Hoot Hoot Hooray! Wall Hanging

On day three during this week of owl projects, we are going to take a look at the GO! Hoot Hoot Hooray! Wall Hanging. The focus of this particular project is the machine embroidery...yep, all those owl pieces are stitched down and embellished using digitized files for machine embroidery...so your sewing embroidery machine does all the work for you! I designed the layout for this GO! Owl wall hanging and made the quilted sample...and the machine embroidery files (GO! Owl Embroidery) were created and digitized by V-Stitch Designs.

Some of you might not be familiar with the machine embroidery process, so I thought I would share just a little insight with you. Some sewing machines come with embroidery capability - this gives the sewist/quilter the ability to embroider and embellish their work. A digitized file is loaded into a computerized sewing/embroidery machine - this file is read by the machine and then stitched out on the desired medium. For the GO! Owl Embroidery, the base block fabric and a layer of stabilizer are placed in an embroidery hoop...then the hoop is attached to the embroidery unit on the sewing/embroidery machine.  My tip for this step is to use a larger piece of fabric than the pattern calls for, so when the machine embroidery is complete, you can trim the block to the exact size needed. Once the hoop is attached and the digitized file is loaded, it is time to start embroidering/stitching. The first color to stitch out is a placement line for the first appliqué piece (in this case, the owl body). The shape is placed inside this guideline and fused (or use a glue stick) to hold it in place. The next color to stitch out will tack the appliqué shape in place. Finally, the appliqué edge will stitch out - this can be as simple as a satin stitch or blanket stitch...or the digitizer may program it to be a fancy embellishing stitch (see photos below - click on photos for larger images). Going forward, placement lines will stitch out for the owl eyes, beak, wings, etc. and each appliqué shape is tacked down and then embellished in place - and in some instances, additional elements such as a bow, heart, feet, or eyebrows are added. Machine embroidery can often appear intimidating, but with a little practice and the correct tools, it can truly enhance your work!

After machine embroidering the appliqué stitches for the six owl blocks included in this wall hanging, it is pieced and put together just like any other project. To keep the focus on the owls and embroidery, this wall hanging uses simple sashing and border strips with cornerstones to frame the blocks....and of course, you can play with the colors and prints to make this wall hanging perfect for your space!

....and, once again, the good news...for a very limited time, this pattern is available to download for FREE on the AccuQuilt website...simply visit: http://www.accuquilt.com/shop/go-hoot-hoot-hooray-wall-hanging-pattern.html. The GO! Owl Embroidery digitized files are on sale for the month of June and can be found here: http://www.accuquilt.com/shop/go-owl-embroidery-by-v-stitch-designs.html

You can read more about my four owl designs on the AccuQuilt Blog, where I recently did a guest post...and be sure to return tomorrow when I will share one more of my GO! Owl creations...