Magnificent Machine Embroidery

It's a quiet evening and has been a very productive day. I managed to get in a good workout at the gym, finished a huge design deadline, cleaned off the top of my desk, completed a long list of household chores, prepared materials for a special gift, got in a 5.25 mile training walk, and I have been machine appliquéing a large customer project for the last hour or so. I'm finally at a good stopping point...so, I thought I would tackle another item on my to-do list - a quick blog post...before heading to my stitching nest to work on my Komen 3-Day exclusive fundraising design (November will be here before we know it, so I better get my hiney in gear and get it finished up!).

Tonight, I thought I would share two more of my AccuQuilt pattern designs/samples that I recently completed. Both projects were designed around some beautiful machine embroidered blocks. The machine embroidery was digitized by V-Stitch Designs to coordinate specifically with AccuQuilt cutting dies. You can find these V-Stitch machine embroidery design sets (and many more) on the AccuQuilt website or visit the V-Stitch Designs Etsy shop.

First, let's take a look at the GO! Fleur De Fancy Wall Hanging. This bright and bold wall hanging uses the the GO! Fleur De Lis cutting die in combination with the GO! Fleur De Lis Appliqué Machine Embroidery Design Set by V-Stitch Designs. The embroidered blocks are then set with sashing strips, borders, and cornerstones. Let your embroidery machine appliqué and embellish the Fleur De Lis blocks...and then use the simple pattern piecing to complete an impressive wall hanging. For a limited time, you can download the pattern for free by visiting:
http://www.accuquilt.com/shop/go-fleur-de-fancy-wall-hanging-pattern.html

The second pattern is for the GO! Blooming Bunch Wall Hanging - it features the GO! Flower Bunch cutting die and the GO! Flower Bunch Appliqué Machine Embroidery Design Set by V-Stitch Designs. Beautifully embellished flower blocks are framed with strips, blocks, and borders. This wall hanging could be done with a variety of colors to match your decor...and is perfect to bring a little sunshine to even the darkest room! ...and you can also download this pattern for free (for a limited time) by visiting:

http://www.accuquilt.com/shop/go-blooming-bunch-wall-hanging-pattern.html

I also finished up a special quilt tutorial for the AccuQuilt blog over the weekend...and I will be sure to post here when it is available. Plus, over the last couple weeks, I have been working on a four Autumn/Halloween patterns for AccuQuilt...and I am starting the samples in a few days...so look for those in the future too! Creativity is overflowing in my studio and I will be back real soon to share more new projects...

Flower Bunch Bow-quet

Hello friends! Today I am giving you all the scoop on one of my latest designs for AccuQuilt - the GO! Flower Bunch Bow-quet Table Topper. This bright and cheerful table topper was a joy to work on - and I just love how the solid color fabrics give it a vintage look! If you are new to appliqué, this is great project for you, as the varying shapes will give you a chance to improve/perfect your skills - and appliqué enthusiasts will enjoy the assortment of detailed motifs. I designed this project around two of AccuQuilt's new dies: GO! Flower Bunch (55332) and GO! Bow-2 1/2", 3 1/2", 4 1/2" (55341)...and it incorporates several basic die favorites: GO! Tumbler-3 1/2", GO! Square-3 1/2", GO Square-8 1/2", and GO! Strip Cutter-2 1/2". Choose your favorite fabric colors to give this project your own twist...and the adventurous may even want to add fabric prints. Having the ability to apply fusible web to your appliqué shape fabrics before running them through your fabric cutter gets you sewing in no time, making this project easy to complete in a weekend.

For a limited time, you can download this pattern for FREE on the fresh, new AccuQuilt website - simply visit: http://www.accuquilt.com/shop/go-flower-bunch-bow-quet-table-topper-pattern.html

Photo courtesy of AccuQuilt

Photo courtesy of AccuQuilt

I hope this project has brightened your day and you will try making a Flower Bunch Bow-quet project of your very own...and if you do, I would LOVE to see your take on it...

For now, I am off to pin baste a large quilt...and work on a new custom floral appliqué project for a customer...then I will be in my stitching nest this evening (following a training walk)...
Enjoy your Saturday!

Scrap Basket Bouquet

Lately, I have been sewing/quilting daily...and I always save my fabric scraps...big or small...I just know that one day I will find the perfect use for each and every one of them (wishful thinking?). I have two large bins under my cutting table -  one for fabric scraps and one for batting/interfacing/fusibles...and they have finally both reached full (well, actually, overflowing) status. Over the weekend, I decided to dive into the scrap bin and pull out some fun bright colors for a flower bouquet wall hanging.

I had been itching to use two new AccuQuilt dies (both exclusive to JoAnn Fabric and Craft Stores)...GO! Flower Bunch and GO! Bow-2 1/2", 3 1/2", 4 1/2". I knew I wanted to make a bouquet of flowers...and the bow seemed perfect to tie them all together! I started by cutting an assortment of flowers and stems (I also utilized the GO! Simple Shapes by Edyta Sitar die for circles and stems) and laying them out on my cutting table. I decided I would use an 18" x 18" square of white fabric for my background and after fusing the bouquet in place, I found the 4 1/2" bow was the best size for my flower bunch. Once everything was machine appliquéd in place, I added several borders cut with my AccuQuilt GO! Strip Cutter dies (1", 1 1/2", 2 1/2"). I added a hanging sleeve and  my label to the back when binding. This cheerful wall hanging measures 25" x 25"...and I actually sold it before it was even completed (yay!). I am excited to experiment with more flower bouquet wall hangings and quilts - and, of course, I will share them here as my work progresses...

I also *have to* share the samples I made for AccuQuilt several months ago using the bow and flower bunch test dies....
Here is GO! Flower Ribbon Wall Hanging - the free pattern that comes with the GO! Flower Bunch die. This wall hanging is 42" x 42" and also uses the GO! Round Flower and GO! Rose of Sharon dies. We all know how much I love to do appliqué, so it was a real treat to make this sample quilt for them...

....and here is the GO! Festive Bow Table Runner (this is the free pattern that accompanies the GO! Bow-2 1/2", 3 1/2", 4 1/2" die) . GO! 4 1/2" Squares  were used for the packages and the GO! Bow-4 1/2" was used to top the presents. I can see these made up in different colors for assorted special occasions...I also think the bow would be fun to use in a ribbon border for a quilt. This table runner works up quickly and easily and measures 15" x 36"...a very fun afternoon project!

I hope my flower bouquet brightened your day...and that you enjoyed seeing more of my sample work for AccuQuilt. My sewing machine has been keeping me busy...and of course, that keeps me happy!