Monday, August 22, 2011

Using a GO! Cutter for Applique


Weekends don't count unless you spend them doing something completely pointless.
~Bill Watterson

What a great weekend we had.  Friday afternoon we headed south to my BIL and SIL's.  Four and a half hours later through LA traffic we finally arrived at their home.  Saturday was very relaxing as we visited and just enjoyed each other's company.  Sunday we ventured further south to a fantastic little Mexican restaurant for a delicious lunch.  After stuffing our faces, we headed even further south to San Diego's Balboa Park for a viewing of Tornado Alley.  I am so happy to have been able to see that movie in IMAX - what amazing cinematography.  Afterwards we headed back north to SIL's home where she prepared a scrumptious dover sole piccatta.  We are heading home today, possibly as you are reading this post.  I so enjoyed our visit and being able to where long pants and my zip sweatshirt for three days.  I hope you had a wonderful weekend too!
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PHOTO FACT OF THE DAY


Today, August 22, is National Tooth Fairy Day.  Hundreds of years ago in Europe, when a child lost a tooth, often they would bury it, a sort of symbolism that a new tooth would soon grow in its place. They also believed that if a witch or evil spirit were to acquire their lost tooth, then a curse could be placed on the child. That’s why they buried them underground; it seemed like the best way to avoid such a curse.
When Europeans began moving west to America, they brought their beliefs and traditions with them. However, since many of them lived in cities and towns where land was scarce, people started burying lost teeth in a household planter or flowerpot. Eventually the original meaning faded, leading them to placing the tooth under a pillow.
The tooth fairy as we now know her didn't make an appearance until the early 1900s, as a generalized "good fairy" with a professional specialization. The child loses a baby tooth, which is put under the pillow at night, and the tooth fairy exchanges it for a present, usually money but sometimes candy. She became widely popular from the 1950s onward, with a veritable eruption of children's books, cartoons, jokes, etc., including more focus on children's dental hygiene. Parents cheerfully bought into the idea and the tooth fairy became part of family life.

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APPLIQUE WITH A GO! BABY CUTTER

I have discovered one of the best uses for the GO! Baby Cutter by AccuQuilt.  Cutting applique pieces!!  Well, and as I have previously mentioned, hexagons.

I'm going to use the Critters die for this tutorial.  First I outlined the different shapes with a Sharpie as I had seen suggested by others.  This helps so you know exactly where to lay your fabric for cutting.

After cutting the appropriate size of fabric, I adhered the Pellon's Wonder-Under according to the manufacturer's instructions to the wrong side.  Of course, you can you use your favorite fusible web for this step.

I placed the both of the (2) prepared fabrics over the two critters that I want to cut out.  After placing the fabric on, I then topped it off with a cutting mat (I forgot to take a picture of that)

After easily rolling the die through the cutter this is what you get.  Two perfectly cut critters.  Well, actually their are four but you can't see the layers here. 

Peel off the backing and now you are ready to press it onto your quilt.

And here is the little bee all ready for stitching.  I used a satin stitch on this as I know it will be going through the washer many times.

And here are the 3 of the 4 little critters completed.  You can't get any easier than that.  No tracing of patterns on the fusible web, no cutting out of fabric into tiny little spaces.  Just run the fabric through with the fusible web already attached and your ready to GO!
PS.  Keep an eye out because I just may be having a GO! giveaway some time in the not too distant future.

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TODAY'S GOAL

Today I will be working on my September little quilt

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GIVEAWAYS

Sew 4 Home is having a giveaway.  You could win a Free Spirit Artist Trio: A generous selection of Loulouthi fabric in one-yard cuts , a copy of Seams To Me by Anna Maria Horner, and Anna Maria Needleworks new pearl cotton threads and 6-strand embroidery threads.  This giveaway ends September 16 at midnight PT.

Jackie's Art Quilts is having a giveaway.  You could win 6 FQ's from the new collection Taza by Dena Fishbein for Free Spirit from Intrepid Thread.  This giveaway ends Friday, August 26.

Lily Pad Quilting is having a giveaway.  You could win a Flurry charm pack, a roll of Heat Press Batting Together, and some Presencia threads or six fat eighths of Flurry, a roll of Heat Press, and yummy Presencia thread.  This giveaway ends Thursday, August 25.

Hanging On By A Thread is having a giveaway.  You could win a cute little pouch made by Patty.  This giveaway ends Thursday, September 1.

Quilting Ranny is having a giveaway.  You could win a beautifully created handmade blessing bracelet from It's A Blessing.  This giveaway ends Tuesday, August 30, at noon.

Woolie Mammoth is having a giveaway.  You could win one of four charm packs.  This giveaway will end Sunday, August 28.

Little Bits and Pieces along with Peas In a Pod are having a quilt along.  And to help spread the word they are also having a giveaway.  You could win 5 pretty fat quarters.  This giveaway ends Friday, August 26.

I'm Just A Guy Who Quilts is having a giveaway.  You could win some pieces of Strawberry Fields.  This giveaway ends Wednesday, August 24.

