Oh my floral heart!

Here is my latest completed project! This heart would make a cute house warming gift or a sweet baby gift. Best of all, it  was quick and easy ! This is a kit I bought from one of my favorite quilt shops here in Tucson, http://www.sewingroomtucson.com/ .  The pattern is from Bird Brain Designs, check out their site for some really cute and fun stuff! http://www.birdbraindesigns.net/  Also, be sure to sign up for their email updates. They include a free redwork pattern every now and then. Okay, getting a bit side tracked, back to the project..

Tip I have for you is to be a little bit patient in cutting out the flowers. Need to take it slow when going around the tight curves so you do not nip off any petals! French knots are used in the center of the flowers to hold them into place. I must admit, I was also always afraid of making french knots. But after this project,  I got pretty good at making them!  I would suggest maybe doing a few practice ones before actually trying them out on the project. I jumped right in there with my french knots and the first few I had to pull out and if one looks closely, you can see how some are smaller (first ones I tried) and some are bigger (got better as I did more and more). If you need help learning how to make french knots or other types of embroidery stitches "The Embroidery Stitch Bible" by Betty Barnden is great! The illustrations are very easy to understand and I love that it is spiral bound so it can lay flat for easy use.

I picked up this book and also these great scissors (by Clover) at the Quilt Basket (aka The Sewing Room) http://www.sewingroomtucson.com/ in Tucson. What I like about these scissors is that the blades are serrated. Which wakes cutting wool so much easier as it keeps the wool from slipping. I also like the they are only 5 1/2 inches long so it makes getting around those corners really easy.

Wow! This is my longest post yet! I better get back to my next project so I can share that with you! Hopefully it won't be so long before I post again. Of course, if I find any new gadgets I will share those with you too!