Here it is, the tips and tricks post #1. I am still reeling from this past weekend with Elly Siekiewicz, so much so that I actually had to write down my thoughts and ideas in order to make some sense of what I should post with which information. (Just re-reading that sentence makes my mind twitter!)
The first part of the vase block we worked on were the two vines/branches reaching out to each side of the block and supporting the leaves. The instruction booklet we received before class had a supply list that included bias strips for this part of the block. I, being a bit lazy, didn't cut them ahead of time. And boy was I glad that I hadn't!
The shop had a whole rack of Hanna hand dyed ribbon in various sizes that Elly was thrilled to see, especially because of the price. So, she showed us how to use ribbon to make the stems instead of cotton fabric cut into bias strips.
I am now a HUGE fan of this method and love how my two branches turned out. I found that the ribbon added much more depth, texture, and life-like dimension to the stems. It's wonderful to move the block around in the light and see how the ribbon twinkles ever so slightly as if the sun was glinting off of a real stem!
It was so amazing to see how accurate I could be with something so fine and delicate. It was a little difficult to not go cross-eyed making sure the needle landed between the exact right to threads on the ribbon fold to ensure that it laid correctly when I was finished, but I managed to get the job done.
When I finally put my block back down on the table and looked at it from a distance (as opposed to 4" from my nose), I was very impressed with my stitches. I think, with very close inspection I found three of my stitches showing. SO MUCH BETTER than cotton bias!
Another attractive attribute to hand dyed ribbon is that you can often find just the right shades to match the rest of your fabrics, threads, flosses, and tie them all together. The ribbon I used is 3/4" wide. Hanna hand dyed ribbons come in many widths right up to 4" (I believe). AND they are all colourfast! That's right, they are guaranteed not to run or bleed.
Here's to expanding the little box I have put my applique techniques into and jumping on the "it's a big world out there" bandwagon!
3 comments:
Very cool Heather. I can't wait to see your block and pick your brain on the ribbon technique!!
Wow, ribbon stems. Wonderful tip. Thanks for sharing. Can't wait to see your blocks.
ribbon? never would have thought to try it but I will sometime. Thanks.
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