When someone recently purchased Simply Sunflowers pattern, I was asked: "Do I blanket stitch around every petal and leaf edge of the design?
My reply: "You need to blanket stitch around any RAW edge. If a petal goes underneath another so that part of the raw edge is covered, that section does not need to be blanket stitched. Blanket stitch only the part of the petal where the raw edge is visible."
Example: The petal indicated in the photo is only stitched on two sides. Other pieces cover the raw edges of this petal.
This is not only for Blanket Stitch on Simply Sunflowers, but any pattern that has overlapping applique pieces and any applique style even hand applique. This close-up is taken from The Rose quilt pattern that uses soft-edge applique.
Not specific to Simply Sunflowers like the question above, but one for machine applique in general: "What do you use under machine applique on a quilt?"
My Response: "It depends on how you are making your quilt. When you are adding applique to a quilt that is layered with batting and backing, then there is no need to add anything extra. However, if you are appliqueing on a quilt top only, then you need to add a stabilizer to prevent the background from puckering and bunching up."
More about Fabric stabilizers: These come in various weights and presentations. I prefer a continuous roll so I can cut off what I need to reduce waste. I always use a medium to light-weight stabilizer if I'm leaving it in. Sometimes I will use a wash-away stabilizer too.
Another question about Simply Sunflowers was: "Is it possible to increase the size of the quilt using more border material?"
My reply: "The short reply is Yes, this is possible. I always suggest using one of the fabrics already used within the quilt or one of similar toning".
However, a better reply, in my opinion, is: "Your quilt will look more proportional if you enlarge the design before adding additional borders".
The Simply Sunflower pattern has one size so enlarging the entire design may be difficult for some quilters to achieve..... this is one of the reasons I added a second size (larger of course) in the workshop. Using the larger version will definitely accommodate the extra border around the outside. For more about this workshop see: Sunflowers at Dawn
Another way could be to add more applique to balance the quilt, say something like what I have done for A Freshness of Spring quilt. I've added larger fabric squares to echo the center for the second border, then added strips of the border fabric again to length it. Part of the daisy applique has been added to these wider border strips and to lengthen it more, I've added another row of squares at the top and bottom.
If you have an applique question too, I'm happy to answer it. Drop me an email or add it to the comments below.
Resources Mentioned in the Blog:
- Simply Sunflower quilt pattern
- The Rose quilt pattern
- Sunflowers at Dawn online workshop
- A Freshness of Spring quilt pattern
