Freehand Embroidery

Karen brought this very unique piece to my studio with the hopes that I would be willing to offer some advice and take on the challenge.  The top was made by her mother-in-law who is now over 90 years old, and her sister-in-law (who is not a quilter) was hoping Karen would see to getting it finished.

Karen's mother-in-law is an artist, she used many mediums, and is also skilled at handwork.  Every flower spray was hand drawn on to the fabric and then embroidered.  Her work is so tidy that it is difficult at first glance to see the right and wrong sides!

Now how do we approach the quilting? The fabric used on the top is a polyester drapery fabric I believe. I wasn't sure how this fabric would quilt up.   Karen was willing to let me chose the quilting that I thought would work with the top.   We were both thinking of light custom, but I was concerned that a bunch of feathers might overwhelm the delicate embroidery.  After pondering options,  I mentioned that I could stitch right over the embroidery with Superior's Microquilter thread, Karen liked this idea a lot.    When I showed her the Pieces of My Heart pantograph we thought we had a winning combination.

We ran the pantograph vertically on the quilt top to follows the pattern of the fabric.  The solid white baking shows it off nicely.

I wasn't quite sure what to expect with this one, but the end result is nicer than anything I could have imagined.  I am honoured that I got to play a small part in completing a project that is sure to become a family heirloom.