quiltlady1941

I have done a little appliqué and I mean little.. So I am a beginner for sure. I have 50 plates sewn for my Dresden plate quilt..After thinking about trying to appliqué all of them on a backing without making blocks I decided to do them on 14.5 blocks.
I thought that would be easy doing a blanket stitch all around each plate, how hard could that be! Well I am finding out that I am not very good at doing a blanket stitch. The problem I am having is trying to figure out were the stitch is going to end up when I turn to go around the points. I can be going along pretty good and then when I turn to go the other way, the stitching ends up in background..Also were is the straight stitch suppose to be, on the edge of the blade or right up to the edge of the blade on the background fabric.

The black thread is pretty but it shows up all my mistakes. So all of this will be ripped out.. I tried the invisible thread but my machine does not like it and would break the thread all the time. Also is invisible thread strong and good after many washings..I never use this kind of thread before. Maybe I need to go to JoAnns and see what kind they have and maybe a different kind would work in my machine..just a thought..
I did starch the background fabric really good and the plate too so it is real flat and all lays down good.Then I got some school glue in the sticks and used that to hold everything in place. I haven't decided on what the center color will be but was thinking of all different color fabric as this is so scrappy...Also could I just do a straight stitch all around the blades, maybe in white thread, do you think that would look ok..

I am running by the seat of my pants on this quilt..trying to lean how to do things as I go along, I have watched a lot of videos and everything looked pretty easy, till I tried to do it..Then it was a rude awakening for me..So if any one could give me a little advice on what to do with this quilt, that would be great.

Any color thread will show up as there are so many different colors of blades. So what color thread would you use. Straight stitch or Blanket stitch? I think I will go have a cup of coffee and a biscuit before I go totally crazy.. Thanks so much..

sewingitalltogether

I'm doing a dresden plate like you. Although I love hand applique and the blanket stitch, I'm going to be machine sewing the Dresden plates on the background. I'm using the invisible thread and a small zig zag stitch. Edyta Sitar does this with her applique. Otherwise, I don't think I'd ever get done. How many do you have done? Is it too late to change your technique?

Doggramma

In my opinion...I'd go with the straight stitching in black and try to keep a consistent distance from the edge. Pretty block!

Jane Quilter

The tips of the light yellows look good. What is that extra loop at the point of the other plates? Try to get rid of that. Otherwise, I think it is good for hand blanket stitch. FYI, I leave the straight stitch laying on the background not the plate. Try some samples to test your machine/thread combinations to see what you like best. Machine applique is tricky too and it takes practice to get points, dents, outer curves, inner curves, 90 degree turns just right. There are lots of you tube videos to learn from. But you still have to pick the color & thread that you like. And don't forget to practice, practice, practice.

quiltlady1941

This is the first block that I have sewed to the background fabric, so I am up for any kind of change. This one will be ripped out as I don't like all the mistakes in it.. Maybe tomorrow I will go to Jo Anns and see if I can get some different invisible thread..

I could try the straight stitch like Doggramma said to try.. Thanks..

TexasSunshine

I have some dresden plates I am doing for myself, have put them aside to finish other projects. I plan to sew the plate to the block by sewing a quarter inch or so on the inside of each blade. I will probably use a glue stick to lightly glue each plate down.

RedGarnet222

It would seem to me that a more neutral thread would not show up as much. Like a white or cream like your background fabric. The invisible thread will be a poly blend and not show but is not a cotton which would wear better on these blocks. Remember you could use a zig zag in place of the outline stitch too. Just use a separate piece of fabric to get your stitch length and width right before beginning the real blocks.

yngldy

I made this one(full quilt show on cover farther down page):
http://www.mccallsquilting.com/mccal...r_October_2011

I appliqued the edges down. (Why, I don't know!) She just quilted between wedges and around top edge. As long as the triangle edges were turned, it should be ok to do.

Prism99

There are important tips you need to understand when using invisible thread. I think you should give that another try, especially since any mistakes you make will not be noticeable.

First off, which brand and type of invisible thread did you try? My personal favorite is YLI nylon monofilament because it is the most invisible. However, many people prefer a polyester invisible thread (such as Superior's mono-poly). Many off-brands of invisible thread do not work well for invisible machine applique.


Both nylon and polyester invisible threads stretch more than regular cotton thread. Because of this, how you wind your bobbin and how you set your machine tension are very important. When winding a bobbin you want to wind very slowly. This helps prevent the thread from stretching as it is loaded onto the bobbin. You also want to wind the bobbin only 3/4ths full, especially if your bobbin is made from plastic (metal bobbins can hold a little more, but you still want to underfill). Overfilling the bobbin (especially a plastic bobbin) with nylon or polyester can cause the bobbin to distort.

You definitely want to lower the upper tension when working with invisible thread. Lower it a *lot* if using nylon thread. Polyester doesn't stretch quite as much, so you don't have to lower the tension as much as nylon, but you still need to make the tension less than for cotton thread.

You also may need to reduce bobbin tension. How you do this depends on whether you have a drop-in type bobbin or the other kind. But I would try reducing just the top tension first.

Good brands of both nylon monofilament and polyester thread are strong and will last just fine through as many washings as cotton thread. Quality is important in invisible thread, so I recommend sticking with YLI or Superior.

quiltlady1941

[QUOTE=Jane Quilter;7630465]The tips of the light yellows look good. What is that extra loop at the point of the other plates?

LOL that is where I tried to turn the machine to stitch the other way down..and ended up with a extra stitch off onto the background fabric.. I just can't seen to get the hang of when to turn the machine. I leave the needle down .. this is machine stitched blanket stitch..not hand..

I think I will have to just stitch around with a straight stitch..because this looks bad..