the turned edge machine applique method using fusible interfacing.

Happy Quilting!

Julie