from the editor

As crisp fall days turn into cold, dreary wet ones, I know it’s time to settle in for another long Midwest winter. But no matter what the weather is outside, I can always plant a garden of beautiful quilting cottons inside. One walk through my local quilt shop and my basket is filled with Kelly green grasses, bright red tulip prints, purple pansies, blue irises, bright pink roses, orange poppies and several shades of sunny yellow. I tuck them away, saving the bag of cotton treasures for a week when the sun hasn’t shined at all. A steaming cup of coffee in hand, I open the bag holding my “seedlings” and spread them around me. As I take in the colors and patterns, my mood always brightens with the promise that spring will soon arrive.

In our latest issue of Quilting & Embroidery we have a versatile array of quilted projects and techniques to keep you busy no matter where you live. Make a fairytale quilt for the princess in your life (see “Enchanted Kingdom”); learn how to create positive/negative appliqués (see “Crossing Lines”); or use a great Trapunto technique on rich fall-colored silks (see “Rise Up”). Plus, you can use our free original download to make your own allover fabric (see “Designs Allover”); or make beautiful pieced scarves for gift giving using one of two technique applications (see “Piecing Path”).

Whatever your skill level, there’s something special you can make in this issue of Quilting & Embroidery. Send me a note at info@cmemag.com and let me know what projects you’re working on and what articles you liked best in this issue.

If you’re looking for more Quilting & Embroidery issues, you’re in luck. Purchase back issues (2003-2007) on our secure shopping site at www.sewnshop.com. Click on “Special Issues” and scroll down the page to find the link. Or order by phone at (800) 590-3465; outside the U.S. call (303) 215-5657.

Until next time,
Annette Gentry Bailey
Creative Machine Embroidery Editor

better embroidery:
quilting without stabilizer

Quilting is one of the few techniques where a stabilizer may not be needed for embroidery.

• After the quilt or wall hanging top is pieced, sandwich a lightweight, thin batting between the pieced top and the backing. Baste the layers together by hand.
• Hoop the layers together without using a stabilizer as long as outline quilting designs are used for embroidery.
• Use a thread color in the needle and bobbin that match. Loosen the hoop substantially to hold the layers together. A too-tight hoop will cause hoop burn.
• If a heavy fill stitch design is desired, then a stabilizer is required. Use one that is appropriate for woven cotton such as a medium-weight tear-away. Be sure to use a machine “baste” or “fix” stitch or hand baste to hold the layers together and to prevent the fabric from shifting.

be a winner

Thank you for being a subscriber to our CME e-Update. To show our appreciation, each month we randomly select from among our subscribers a winner of a special embroidery-related prize. This month it’s the book “Machine Embroidery Room By Room,” by Carol Zentgraf.

If you’re already a subscriber, you’ll automatically be entered in the drawing. Congratulations to Beth A. of Yorba Linda, CA, the winner of the roll of AquaMesh Plus, a paper-release water-soluble stabilizer (14.25” x 5 yards) from Oklahoma Embroidery Supply & Design.

Sound good? Be sure to tell your embroidery-loving friends to subscribe so they’ll have a chance to win each month, too!

reader gallery

Gale V. of Frederick, Md., likes to finish off her quilts with a personalized label. Each label tells a story about the quilt it represents. Friends and fellow quilt guild members loved them so much that she began making them upon request.

Show fellow readers what you’ve been embroidering. Send me .jpg images and a note about your current projects to info@cmemag.com. You can inspire other readers with your embroidery!

order back issues & original designs

Looking for a back issue of CME? In addition to CME's original embroidery designs, you also can purchase copies of past subscriber issues, and current and past newsstand-only issues of Quilting & Embroidery, Paper & Embroidery and Holiday Embroidery on our secure shopping site at www.sewnshop.com. For phone and other ordering options, click here.

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