doilies-crazy-quilting

I’m a big fan of using doilies in crazy quilting.  Thrift stores are a goldmine when it comes to doilies.  I used to purchase any and all doilies that were small to medium size.  BUT, I found that the best are small lacey ones so I am far more particular in my selections than I used to be.  Avoid using the thicker more textured doilies as they can be more challenging to stitch and add a lot of bulk and weight to your CQ projects. 

When I start a CQ project, I always select at least one doily if not two from my stash.  These are dyed using whatever colours work with the project.  One doily can go a long way as I generally cut this is several pieces to add to different areas of my project. 

You will see the doily I have used in the lower right corner.  I opted for this placement in the block as there are several seams that meet so this is a way of disguising what might prove to be a challenging area for stitching.  I have overlaid the doily with small applique flowers that were also dyed.  These are held in place with a brad in the center.  Regretfully I have no source to share for the flowers as I picked these up many years ago.  Perhaps a better option may have been smaller flowers but I could not find anything else that would work so I made do.

The center seam treatment started with a wide zig zag using a silk thread.  I then added a series of straight stitches on the top and detached chain on the bottom.  A flower sequin was added to the top with a bead in the center.  I LOVE these flower/star shaped sequins which I picked up years ago at a quilt show I attended.  You can find them on the Colourstreams website although I suspect with a little research you could find them either at your local needlework or quilt shop.

To complete the block, I added a backstitched heart with hat charm.

Wishing all my fellow Canadians a happy Canada Day and all my American customers a happy fourth of July!

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