What to do with redwork and bluework.
 

I have some of both of these and I was wondering about this. Instead of hand embroidering them, could I use some stitches that i have on my Bernina 440. Would this work? I don't want to ruin them. Maybe someone could help. I could trace one of the squares on a piece of plain fabric and try it.

You mean you have preprinted patterns? I would think you could sew with your machine. Maybe trace a simple pattern on fabric and try that first?

Oh, I'm glad you asked this. At the Houston Quilt Show last fall I fell in love (or maybe it was just lust) with a beautiful quilt composed of several panels of "bluework" embroidery...lighthouses and a compass design...and bought the patterns, which are prints for tracing. As I checked out, the woman told me that the shop/booth owner had done the embroidery on her regular sewing machine using various decorative stitches. She said that the heavy outline stitches were a stretch stitch and some parts of the lighthouse outlines used blanket stitches adjusted to look like the edges of bricks. The panels were gorgeous and I had not realized they were not hand embroidered.

I have a Bernina 430 and plan to sit down and audition a bunch of different stitches to see how they would look as embroidery stitches. If you do try this with your Bernina, I'd love to correspond via PM or email on this subject.

AnitaSt

I have wondered this myself. There is an amazing CD available at my LQS for redwork snowmen. The cost is $40, as it is elsewhere on the Internet so I am sure the shop is not overpriced by any means. They also have panels of the designs for hand-embroidering. I may end up buying that panel as I don't have the $40 to use just once. And don't know anyone personally that I could 'borrow' the CD from. Thanks for the post AnitaSt, as now I know this is possible. Will be practicing the stretch stitch to see how this will work for the snowmen.