PennyQuilts

This is the strippy baskets and stars top. I'm still looking for the Fons & Porter magazine issues from which I got this pattern. It was a three part series - I don't know how I could misplace it so fast!

The centre of Folk Art Finery by the Rabbit Factory, the border has an appliqued swag - these are the colours I'll be doing the border - (the website is www.rabbitfactory.com but the site is being changed, so the patterns aren't available to view right now).

And a close up of one the blocks. As mentioned in an earlier post, this was my first attempt at Beth Ferrier's method of freezer paper invisible machine applique. Although, you can see my applique is not at all invisible!! I did the first block using monofilament thread, but I felt with the black background it needed something more, so I wound up using black thread and buttonhole stitch. I sure hope that the finished edges will hold up in the wash.

Yesterday I was working on many many fusible applique blocks for another quilt top. More about this tomorrow when I hopefully will have these sewn down.




Threading a needle

A friend called last night - someone who doesn't sew often - and she was so upset that she had spent three times as long threading her machine needle as doing the little job she had set out to do. Here are some tricks for needle threading that many of us might know, but some might not -
- place a white scrap of paper behind the needle - makes the hole much easier to see
- freshly cut the end of the thread after every attempt at threading the needle
- this sounds icky, but works, lick your finger, then wet the needle with your finger
- get your kids or grandkids to do the job for you!