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Sunday, November 10, 2013

Paws in the Garden - Terri Stegmiller

I am so excited to share with you my test version of Terri Stegmiller's wonderful pattern, Paws in the Garden!!!

I have SO enjoyed working on this whimsical design - have you fallen in love with these cats yet?  I certainly have! There is so much purrsonality going on here, so many little details that make Terri's Paws in the Garden such a delight!   =^..^=

Paws in the Garden - wool applique

Below is Terri's original design for the pattern, featuring her signature stencil-painted background and some awesome sherbet colors....this girl is one talented artist!!!  She has this pattern for sale in her Etsy shop HERE if you'd like to make your own version of these sweet kitties.  Take my word for it, it's a fun pattern and very well designed :*D

Terri Stegmiller - Designer, Paws in the Garden

When I signed up to test the pattern for Terri, I thought it might work well as part of my Summertime wool wall quilt project.  However, because the original pattern is 24" x 37" I needed to reduce it down quite a bit to fit the 10" block size for this project.  When I tried to get all three kitties in the block, the features lost a lot of those wonderful little details, so as much as I hated to do it, I had to choose to use only two of the kitties.

Many of my wool fabrics in this block were taken from suit jackets and skirts - can you imagine my delight when I found this wonderful deep aqua wool skirt????



I wanted to preserve the smoothness of the muzzles and paws without a lot of stitching, so I took the suggestion of a few of my more experienced friends and simply did an invisible applique stitch slightly beneath these shapes with a thin cotton thread.  I love the play of the pale mint green muzzle and paws on this dignified aqua kitty.....


And of course, a purple muzzle and paws worked purrfectly on this flirtatious little pink kitty....



My favorite feature of this design is the way Terri gives so much purrsonality to these little felines' eyes!


I really wanted to do that justice, and sometimes details are difficult to do in wools.  I decided that the eyes would need to be reverse applique, which means I cut holes for the eyes and placed the bright green eye fabric behind the holes.....

They look a little spooky here, don't they?  Hahaha!!!!

Then I drew in the lines and pupils in the eyes with a black, fine-line Sharpie so I would have a pattern to use for the black stitching.  This is also where I sketched in the features of the nose & muzzle for stitching.....


See how the green eye fabric sits behind the aqua kitty fabric in this pic below?


This forced the stitching to go outside of the eye, giving the impression of eyelashes ......


If I had just cut ovals for the eyes and stitched them down, the eye sections would have been very pronounced, not allowing the natural appearance of the eyes being inside the head.  Plus all the stitchery around the eye would have appeared to be behind the eye instead of surrounding it, as it does here.  (Hope that's clearer than mud LOL!!!)


I added a tiny little hot pink tongue hanging out on each kitty =^..^=

Each kitty has a "design" on its back - the aqua kitty has black dots, while the pink kitty got tiger stripes which I created using the satin stitch - a stitch I really don't enjoy, but it was definitely called for here....


I also added in some french knot centers on the flowers and a few sprigs of grassy stitching with little tiny daisy-like flowers to add interest to the solid black background.....


Terri's design didn't need that because of all the fun stenciling she did on hers :*)

Here it is with the first block I completed for my Summertime wall quilt, and I'm thinking they go together very well indeed!  What do you think?


And I bet you are wondering what my own amazing feline, Gypsy, thinks of this new block, right?


Well, mostly she was quite miffed that it took up her space in my lap 
when we took to the recliner as is our usual custom in the evenings LOL!!!
She was not very pleased to be relegated to my feet!!!

I hope you've enjoyed my version of Paws in the Garden!  
I'm so happy that Terri allowed me this opportunity to play with her design!  
Thanks so much Terri!!!

If you would like to learn more about Terri Stegmiller and her designs, you can find her at any of these cool spots ....

