SASHIKO and BORO STITCHING

 Recently, I was sent a copy of a new book by my friend, Pepper Cory for review:

The 6" ruler is to show the cute size of this POCKET GUIDE.  Pepper's book will be for sale December 5, 2023--it's release date to the American market. I see it is available for pre-order now.

It is 64 pages of great information and photos. Easy to understand instructions, along with historical information will have you excited to use this very old, yet now modern again, SLOW stitching technique.

Back Cover

Table of Contents

Years ago I took a Sashiko class from Pepper and I really enjoyed it. But life gets in the way and I didn't keep going. Last year I took a Sashiko class at International Quilt Festival in Houston from Becky Scellato. I enjoyed the class but had not touched that project since then. Now I am excited to get it back out and get stitching again! 

All you need is fabric, a design, thread, needle, and a thimble. Pepper's book explains each of these things in detail. How to draw your own patterns as well as how to use commercial stencils will teach you all you need to know to get started.

Using pre-printed fabric made for a great class kit and you can find these panels in shops and online. Google Pre Printed Sashiko Fabric to find many options. Here is Becky Scellato's website: Shibori Dragon

Besides using Sashiko and Boro stitching for quilts and home furnishings, Pepper's book shows how to decorate a denim jacket as well as make a beautiful scarf. You will look at your favorite scraps in a whole new way as you play with Boro stitching. I am eager to give that a try now too.

The Pocket Guide to Sashiko and Boro Stitching costs less than $10. If you are looking for a fun, easy, meditative way to spend your quiet time, look no further than this little book.

Let's quilt!

Barbara

HAND QUILTING

I enjoy hand quilting. Because it takes so much more time than machine quilting I don't do it a lot.

Recently I completed a small quilt I hand pieced and hand quilted, HEXIE STARS:

40" x 40" 

Detail 

It has wool batt, making it easy to hand quilt, and very soft. The downside to wool is that it costs more and should not be dried in a hot dryer. I always indicate on my label if a quilt has a wool batt and that it should be air-dried. This label was made 2 years ago so needed an "update" when I finally finished this quilt:

A few weeks ago I wrote about a New OLD Quilt I recently bought. As I like to have a handwork project available for "slow stitching" in the evenings, I put a small quilt together last week. It is a tribute to the antique.  While I AM making a full-size reproduction of the original, the Goose Track blocks are a variation style so the blocks are easier to piece. I did make 4 Goose Track blocks with Y-seams, as the original maker did hers, but knew few people would want to do that. 

So here is what I am doing with those 4 blocks. I wanted to replicate the quilting motifs used in the original quilt, feathered wreaths in the blocks and feathered plume vines in the borders. Rather than use shirting fabrics for the background, I used white so you can really see the quilting. And wool batt is so easy to quilt through: 

A few more of the quilts I have hand quilted include:

42" x 42" 

        

Detail--black thread

Detail

If you are new to hand quilting, start small, there is a learning curve:

14" x 15" 

This one took me 7 years to complete. It won Best of Show, Heritage Quilters of Huntsville, 2011:

    A-Round With My Friends, 68" x 68" 

If you want speed, try Big Stitch quilting. I find it faster than fine hand quilting. It uses thicker thread, I like Perle cotton size 8, a large needle and doesn't take too learn to learn. Here are a couple I have quilted with Big Stitch:

Antique Rose Star, 76" x 76"

Charming Sampler Red 33" x 33" 

Recently a great student friend asked if I would offer a hand quilting class locally as she wants to improve her hand quilting skills. Not expecting much interest from local shops and knowing it would be months before that could be arranged, I offered a "Pop Up" two hour class in my home. With only a few days notice we got one other interested student. 

Mazie and Betina came and had good time while learning a variety of tips for both fine hand quilting and Big Stitch quilting. I dug out lots of threads and other tools, and gave them each a simple "sandwich" with wool batt to try. See those smiles:

Betina and Mazie

Some tools of the trade

Do you hand quilt? It does make for a cuddly quilt--it uses half as much thread as machine quilting. It can be hard on aging hands so I save it for very special quilts, and use a "hybrid" method--I do machine Stitch in the Ditch quilting first, to anchor seams and provide stability to the quilt. Then I hand quilt where it can really be seen and appreciated. Works for me.

Let's quilt.

Barbara