Oooh, another convert Elle - welcome to our AOTH thread Emerald.

Welcome Emerald!!! Another one we get to watch!

Losie...sounds like you are getting closer all the time!

Ducky...I'm sure you are exaggerating....I've seen your work and its always beautiful! Stop selling yourself short! (I know your little duck legs aren't long...:roll:)

Yeeeeaaaahhhh! #80!!!

Welcome to our zany group! Where are you going on vacation?

Emerald, welcome to our group. I'm glad I won't be the last one to start on this beautiful quilt. God willing, I will be ready to go on June 5th.

80????? We have 80???? Thats an amazing amount of beeeeuuuteeful quilts to watch grow!!

I haven't made any new blocks but have been watching all the photos posted .
I a in awe and thought about a quilt made of any one block made by all eighty people. Spectacular would be my guess. I am really excited about this quilt unlike any I've done before. It it really testing my skills. I've learned several new things already from you dear quilters and probably will learn more during the year we will be working together. I have decided to do a combination of techniques on my quilt--needle turn with freezer paper templates, raw edge with machine finish, embroidery and bobbin work (I watched a video last night on this and think I can do it) I also plan to QAYG using Deb's method of turning the backing over to make the sashing on the front. And that is about as far in advance as I can plan.

Thank you all for being so involved in this swap and for guiding and prompting me to join in the fun!

Lesley, I looked at your blocks they are beautiful. How do you get them so accurate? Sometimes when I needle turn, my pieces do not end up in the exact spot they need to be. I have even traced the pattern onto the background, but when it ends up, white tracing lines show. Looking at AOTH every piece needs to be perfectly placed so the embroidery can swirl correctly around the applique. Anyone have any ideas or tips. I'm not sure what to do, maybe I should just use fusible and machine. I don't know what method I will do.
Welcome Emerald

I can only tell you how I do it and its coming out accurate. I use freezer paper. I put the shiny side down to cut out the fabric about 2/8" bigger or so, Now my secret is to then turn the shiney side up and with the point of the iron, iron down the seam allowance. Now you have the perfect shape to put onto your fabric. I use the whitening pencil for under your nails to mark on to my black fabric and use my window so that I can see the pattern through the material. It can be taken off with an erazer if youshould make a mistake. Now to get my embroidery patterns on. I take my pattern and pin it on top of the completed piece. With a large needle I put holes through the paper and fabric to get an exact copy of the embroidery.



Elle

I just needleturn in my hand (I put some pics on pages 26/27 here to show you. I trace with white pencil on the background just as you did, then tuck the turning under with my needle. If you can still see your white tracing once you have pulled the stitch through, then you are tucking just a little bit too much under. If you have done that, reach with the point of you needle under the app. piece, and hook it into the seam allowance so that you can ease out a tiny fraction before making the stitch.

Some people find that easier to do (tuck under too much, than pull out a bit of seam allowance until it's lined up with the white tracing line) than to tuck under the right amount first time. My left thumb does all the controlling and holding in place.

When you look at my pics, I used contrasting thread that do show, but when stitching with matching thread, and taking only one or two threads from the app. piece, they seem to get lost and almost become invisible. Keep trying and practice will make perfect.

I did my learning of needleturn on the snowflake quilt that my avatar is part of . 42 blocks, 12in square, and I was averaging one a week, designing it, basting white to blue round all the stitching lines, and needleturning. (then just to top it off, I hand quilted round all those babies too - so three times round every snowflake, I must have been mad!)

Toomanyufs's,
I thought I was doing the applique the way Elle told me, but didn't realise that when she said to turn it over, she meant to take the freezer paper off the cut out fabric pattern piece and actually turn over just the freezer paper so the iron would actually stick the waxy side onto the fabric...DUH... - so the points on my first few blocks are not very good either. Thank goodness for those ladies being patient and helping me with all my many questions.