Australian_Homespun_2016_07_

right sides together. Work a line of

running stitch^3 ⁄ 1616 in from the raw edge

through both layers. Flip the strip

over and needleturn appliqué the

other edge, sweeping under^3 ⁄ 1616 in as

you go, meaning that both raw edges

are now underneath a neatly

appliquéd^1 ⁄ 4 in-wide stem. Don’t

worry about the raw edges of the

stem ends as they will be covered

by leaves or calyxes.

9

To prepare the fabric shapes for

the appliqué, place the freezer-

paper shapes on the right side of the

selected fabrics, shiny side down and

fuse them in place lightly with an iron.

If there is more than one shape on

a fabric, leave at least^1 ⁄ 2 in between

them. Draw around the templates

with a fabric-marking pen or pencil

and cut them out a scant^1 ⁄ 4 in by eye

outside the edge of the template.

Gently peel the freezer-paper shapes

from the fabrics. Trace around

repeated shapes the required number

of times for the design – freezer paper

can be re-used a number of times

before it loses its stickiness.

10

Beginning with the fabric

shapes that lie under other

ones, pin or glue the shapes in place

and needleturn appliqué the leaves,

fl owers, calyxes, bird body, bird

wing and pear on the design. To

do this, sweep the seam allowance

under with the needle a little at

a time until the drawn line is just

hidden, fi nger press it or hold it in

place with your thumb as you stitch

the shape in place as invisibly as

possible using thread to match the

fabric being appliquéd. Refer to

Diagram 2. For outside points, stitch

to the top of the point, trim the

excess seam allowance slightly and

manipulate it under at the other side,

then give the thread a small tug to

sharpen the point. Clip the seam

allowance of inside points and

appliqué into the corner, secure the

point and appliqué out again. Clip

the seam allowance of concave

curves to allow the fabric to lie fl at

on the background.

11

When the appliqué is complete,

backstitch the fl ower stamens

in mustard, the bird tail and crest

feathers in tan and the pear stem

and leaves in mid-green embroidery

thread. Satin stitch the partridge’s

beak in red and backstitch its legs

in dark brown thread.

12

Sew a red seed bead to the

end of each fl ower stamen

and a dark green seed bead to the

ends of the tail and crest feather

swirls. Finally, sew the bead in place

for the partridge’s eye. Linda used

a small metallic fl ower bead for the

eyes, but a shiny round black bead

would be fi ne too as would a small

circle of satin stitch.

13

Keeping the design centred,

trim the Partridge block to

measure 12in high by 11^1 ⁄ 4 in wide,

raw edge to raw edge.

Turtle Doves block

14

Begin by appliquéing two

green bias strips in place to

form the heart, folding under the raw

ends at the top and bottom corners

to make it look continuous with no

raw edges showing. Refer to Step 8

for the methods.

15

For the round berries, lay the

prepared template for the small

circle on the wrong side of the red

and yellow fabrics and draw around

them the required number of times,

leaving about 1in between them. Cut

them out by eye a generous^1 ⁄ 4 in

outside the traced lines.

16

Beginning with a large knot

on the right side of the fabric,

sew a line of running stitch around

the edge of a fabric circle in the

middle of the seam allowance – leave

the thread attached. Place the

cardboard template in the centre of

the circle on the wrong side and pull

up the thread to gather the seam

allowance over to the back evenly

and fi rmly, as shown in Diagram 3.

Diagram 2

Diagram 3

Turtle Doves block

04

PROJECT