I like to have a hand stitching project on hand (pun intended!) when I travel. I really enjoy embroidery and it makes a great traveling project. This dandelion was my project for a few trips and I am thrilled to finally have it done!
Several years ago, my mother-in-law was traveling to Europe and asked me what I wanted her to bring me. I told her I wanted quilting magazines. Probably not the answer she expected but she delivered. She brought me this German quilting magazine, Patchwork Professional, February 2014 issue.
Now, I took German in high school but have lost most of it. But I didn't need to be able to read it to enjoy the pictures! This project really caught my eye:
They painted the stem and leaves and dandelion was machine embroidery. I knew I didn't want to do either of those things, but the picture was fantastic inspiration. I created my own dandelion using this one as a guide.
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| I love the shadow in this picture. |
I stitched it using DMC Pearl Cotton #8 in White, Sunshine, Lime, Brown, and Dark Brown. I haven't found a good place locally for hand embroidery supplies. I bought the Pearl Cotton at the Earth Guild in Asheville. The background fabric is Kona Niagara and the binding is Kona Leprechaun. The backing is a fabric that my sister-in-law gave me a few years ago; the selvage is missing so I don't know what it is. It has these floral spheres that I just love.
I've had the embroidery done for a while but wasn't sure how to quilt it. I don't really do free motion so swirls around the floating seeds were not an option. I finally decided on straight lines. I was worried that the quilting would catch on the embroidery stitches but it didn't!
This quilt was on my list of projects needed for my PhD (Projects Half Done) with
Quilting Gail and was #10 on
my list of Q2 finish along goals.
What a fun project! I once taught a woman to make a quilt from a Danish book, just by using the pictures and making freezer paper templates. It worked! Amazing what pictures/diagrams can do to help those of us without the language of the book/magazine/pattern!
ReplyDeleteThis is a pretty little quilt! I agree with what Kathleen said. Once we've been quilting long enough, we can fill in the blanks just by looking at pictures. You did a great job on your little quilt!
ReplyDeleteThat's cute! I admire all the dandelion stitches. I have plenty in real life, but the stitched ones are prettier!
ReplyDeleteA beautiful finish! Do you have a place for it?
ReplyDeleteEmily, your dandelion quilt is wunderbar!
ReplyDeleteThis is really pretty Emily. It reminds me of taking walks with my daughter when she was a preschooler and she would want to blow on all of the dandelions (further populating our neighborhood with weeds - Haha). It is so pretty and lovely for spring. I think your choice of straight line quilting is perfect in keeping with the minimalistic feel to the quilt. Charming.
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