Applique, a story

A while back, I did a custom order for a nice lady. Her friend was from Hawaii, and she had recently visited there, and wanted to send one of my handmade purses as a gift. She wanted it to have Birds of Paradise on it. Often, I am bored with custom orders. I have so many images of things I want to make, that putting them aside to make what somebody else invisions seems traitorous to my own well being.

However, this custom order came to me much the way a good idea does, in the night. While I lay in bed waiting to sleep, I frequently dream up some wild and intricate imagery of appliques and designs I would love to create. One night, while falling asleep, I heard my phone buzz away. It was alerting me to the email requesting I make this bag. I read,  "custom order" and sighed... I do not mean to sound ungrateful for business, but it is hard to turn away money when you need it, so it is easy to commit to jobs you are not thrilled about.

Anyway, I read the entire email, and started thinking about Birds of Paradise. I knew immediately I would enjoy this custom.. I was glad this was a job I could be thrilled about! My mind began to take me back to warm shady days in the side yard of my mother's house. The birds of paradise poking their heads out over the pathway. The ferns and the caterpillar bush brushing against my tan skin as I run by. My mom smiling, standing next to the birds of paradise, with a hose in her hand. Pointed directly at me. I run. She chases. That is one of my fondest memories.

San Diego seems a lifetime away from the snowy winter of New York where I lived while making this bag. (Still do) and, if I had not had so much childhood inspiration, I do not know if I could have agreed to this. It is difficult for me to create well when I am not connected to what I am making. And it is hard to imagine a world of tropical plants when everything is covered in a blank sheet of white outside the window.  But, drawing on my memory, and the help of tropical images online, I was able to bring a little sunshine into my studio, and dream of lazy beachside days with warm sand and a good book.  Here it is:

Step 1

The Drawing

I start with a simple drawing that I can easily view as individual section of color. I have a large sketchbook that I use for this purpose.

Step 2

Puzzle pieces

Next, I place card stock under my original drawing, and trace over the lines of the page so that an imprint will be left in the cardstock. Then, I cut the shapes out so that I have a template to cut the fabric from.

Step 3

Cutting the shapes out of the appropriate fabric pieces

Before I cut the pieces of fabric, I apply a product to the back called "Wonder Under."

It is a fusible web that allows me to iron down all of the pieces onto the background fabric so that I can stitch it down without displacement. After the web is attached (It comes with instructions, you need an iron) I trace the pattern pieces onto the coordinating fabrics. I have to flip the pieces over before I trace, because I am tracing to the backside, and I dn't want to parts going the wrong way! I have done it wrong many times, and allowed myseelf to make a mirror image applique instead of my original vision!

Step 4:

Fabric placement

All of the individual pieces neep to be placed in their final spots. It takes some time to get this right, and there is alot of room for slight changes at this stage. Once it is all lined up, I double check every piece, because it is hard to fix after ironing! After I double checked, I TRIPLE check. Especially when working with small pieces. Then I iron it to the backing.

Step 5:

Begin Stitching

At this point, I look at the applique and find wich pieces are the furthest back. I like a continuity in my stitches, so if I have 2 lines of stitchhing that will overlap, I like to have the one that should naturally be behind, actually be behind! The two photos below show where my stitching begins, and how I will start and stop at every point so that the applique looks more fluid.

In the photo below, you can see where I am pointing with the pencil. This section will be stitched next, all by itself. Every time I begin and end a stitch, I pull the top thread through to the back (Or sew it through with a hand needle) and then tie it off, and further secure it with a dot of glue. (I do the tieing as I go along, and save all of the glueing for the end)

Step 6:

Finished! Once the applique is all sewn and glued, you can do what you like with it. I finished this one off as a large zippered pouch. That is a 12" zipper, so you can get an idea of the size of this bag. I did the image on both sides, so it can be shown off in whichever hand she is holding it. You can see from the front to the back there are slight variations in the design.

Up close of the stitching: