DWR for DGD's Wedding w/Hints
04-24-2015, 04:00 PM
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DWR for DGD's Wedding w/Hints
I have completed the quilt top for my DGD's wedding. I used the QuiltSmart fusible method and Eleanor Burns' Nouveau DWR. I found this method very easy to do. Here are some hints that I would like to share.
1. If you decide to sew strips together (as I did), be sure to press all seams in the same direction.
2. I used the QuiltSmart printed fusible (white). If you are using black background fabric (as I did), it is better to get the black light weight fusible (at Joanne's) and draw your own arcs. The white showed beneath the arcs and I had to die the fusible black.
3. When placing arcs (whether using Nouveau method or not), be sure to mark the height of the center of the arch on the background fabric. I did not do this and found that the my mellon shapes are not equally spaced from the seam line. NOTE: Using the Nouveau method you applique pieces onto a 11 1/2 inch square of background fabric. This means that there is a seam down the middle of each mellon shape.
4. Be careful of "directional" prints when placing arcs.
5. I did not sew the triangle pieces (at the corners of the block) on to the corners. Instead, I folded the square pieces and sewed them down (on the designated line) with the blanket stitch. I then trimmed the backing and back triangle to 1/4 of inch.
6. For my "border" pattern, I cut the small squares to size and sewed them to the fusible, turned them to the right side and appliqued them on.
7. I used a photograph of my DGD in profile to make the silhouette. I turned the photo into silhouette using Photoshop. I ironed the black fusible to my black fabric, marked the silhouettes and stitched them onto the background fabric using FMQ. NOTE: Fray Check is NOT invisible on black fabric. How do I know? I decided to fray check all the way around the silhouettes to ensure that they did not fray. When the fray check dried, you could see it on the black fabric. I had to do the silhouette over again. Lesson learned.
8. I marked the black fusible with white soap. I tried several methods, but soap worked the best.
If you decide to try this method (QuiltSmart and Nouveau) and want to ask me any questions, please fee free to do so. This method did not take me very long. Just a few weeks with many days of not sewing. This quilt is 96.5 x 119 long. The applique make it heavy. I am now working on the backing, which will be 5 strips of different fabrics with the silhouette sewn to the middle strip. (Doing this because I could not get enough of the backing fabric that I needed, which was 9 yards.)
My quilt has a lot of negative space. I am hoping that my long-arm quilter will make these negative spaces look beautiful. (I am not happy with this space in black.)
Good luck! Here are the photos of what I have done so far.
[ATTACH=CONFIG]517947[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]517948[/ATTACH]
1. If you decide to sew strips together (as I did), be sure to press all seams in the same direction.
2. I used the QuiltSmart printed fusible (white). If you are using black background fabric (as I did), it is better to get the black light weight fusible (at Joanne's) and draw your own arcs. The white showed beneath the arcs and I had to die the fusible black.
3. When placing arcs (whether using Nouveau method or not), be sure to mark the height of the center of the arch on the background fabric. I did not do this and found that the my mellon shapes are not equally spaced from the seam line. NOTE: Using the Nouveau method you applique pieces onto a 11 1/2 inch square of background fabric. This means that there is a seam down the middle of each mellon shape.
4. Be careful of "directional" prints when placing arcs.
5. I did not sew the triangle pieces (at the corners of the block) on to the corners. Instead, I folded the square pieces and sewed them down (on the designated line) with the blanket stitch. I then trimmed the backing and back triangle to 1/4 of inch.
6. For my "border" pattern, I cut the small squares to size and sewed them to the fusible, turned them to the right side and appliqued them on.
7. I used a photograph of my DGD in profile to make the silhouette. I turned the photo into silhouette using Photoshop. I ironed the black fusible to my black fabric, marked the silhouettes and stitched them onto the background fabric using FMQ. NOTE: Fray Check is NOT invisible on black fabric. How do I know? I decided to fray check all the way around the silhouettes to ensure that they did not fray. When the fray check dried, you could see it on the black fabric. I had to do the silhouette over again. Lesson learned.
8. I marked the black fusible with white soap. I tried several methods, but soap worked the best.
If you decide to try this method (QuiltSmart and Nouveau) and want to ask me any questions, please fee free to do so. This method did not take me very long. Just a few weeks with many days of not sewing. This quilt is 96.5 x 119 long. The applique make it heavy. I am now working on the backing, which will be 5 strips of different fabrics with the silhouette sewn to the middle strip. (Doing this because I could not get enough of the backing fabric that I needed, which was 9 yards.)
My quilt has a lot of negative space. I am hoping that my long-arm quilter will make these negative spaces look beautiful. (I am not happy with this space in black.)
Good luck! Here are the photos of what I have done so far.
[ATTACH=CONFIG]517947[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]517948[/ATTACH]
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