Folk Art Quilted Traditions Blog Hop

Today is my turn to present a project for Suzy Webster's blog hop, made with a pattern from her awe inspiring and fabulous book "Folk Art Quilted Traditions".

Folk Art Quilted Traditions Table Topper

When I first saw the cover of Suzy's book, I got so excited!  I love Folk Art and I love color!  The patterns and projects inside are beautiful and inspiring.  Suzy created them as a celebration of her Hungarian heritage.  They also remind me of Scandinavian designs, like you would see in Norwegian rosemaling.   

There are projects here of every size, so it's a snap to find one you love.  You can even do what I did and make something great using just one block of the twelve block designs.  (Mine is block pattern number 5).  

Suzy is an Island Batik Ambassador and batiks are the perfect fabrics to use for these patterns.  So that's what I used, with a birch bark fabric background.

Suzy includes full instructions on how to create the appliques.  If you know me, then you can probably guess how I created mine.  :)  I used the "Crafted Applique" technique for no-fray, washable appliques.  After layering the quilt sandwich, I used a simple straight stitch and sewed around the appliques and then echo stitched around the outside of each flower.  This way, part of the quilting was already done.
 

Folk art motif ironed on and ready to sew!

 

Stitching on the appliques

Sewing on the last flower - the appliques held up really great.

Getting ready to quilt the background fabric.

For the quilting, I used a Frixion pen to draw a half inch diagonal grid on the background fabric. The lines disappear when heated with the iron.  (Use these pens with caution, because they sometimes take the dye out of dark fabrics.)

Ta Da!

Folk Art Quilted Traditions Table Topper

Blog Hop Schedule

I've been away from home for more than a week and have a lot of blog hopping and catching up to do!  (I still need to reply / reciprocate to the people who commented on my last post.)  

Suzy had a lot of of great presenters lined up and I don't want to miss a single one.  Here is the blog hop schedule below:

Monday, October 10

Suzy Webster - http://websterquilt.blogspot.com/

Connie Kresin Campbell - http://www.conniekresin.com/

Jennifer Eubank - https://jennifersewing.wordpress.com/

Tuesday, October 11

Bea Lee - http://www.beaquilter.com/

Sally Johnson - http://sallysquiltingcorner.blogspot.com/

Suzy Webster - http://websterquilt.blogspot.com/

Wednesday, October 12

Jessica Cadwell - http://www.desertbloomquilting.com/blog/

Anna Branch - http://arkangelcreations.blogspot.com/

Vicki in MN - http://knitbug2.blogspot.com/

Thursday, October 13

Pamela Boatright - http://pamelaquilts.blogspot.com/

Teri Lucas - http://generationqmagazine.com/

Maryellen McAuliffe - http://teachpany.blogspot.com/

Friday October 14

Adele Mogavero - http://adelemogavero.com/

Joan Kawano - http://moosestashquilting.blogspot.com/

Lara Buccella - http://www.buzzinbumble.com/

Saturday October 15 - Final Wrap-up

Suzy Webster - http://websterquilt.blogspot.com/ 

The Giveaway Prize

Don't forget to enter to have a chance to win your own copy of Folk Art Quilted Traditions, by Suzy Webster, along with some Island Batik fabrics!  The giveaway ends on Saturday, October 15th.  Just fill out the comment form below.

A Rafflecopter Giveaway

Thanks for visiting, because...

(You can click on the pup and 
she'll take you to the comment form.)

Week Four & A New Giveaway! Crafted Appliqué: New Possibilities Blog Hop

What a fun three weeks this has been visiting blogging friends in the Crafted Appliqué: New Possibilities Blog Hop.  I've been so thrilled that so many of you have been following along!  We've seen some of the most wonderful, creative people in action!  If you are just now joining in, it's well worth hopping around to see what you missed.

Today kicks off week four and starts with Susie over at Susie's Sunroom.  Wow does she have a beautiful quilt to show you and she's sweetened her book giveaway with a second giveaway of something delightful that she made for one lucky commenter!  We've got five more wonderful quilters lined up this week, so I hope you'll pay a visit to each and every one!  

