February 14, 2012

Leafy Branches: all over free motion quilting

Great news: I bought a Sharpie! You're worth it.


This is something I've been sketching over and over lately. It's so beautiful, and simple, and straightforward. I want to quilt everything with it.

Here's my first crack at stitching it:


Elegant, right?

Let me delight you with how easy it is.

Stitch a curved stem, put a leaf on the end.


Backtrack down the spine, stitch a leaf on one side.


Go down a bit more and put a leaf on the other side.


Do that all the way down the stem.


Now stitch back up the stem a bit, and send off a new branch.


Add the leaves, add a new branch off that one.


And do it over and over.



Boom. All over leafy quilting.


I love this so much I feel like I should send out a birth announcement! It really is a revelation about the ideal use of branching patterns. There are lots of simple, equally beautiful variations, that are just as captivating, and I'll get those up here soon.

Happy love day everyone!

P.S. You can see me stitching this design in my Secrets of Free-Motion Quilting class on Craftsy.

36 comments:

Anonymous said...

Gonna try this today. It's awesome.

Mom2RyandSis said...

Just beautiful!! Can't wait to try it!

Michelle said...

I love it! It almost looks like feathers but for some reason this looks a lot easier. I'd need to sketch this a bit before stitching.

Mama Pea said...

Great pattern. I love it. You are amazing.

Suzanne said...

Wow, it looks so hard yet you broke it down and made it feasible. Thank you!

Bente-I like to QuiltBlog said...

how great is that, oh I like it!!!
It looks so difficult, but your tutorial shows how "easy" it is to sew.
I´ll try it, thats for sure ☺
Thank you very much!

Shelley: the Dread Pirate Rodgers said...

What a *fantastic* presentation! An excellent .. nay, GENIUS idea! Breaking it down allows even timid quilters the confidence that they can do it.

I love the fact that no matter how you stitch it, it's always right! Some of the branches are straight, some are curvy. They are all different lengths. The leaves are definitely different sizes!

Such a forgiving motif. There's no areas where the Quilt Police could swoop in and say that it was done "incorrectly".

Thank you so very much for sharing your idea!

Becky said...

I have done something similar, but definitely going to use this in my next quilt. I agree that it looks elegant. Very nice!

Kay Lynne said...

Christina--that is a beautiful pattern! Your quilting is just as beautiful ;) Happy Quilting!

Debbie said...

Great design.....thanks for sharing your idea!

The Thompsons said...

So cool!! I may have to try this one.

Nathalie St-Pierre Roths said...

Sophisticated pattern, yet simple and easy to do. Thank you for sharing your tip! :-)

Unknown said...

Whoa that it really awesome. Megan told me about it today and I hadn't looked at reader in a few days...glad I did this is beautiful!

Helen in the UK said...

What a great pattern. With a little sketching to 'get' how it works, it looks totally doable!! Thanks so much for sharing your thoughts and methods :)

Sharon said...

Thanks for the idea. I am a hand quilter and this is definitely one I can adapt to my style, as well.

Down to Sew said...

loving this--thanks for sharing, i will have to give it a try!

sew on and sew on, Cherri said...

Genius....branching genius!

M and M plus 3 said...

How clever that is! Thank you for sharing. I'm going to pin this tutorial.

Anonymous said...

birth announcement lol!

Patti said...

Love it, and plan to use it!!

Noelia said...

Hello,
thank you for share it!
I'll try to do it!

Anonymous said...

beautiful!

Lakshmi said...

Thank you for sharing this idea..loved it..it is a great help for mr..

Anonymous said...

Congrats on your new arrival and thank you for sharing...This is awesome as I have been very timid about free motion, and worried I would ruin it!!!! THIS is a good beginner piece that will look like I have been doing free motion for years. Thank you so much for the inspiration!!! Off to practice, practice and practice then DO it!
~Louise

Marilyn G said...

What a great idea, and looks so simple-I'll try it too, perhaps I could post a pic. when I finish-thanks and kudos!

Anonymous said...

I can't wait to try it. Thanks for sharing the how-to. Carol

Carol J said...

WOW! This is a really nice all over pattern! Thank you for sharing this with us - I can't wait to try it somewhere lol

Virginia Walton Pilegard said...

I think I can! I think I can! What a great idea and what great instructions!

Regina said...

Thank you, I think I can use this pattern right away!

Regina said...

P.S.: Do you know The Needle and Thread Network for Canadian blogs? (http://needleandthreadnetwork.blogspot.ca/)
I would love to see you there!

Karee said...

Love this branching off method. A light bulb just turned on for me. Thank you!

phxquilt said...

Just found this! Great pattern. I'll have to practice this for a while before I try it on a quilt. Thanks for the great idea.

Teresa Quilts said...

I love, love, love this one!!! It looks so simple, but I bet I would still have trouble doing it. LOL tgnance@gmail.com

Unknown said...

Loved the tutorial. You made it so 'seam' so simple. I've never done anything this intricate before. Thanks so much.

Norma Wall said...

This pattern is beautiful and not intimidating .....thanks for sharing your talent :)

Darlene said...

I love this! Thank you for sharing!

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