My Journey with Wool Appliqué
Posted by Kim Schaefer on Oct 17th 2018
My newest book Whimsical Wool Appliqué is finally here! I am so excited about this book; it was my first time working with wool and hand stitching, and I love it. It was actually very relaxing after I got my brain wrapped around the idea that my stitches didn’t have to be perfect. The book contains fifty 6-inch blocks in some of my favorite motifs. There are flowers, birds, butterflies, and bugs.
My inspiration for this book came from other quilters that have over the years shown me the beautiful work they have created with wool from designs from some of my previous books. It is so rewarding for me to see what other quilters create using my designs and fabric collections.
As a newbie to hand stitching, I kept to the most basic of stitches. It is my hope that experienced stitchers will enjoy the designs and embellish away.
One of my favorite projects from the book is Garden Whimsy. It is a 32 1/2" x 40 1/2" wall quilt combining wool with black and white cottons. I have always enjoyed mixing black and white fabrics with bright colors. The black backgrounds really make the wool stand out.
Another favorite is Sweet Tweets, featuring a whimsical flock of birds surrounded by a bright-striped border.
Ring Around the Bluebell is a 12 1/2" x 12 1/2" single block framed by an appliquéd border.
I am also very excited about my new collection with Andover Fabrics called WoolWerks. WoolWerks is prefelted 100% wool in thirty-two vibrant colors and is available in 5" and 10" precut assortments . It will be available in shops in mid-October and coordinates beautifully with my book.
Happy stitching!
