Ho Ho Ho!

I'm excited to be part of another great blog hop! These hops are really stretching my creativity and enhancing my skills. I'm trying techniques and ideas I've never attempted before. In the last hop, I did machine quilting for the first time. In this one, I'm tackling bias binding around a circle, but more on that later lol. First of all, a big thanks to Madame Samm and Carol for all their hard work and support.

My favorite Christmastime motif is the poinsettia, so I decided to design an appliqued piece with them. Now poinsettias always come in pots, right? So the title of my piece is "Potted Poinsettia Party." Poinsettias come in many colors, although red is primary one used in holiday décor. For fun, and the look it achieved, I included a non-traditional color in the project...pink!

I came up with my design and hand-appliqued the entire top with DMC floss. The appliques are all pieces of wool felt from my stash. The background is also wool felt, and the entire piece is backed and bound with cotton. Buttons were added for the stamen in the centers.

After finishing the applique, I attempting the bias binding. I cut 4" wide bias strips; joined them together (per this demonstration); folded the whole thing in half; stitched it on with a 1/2" seam; folded the binding back and hand-stitched it on the back of the piece. It wasn't too difficult and I think it came out well!

Anyway here's the finished piece. It measures 16".

The pattern for this project will be available soon in .pdf format in my etsy and craftsy shops.

For a giveaway, I took my same applique shapes, made them slightly smaller, and created a set of poinsettia gift tag/ornaments. They can be hung as ornaments or tied onto gifts! I'm giving away a set of three...just leave a comment and you'll be entered into the random drawing. I will also soon make the pattern for the ornaments available for free on my blog!

Be sure to visit the other creative people on today's list!

Quilt Doodle Doodles

life, quilts and a cat too

Elizabeth Coughlin Designs (that's me!)

Ridge Top Quilts

Editha

Stitchin By the Lake

Quilts, Fabric and Thread Tales

Sew Many Yarns

Kwilty Pleasures

Kris Loves Fabric

52 Quilts in 52 Weeks

Robin’s Fabric Nest