Feb 2022 - Appliqué Heart Wall Banner

Yes, you're right this is not a "Heart", but I wanted to share the

completed Parrot wall banner that I explained in the last post.  It is

 hanging near the front door where I will rotate the series of wall

banners I'm going to make... one for each month.

My quilter friend Julie shared information about this neat

hanging apparatus which was the perfect solution.  The rod can

extend so if I make a banner a little wider or narrower,  it will still 

fit on this narrow wall space... 

Once again I spread out on the kitchen counter.  My

new cutting mat is 2 x 3 feet which gives me lots of space

to work.

I usually work out my design on my computer which is attached

to a 27" monitor so I have a lot of area to move things around

too determine the proper placement.  I often take photos of the

design elements (pretty basic here) so I can move the individual

shapes around.

Then it's time to  determine the size of the piece, 

calculate the amount of yardage needed for all color areas and head

to the local fabric store.  This is my color palette. 

I selected a wild background, don't you think?  Of course I wanted

to work in shades of red for the hearts.  So I cut out a variety

of sizes and fused them to the background piece of fabric. 

Then I like to use the  blanket stitch to secure the appliqué shapes.

I selected a dark burgundy red thread for the hearts

The process is referred to as raw edge applique, which means

you don't have to turn under any edges.

Then after layering the background fabric (with appliqué shapes attached),

on top of the batting material, I placed all that on the wrong side

of the backing material. 

Next I quilted all 3 layers together with a black thread.

(remember to click on any photo for more detail)

Then the edges of the background fabric are folded around to the front 

of the piece to create the edging border.

FYI I selected this "apple" fabric for the backing, not because

they looked anything like hearts, but the color was just

right, and it's always all about the color.   And it would only

look like random shades of reds & black in the 1/2" border.

(See photo above).

Don's reaction "wild".   Speaking of wild,

I'm already thinking about the next project... a wildflower

banner, maybe featuring one of my favorites, the Tiger Lily...

Stay tuned!!!