The blog hop calendar is shown at the end of this post.  You'll have a chance to win a free copy of "Crafted Appliqué: New Possibilities" at every stop too!  Plus, I'm launching another new giveaway today here on BuzzinBumble.  I'll tell you about that in just a bit.  

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The Walking Tree

It's time to show you another one of the projects from my book Crafted Appliqué: New Possibilities.  This week's project was something I designed to use as the centerpiece of a sampler quilt that I intend to make for my daughter Bean & her husband Gonzo.  It would also make a beautiful quilt of it's own and all those leaves make it perfect for a family tree or a signature quilt too.  
The name comes from C.S. Lewis' The Chronicles of Narnia, a favorite series of books for our family.  I found the reference in the book The Magician's Nephew:

“…the deepest, wildest voice they had ever heard was saying: ‘Narnia, Narnia, Narnia awake.  Love.  Think.  Speak.  Be walking trees.  Be talking beasts.  Be divine waters.’  It was of course the lion’s voice…” 

The Walking Tree, by Lara Buccella / Quilted by Julie Degrave

I want to tell you all about what my friend Julie did.  We met each other back when I was looking for someone special who could custom quilt A Quilt for a Hero - a project I had made for Homes For Our Troops.  I found her business, Pines and Needles Quilting, through a local quilt shop.  She goes by @sewjul on Instagram if you'd like to see some really fabulous quilting.

It was not long after I learned that the AQS wanted to take on my book that I asked Julie if she could quilt The Walking Tree for me.  But... there also was not much time left before the submission deadline.  She always has a packed schedule, but she said yes!  Not only that, but she also asked if I had any quilts she could bind for me, to help me out.  :o   She then surprised me by making beautiful, embroidered labels for my book projects.  And... back then I was crappy at hand sewing bindings.  But Julie sat me down and showed me how she does it, using Edyta Sitar's method.  I've been doing them her way ever since. Wasn't that just so wonderful of her to do all that?   :)  So I hope you read this Julie, because I'm shouting out a really Big Thanks to you!  

Close up of the quilting Julie Degrave did for The Walking Tree

For The Walking Tree, I wanted it to have a Narnian, dryad like quality, so I tried to arrange the leaves in a way that makes them look like they are dancing with the breeze.  I think Julie did a great job of continuing that feeling with her quilting!

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#craftedapplique

One of the things I want to do is encourage people to share projects they've made using the Crafted Appliqué method.  I'm a real newbie on Instagram and Facebook, and only beginning to figure out how to navigate those waters, so Heidi (Red Letter Quilts) started the hashtag #craftedapplique for me.  It will be a terrific way to be able to share and see what we make with the Crafted Appliqué method!

Another thing I hope to do soon is to put a permanent linky feature on the page tab for Crafted Appliqué. (Top right hand side of BuzzinBumble)  That way you all can link up projects you've made and also visit other people's links too.  I just have to figure out how best to do that.  

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Fancy Foot Farm

And speaking of visiting a blogger who has made something wonderful with the Crafted Appliqué Method, I don't want you all to miss one of my favorite people, Colleen, who blogs at Fancy Foot Farm!  Colleen has been making beautiful blocks as she follows along with the Splendid Sampler Quilt Along.  I hope you'll hop over and see her work.  She's done her blocks with such lovely embroidered, crocheted, and appliqued touches.  I'm only going to give you a tiny sneak peek of her Sunday Best appliqued bunny block, but it's adorable.  She fussy cut this flower for her bunny and look how great it worked using Crafted Appliqué:

Photo by Colleen Kobata

Colleen is also offering a copy of Crafted Appliqué: New Possibilities as another giveaway prize, so be sure to check out her Splendid Sampler post!

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A Fun New Giveaway!

This week, I'm giving away a fat eighth bundle of 22 Basic Grey Moda Grunge colors, from one of my favorite places to shop for fabric on Etsy: WinterCreekCloth!  Dana, the owner, has a most unusual shop!  She curates custom bundles of quilt shop quality fabrics, most often by color, and shopping there is a quilter's dream!  This bundle would be great for appliqué projects too!