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FINAL THOUGHT

With all of the modern conveniences in the sewing room do you sometimes feel like we are cheating in our craft of quilting?  Do you feel it shouldn't be considered an art if it isn't hand cut, hand stitched and hand quilted?  I don't.  I love all of the shortcuts that are out there and available to us.  If it weren't for my ruler and rotary cutter, I probably wouldn't have a straight line in any of my quilts.  If it weren't for my CutRight Bind Up Tool I would still be fighting making that final bias joint in my bindings.  If it weren't for my sewing machine it would take me years to complete just one quilt.  Yes, I know that the sewing machine isn't really considered a modern convenience but to me it is.  If it weren't for the computer, I wouldn't be able to find all of the wonderful fabrics, patterns, and notions that are available to me today.  And, most importantly, we probably wouldn't be friends.  Now how sad would that be!?!  I say thank you for all of the modern conveniences!  How about you?

Do what you can, with what you have, where you are. 
~Theodore Roosevelt

22 comments:

Needled Mom said...

I'm glad that you had a chance to escape to some cooler weather for the weekend.

I think the GO is perfect for applique and difficult pieces to hand cut and I think every tool we have to make our crafts easier is FINE!!!! The more the merrier!!!

Hope the drive home is uneventful!

Annie said...

I started quilting in the day before "technology", with a piece of cardboard for a template, a pencil to trace around and a pair of scissors for cutting. I do have a few of the new tools now, rulers, rotary cutters, and that is about it. I piece on a Featherweight and machine quilt on an old Kenmore. I only recently had to give up hand quilting due to injuries and arthritis.
I really dislike learning to use mew things, and go with what I know!

Your trip sounds wonderful, hope you are home safe.

: )

Vroomans' Quilts said...

So glad you enjoyed a wonderful weekend - safe trip home. I'll take modern over 'beating clothes against the rocks' any day!! (but I do love hand quilting)

Apple Avenue Quilts said...

I agree with you completely...all the modern conveniences are totally wonderful. This might sound terrible, but without them I don't know if I would quilt. I glad you had such a wonderful weekend!

WoolenSails said...

I like the idea of using it to cut shapes like that, and then machine applique. It would be great for children's charity quilts.

Debbie

Raewyn said...

Sounds like a great weekend. Yes, I'm with you regarding the 'gadgets'... they make so much more possible than what I would or could otherwise achieve, they add a whole new dimension to my passion!!

Kathryn said...

I'm amazed that my grandmother, a farmer's wife, ever had time to make the quilts she did. I appreciate all my labor saving appliances and quilting tools. Kathie L in Allentown

Lynda said...

Sounds like a great weekend! I can remember my Dad helping my Mom trace appliques or shapes onto fabric and spend hours cutting them out by hand. I know they both would have appreciated all the conveniences we have now.

BillieBee (billiemick) said...

I wish the tooth fairy would return a couple of mine....grin.

Love your demo of the Go! Looks like fun.

Impera Magna said...

I'm glad you had a fun and relaxing weekend!

I'm all for modern conveniences...the more the merrier!

Christine M said...

Hi Linda. That's a great idea outlining the shapes with a sharpie. I won a Baby Go recently but just haven't had a chance to have a proper play yet! I will just have to make the time won't I!

Teresa F. said...

It looks like you had a wonderful week-end. you deserve it.
Love your applique.Unfortunately I don't have a Baby Go ( tough I've tried many giveaways).

quilterliz said...

G'day. Sounds like you had a great weekend, good on you. That Go Cutter is a terrific idea, we are lucky that there are so many useful things like that on the market these days. It makes our life easier and I am all for that. Take care. Liz...

Lee Prairie Designs said...

Happy that you had a nice weekend!

I would love to have one of those Go Cutters! I know you are having fun with yours.
:) Carolyn

Miss Hillbilly said...

I need a binding tool for sure. I still have trouble with it! Glad you got the critter die. It is fun!

MoeWest said...

Your weekend sounds wonderful! I started quilting because there is so much information available on the internet. I've always enjoyed sewing, so I might have become interested in quilting through books, but the internet made it all so much easier to find tutorials and projects. So, then I discovered blogs and now there is no turning back! lol
I think using tools is not cheating, just progress.

Karen said...

This Go Cutter is a very interesting little machine.

Seams to Sew and Quilt said...

I love my go cutter. Sounds like you had a good weekend. The little quilts are adorable. Enjoy your day!

Peggy said...

I just wanted to thank you for the links to the great giveaways. I hope I win something and I found some nice new blogs.

quiltzyx said...

Sounds like you had a wonderful weekend! Hard to beat the weather in San Diego. :D

I hadn't seen that hint about outlining with a Sharpie - I will pass that along to my friend who has one (& try to remember myself, if I ever get one! lol).

I'm with you - ModCons are GOOD!!

Have a great week!

Sandie @ crazy'boutquilts said...

Oh! Those are so cute! Love them. :-)

Shannon said...

I agree! I am glad to have been born now. Each generation has had its own set of trials and I am glad that I am here now. I love running water and hot water also. I love that I can send the kids to the fridge for lunch and not out into the forest. LOL!! Have a good day!

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