The Shy Gardener

I found a pattern for a Sweet Seasons purse in Simply Stitched with Applique by Yumiko Higuchi and a Poppy Garden Embroidery pattern at Purl Soho. Inspiration struck when I realized I could combine the two and make a poppy pattern purse. First I by cut out two purse panels from natural colored linen. I covered the edges with masking tape so the linen would not unravel while I did the applique and embroidery. The Poppy Garden pattern was meant to be a larger wall hanging so I

Reverse-Applique Study in Gray My latest in a series of reverse-applique projects is a river stone shirt design. I was intrigued to work with a range of grays in this simple color palette. I love smooth stones and the fabric patterns reminded me of them. For the design, I drew a group of stones over-lapping one another. I was curious about the challenge of working with multiple layers in the reverse-applique style. I also planned to wrap the design around the shirt from front

I added a custom reverse-applique design to an off the rack shirt, to create a one of a kind piece. The idea began with two green shirts I picked up on sale which, in turn, inspired the fern motif. After completing my design, I practiced the embroidery stitches which were new to me. Then I took a piece of the under fabric for the reverse-applique and ironed on fabric stabilizer to give it more weight. Transferring my design to the front of the shirt, using chalk tracing paper

Making a Reverse-Applique Skirt I have been wanting to try reverse-applique for awhile. My inspiration comes from a great book, Improv Sewing, that helped me overcome my fear of making clothing. I picked the reverse-applique skirt from their projects but created my own floral design. I selected a grey jersey for the body of the skirt and paired it with a lupine flower. The bloom gradually changes color from light to dark blue in the ombre style. After deciding on the position