Moda Basic Grey Grunge fabrics - photo credit Winter Creek Cloth

1.  To enter for a chance to win, simply leave a comment on this post.  If you'd like to, you could tell me whether you prefer to piece with scrappy fabrics or with coordinated collections.  

 
2.  BuzzinBumble followers, both new and old, can have a second chance to win by leaving a second comment and letting me know how they follow me.  (If we already chat back and forth a lot and you follow me, just say "Hi Lara!" in your second comment... I don't want to make you jump through more hoops.) 

Everyone is welcome to enter the giveaway contest and I'm willing to ship internationally.

All the giveaways here on BuzzinBumble will run right up until the end of the Crafted Appliqué: New Possibilities Blog Hop.  Winners will be randomly drawn on June 4th and I'll announcing all the winners during the final post of the hop on June 5th.  If you'd like to see the first three giveaway contests, there is still time to enter!

Just check here:

Week One - Crafted Appliqué: New Possibilities Blog Hop - Giveaways Galore!

and here:
Week Two - Sew Mama Sew Free Pattern, Sun Print Bundle & Crafted Appliqué Giveaway  

and here:
Week Three - Crafted Appliqué: New Possibilities - Kona Cotton Color Card Giveaway


*Please note*- If you are a no-reply blogger, remember to leave your e-mail address so that I will have a way to contact you if you win. 

Don't forget to visit the Crafted Applique Blog Hop Stops for a chance to win a copy of my book too!   

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Can't Wait? 

What if you can't wait that long and would like your own copy of "Crafted Appliqué" now?  There is no need to wait to see if you win one of the book giveaways.  If you do win, but have already purchased the book, I will gladly reimburse the cost of the book instead.  In the meantime, you can purchase a signed copy here on BuzzinBumble, or buy one from the AQS shop, or through Amazon.  (Amazon constantly sells out.)

Below is the Blog Hop Schedule.  All the blog titles are live links, which I will keep updating as participants post their reviews.

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Crafted Appliqué: New Possibilities Blog Hop
May 1^st to June 5^th 2016

Sun	Mon	Tues	Wed	Thu	Fri	Sat
1 Lara Buccella BuzzinBumble   Introduce Tour	2 Valerie Smith Pumpkin Patch Quilter	3 Dana Gaffney Stormy Days	4 Lorna McMahon Sew Fresh Quilts	5 Mary Schuberg Needled Mom	6 Heidi Kuntz Red Letter Quilts	7 Alycia Carmin Alycia Quilts
8 Amy DeCesare Amy Made That	9 Sherri McConnell A Quilting Life	10 Lara Buccella Sew Mama Sew Guest Post	11 Christina Cameli A Few Scraps	12 Melissa Corry Happy Quilting	13 Sarah Craig Confessions of a Fabric Addict	14 Soma Acharya Whims & Fancies
15 Valerie Reynolds Val’s Quilting Studio	16 Angela Pingel Cut to Pieces	17 Sandra Walker Musings of a Menopausal Melon	18 Cheryl Brickey Meadow Mist Designs	19 Judy Murphy Quilt Paradigm	20 Yvonne Fuchs Quilting Jetgirl	21 Cindy Pieters Stitchin’ at Home
22 Susie Zlogar Susie’s Sunroom	23 Connie Campbell Freemotion by the River	24 Ruth Bourke Charly & Ben’s Crafty Corner	25 Kaja Zieslar Sew Slowly	26 Ann Brooks Fret Not Yourself	27 Cynthia Brunz Quilting is More Fun Than Housework	28 Holiday
29 Holiday	30 Holiday	31 Jenn Trott-Zisserson Quarter Inch from the Edge	1 Paulette Horn The Way I Sew It	2 Sandra Jansen Studio Sew of Course	3 Christine Sherman Triangles & Squares	4 Quilt Shop Gal
5 Lara Buccella BuzzinBumble Giveaway Winners Announced!

Usually, I make it a goal to reply to and reciprocate all comments.  I really love it when you take the time to stop and chat.  This month, with the Blog Hop and multiple giveaways in progress, I hope you will understand if I don't manage to keep up.  


You can click on the pup to leave a comment.  Best of luck!