Become a Custom Applique Designer – Super Easy!
Custom applique quilts are easy to design – with a little inspration from simple line drawings.
When the standard patterns just don’t excite you, create your own. It’s as easy as flipping through a child’s coloring book or searching through clip art.
Custom appliqu?uilts are perfect gifts (and prized heirloom treasures) for celebrating the birth of a new baby. When the mom-to-be picks a less popular nursery theme, it can be hard to find a coordinating gift. That will make your custom appliqu?uilt extra special!
One woman chose a “Cat in the Hat” theme for her newborn’s room. She wanted something different and knew she’d have to custom sew and accessorize just about everything in the room.
She turned to an old coloring book for inspiration. The lines in children’s coloring books are generally simple, especially in coloring books for younger aged children.
For the crib quilt, she enlarged a coloring book page of the cat’s hat. Using the enlargement for a pattern, she appliqu?red stripes onto the hat which she had cut from white fabric.
With the help of iron-on adhesive, she added the striped hat to the center of her crib quilt top and stitched around it with a satin stitch. She added coordinating prints around the sides for the border and without much effort at all, had a custom appliqu?uilt. She used the same techniques to add characters from the famous Dr. Seuss story to bumper pads and to create a wall hanging for the nursery, too.
It’s easy to use the same procedure for creating a custom appliqu?rom clip art. Pick your theme, then start looking for appropriate art. The important thing is to look for simple lines.
Don’t forget that you can manipulate some clip art. Once you open a clip art file, see if you can select the image then choose “ungroup” from the edit command. If it will allow you to ungroup, you can make simple changes.
For instance, if you’re looking for a Santa riding a reindeer, but the one you’ve found has ornaments hanging from the reindeer’s antlers, ungrouping will probably allow you to actually delete those ornaments from the art design. Don’t forget to save your art once you’ve completed your editing!
Many quilters prefer to assemble the custom applique separately, then finish by stitching it to their quilt top or quilt block. Others, however, like to assemble piece by piece onto the quilt top or block by basting, then finishing the stitches with either an appliqu?titch, zig-zag or satin stitch.
You may also use fonts in the same way. It’s really easy to create a custom appliqu?uilt with a name or favorite hobby (“Cheer!” and “Play Ball!” are two that come to mind). Just type the words, making the letters the size you want. You may have to print the letters individually rather than on one sheet if you want them to be substantially large.
You can even make custom appliqu?with Greek letters for your favorite fraternity or sorority member by using a font like Symbols for the pattern.
Once you’ve printed the letters, they are your pattern for your custom appliqu?esign. Experiment with the positioning once they’re cut out. Have fun and create interest by overlapping the letters in some places.
You must observe copyright laws when using other media to help you design custom appliqu?atterns. Most art is under law in which if used for personal use only, there is no copyright infringement. If you try to sell your custom appliqu?rojects using the already published art, you are likely in violation of copyright law.
The same goes for fonts. There are many websites that allow viewers to download and use free fonts, but most of those include stipulations that the use of the fonts must be for personal – not commercial – use only.
About the Author
Penny Halgren http://www.TheQuiltingCoach.com Penny has been a quilter for more than 26 years. She enjoys exploring all aspects of quilting sharing her knowledge with all quilters.
Penny Haren’s Pieced Appliqué™ technique preview-QNN
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Egyptian Cotton Huck Towel with Applique Block Letter: Y, Fabric: Chocolate / White $13.99 AP036CW-Y Letter: Y, Fabric: Chocolate / White Features: -Available in several letters.-Fabric contents: 100pct Egyptian cotton.-Durable and functional.-Absorbent.-Machine washable.-Machine wash cold, tumble dry low, iron from backside.-Made in USA. Options: -Available in several fabrics…. |
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Egyptian Cotton Huck Towel with Applique Block Letter: Y, Fabric: Pink / Green $13.99 AP036PG-Y Letter: Y, Fabric: Pink / Green Features: -Available in several letters.-Fabric contents: 100pct Egyptian cotton.-Durable and functional.-Absorbent.-Machine washable.-Machine wash cold, tumble dry low, iron from backside.-Made in USA. Options: -Available in several fabrics…. |
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Egyptian Cotton Huck Towel with Applique Block Letter: Y, Fabric: Yellow / White $13.99 AP036YW-Y Letter: Y, Fabric: Yellow / White Features: -Available in several letters.-Fabric contents: 100pct Egyptian cotton.-Durable and functional.-Absorbent.-Machine washable.-Machine wash cold, tumble dry low, iron from backside.-Made in USA. Options: -Available in several fabrics…. |
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Precious Moments Baby Collection Jumbo Wall Stick Ups 25 Pieces From the Precious Moments Baby Collection. Dated 2000… I believe this is a discontinued and hard to find item. Adorable appliques with baby blocks, hearts and baby animals…. |
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This I Accomplish: Harriet Powers’ Bible Quilt and Other Pieces $9.99 The powerful quilts of Harriet Powers (1837-1910), a former Athens, Georgia slave, continue to capture our imagination today. Her two-known creations, the Bible Quilt and the Pictorial Quilt, have independently survived since stitched more than a century ago. Over the years, thousands of museum visitors to the Smithsonian National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C. and the Museum of Fi… |
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The Civil War Anniversary Quilts: 150 Blocks to Commemorate 150 Years $18.27 150 Quilt Blocks to Honor the People and Events that Shaped Our Nation The years 2011?2015 mark the 150th Anniversary of the U.S. Civil War. Through compelling diary entries, letters and 150 quilt blocks, author Rosemary Youngs helps convey the true stories of Civil War soldiers and nurses. Mixing traditional and original quilt blocks, The Civil War Anniversary Quilts includes clear instruction, f… |
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All-In-One Quilter’s Reference Tool Easy-To-Follow Charts, Tables and Illustrations, Yardage Requirements, Cutting Instructions, Setting Secrets, Choosing … Piecing Techniques, Number Conversions $9.98 Patchwork & Quilting. Find information fast in this convenient pocket-size reference guide. Easy-to-follow Charts, Tables & Illustrations. Yardage requirements. Cutting instructions. Setting Secrets. Choosing Supplies. Piecing Techniques. Number Conversions & More. Provides answers to quilters most frequently asked questions: How much fabric do I need? How many and what size blocks do I need to ma… |
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Women’s Lacoste Biarritz Multi Eye Watch. 2000531 $235.00 Casual watch, Japanese quartz movement, Multifunction featuring 24-hour, day and date subdials, Polished silver-tone hands with luminous accents and sweep seconds, Polished black hands mark subdials, Applied luminescent polished silver-tone Arabic twelve, Applied luminescent polished silver-tone baton markers, Black print and black/white Arabic numbers/indices mark subials, Square black hour marke… |
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Michigan Wolverines Block M Applique Banner Flag $23.89 2-Sided Applique and Embroidered Flag Made of heavyweight weather-resistant 420 denier nylon Oversize 44″ x 28″ Hang Tabs allow flags to be hung as a door or wall decoration… |
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Ohio State Buckeyes Applique Banner Flags from Party Animal $34.99 Proudly display your school spirit with this officially licensed Ohio State Buckeyes banner flag from Party Animal. The heavyweight weather-resistant 420 Denier nylon flag is emblazoned with a premium quality applique and embroidery. Tabs are also included for easy hanging…. |