     Web - http://terristegmiller.com/
     Etsy - http://www.etsy.com/shop/TerriStegmillerArt
     Blog - http://stegart.blogspot.com/

I'm linking up with Kathy for her Slow Stitching Sunday linky party; Judy for her Design Wall Monday and Connie's Tuesday Linky Party!  Be sure to pop over to see how other stitchers are partying!  And may you and yours have a beautiful and blessed Sunday ♥♥♥

Hugs & Blessings!
Teresa
=^..^=

28 comments:

  1. Teresa - your kitties are just adorable! I enjoyed reading about the process; the attention to detail really DOES give these kitties purrsonality!

    PS - love the cobalt blue candleholders in your header picture!

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  2. Your kitties are awesome! You did an amazing job of stitching and I love how you showed each step of your process. The kitties are the purrfect colors IMHO too! Both of your blocks look great together. I am still amazed at how many balls you can juggle and still come out cool and calm. Beautiful work friend.

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  3. They came out just delightful! Wonderful colors and such great stitching.

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  4. What fun to see all the close ups of your work! I have never worked with wool, so it is all new to me.... just amazing! The colours are so pretty and the blocks look fantastic together! Thanks for linking up!

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  5. Wish I had kept all those wool skirts I had in highschool. Those cat's faces are precious. I may have to find a kit I like and try this someday! Thanks for the inspiration.

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  6. I am amazed with the detail of both the pattern and your stitching. You did an awesome job!

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  7. Oh, what a fun project and so cute! Both of your blocks are gorgeous. And what a great recycling project to boot. Sounds like fun looking for the perfect wool!

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  8. Oh, so cute! Thanks for sharing Teresa.

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  9. truly adorable, whimsical, and completely artfully crafted by your original puuurrrrfect attention to details and composition! I loved hearing about your process; you did a beautiful job!

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  10. I knew you would turn this into a super cute block--and you did! Wonderful attention to detail on the eyes. I wouldn't have thought of that. Love the little background stitched flowers. Excellent touch. The two blocks look like they were designed to go together!

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  11. That turned out sew cute! Love how the eyes looked, and thanks for the great explanation.

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  12. This is adorable and your stitching is lovely!

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  13. Adorable! Your work on the eyes was definitely worth it!! Your two blocks go together spectacularly! I can't wait to see it all together.

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  14. I love the kitties as they look like they are ready to jump off the quilt. Wonderful work!!

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  15. Love the wool kitties and the house is beautiful too! Great color choices as usual and you work is purrfect too!!!

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  16. Your wool kitty blocks are so adorable. It will be fun to see your finished quilt. The aqua is perfect. Think I may have to dig into my wool fabrics! LOL
    Hugs,

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  17. I absolutely love the kitties block, and it really goes perfectly with your other block. Well done! I'll have to remember that idea if I do anything similar (reverse appliqué on the eyes).

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  18. I absolutely love love love what you did with the pattern. Great way to think outside the box and adapt the pattern to fit your project needs. Thank you so much for helping me test out the pattern and share it with your readers.

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  19. That is sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo stinking adorable!!!

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  20. Wow!! Terri's design is awesome but you have taken it to the next level with your interpretation of it!! Love the way you did the eyes! Thanks for sharing.
    Freemotion by the River Linky Party Tuesday

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  21. These are just amazing... love that you are using old clothing too - what a great idea. Wow!

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  22. Love those kitties, the real one, too. Is she a tortie or a calico? Oh yes, congrats also on your quilt; it's beautiful. Great colors!

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  23. Wow...your version done in the wool is wonderful! I LOVE the extra detail and texture the hand stitching brings....well done!

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  24. Oh Teresa, I can't wait to see your Summertime quilt and yes, the blocks go beautifully together. Love your little house block!

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  25. Teresa, gracious what a wonderful job you've done here -- those kitty-cats are purrrrrfectly perfect!! I love it! Fun, fun stuff! :)

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  26. Thanks for showing your process and talking about the detail like how you did the kitty eyes. I've never done any wool appliqué and really enjoyed reading about it. The pictures are wonderful as I imagine the real piece is too. I hope I win the pattern and my favorite one is the Paws in the garden. I've never blogged hopped before and am enjoying it. grandmalala100@cableone.net

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