This is the part where I went a little crazy with the Black and White themed apron I made recently for Tie One On. The previous posts can be found here and here.
I thought the apron was finished and I was really pleased with the result.
Then I decided the bottom section was a little too plain and black. I’ve been doing a little bit of free motion quilting recently and I still don’t feel as comfortable as I’d like to be when doing it. I thought maybe I’d use this black “canvas” to practice some more.
i switched my presser foot from the one on the right to the one on the left
this free-motion quilting foot is great
i had to unscrew and remove the entire foot
then i screwed the other one on
i thought it might be a good idea to use a scrap piece of fabric
to test-run this flower idea i had
so far so good
ugh
ugh-ly
i might need some more practice…
at least the petals sort of met in the middle this time
also, you’ll notice the freezer paper that i ironed on to the back
the freezer paper helped to give some bulk to the fabric
i thought maybe if i circled the center it might make the petals look like they meet up nicely
This is where i have a problem with my free-motion sewing. I love the way it looks when someone else does it. When I’m doing it however, I am way too critical and need things to line up too perfectly. I am getting better about just enjoying the end result and not worrying too much about the few stray stitches along the way. I do like the way it looks in the end, but I still have trouble letting myself go during the process.
So I thought I better just skip the FOURTH test run and dive in to the apron. I also told myself that no matter how bad it came out I wouldn’t use my seam ripper.
i ironed a big piece of freezer paper to the back of the apron bottom
i also grabbed my spray bottle which came in handy later
i sketched a flower chain with some chalk
just so i could have a general idea of where
the flowers should be placed
here it is after stitching
you can see that it doesn’t line up exactly
that’s ok
i like how it looks
i LIKE the imperfections
(those last three phrases are my new mantra)
this is how the freezer paper looks after stitching
it’s a little easier to see the stiches here
you can also see how i got about two flowers in
when my bobbin thread ran out
seriously?
i was so nervous about the whole process
and it’s going along great
i’m repeating my mantra
that’s ok
i like how it looks
i LIKE the imperfections
then my bobbin thread ran out
so frustrating
it didn’t stop me though
i just tied the threads together on the back
when i was done
then i used my trusty spray bottle
i like that it’s orange
spraying the paper makes it a little easier to remove
peel away the pieces of the freezer paper from the back
gently use a tweezer if necessary
it helps to remove the smaller bits
this is the back and you can still see a few
pieces of the paper stuck in the centers
that’s ok
they’ll work their way out eventually
i also used the spray bottle to remove the chalk from the front
i must say i really do like how the flowers look
much better once the chalk lines were removed
now it doesn’t look so plain right?
i can’t wait to wear this apron
i had no idea what it would look like when i started
but i love how it turned out
now it’s time to tackle a quilt using this flower chain stitch
Wow, I love what you did to that skirt!! You are so talented 🙂
http://ladyonaroof.blogspot.com/
Love this!! your blog looks like so much fun… My sister and I just started a new blog and would LOVE for you to come over and be our newest {blog} friend and follower. (we are your newest follower) Come see us at
trulie-scrumptious.blogspot.com
Hope to see you soon!