Autumn Country Rule 3

Well, my OCD kicked in again and I had to get it done.

When the rule was posted I planned to use orange, as I have a few scraps left over from my Halloween quilt, but it was not the right color. When I opened my "Mystery Quilt" bin, I saw these pieces I had purchased from the 1/2 off table when I purchased my background fabric. I normally would not use the colors or the print in a quilt, but they were the autumn colors, and the price was right, so I got 1/8 yard of each of the 3 pieces. They cost me less than $2.00 for the whole bit. I thought I could make autumn leaves or something with the fabric. With the block so narrow, I decided to make 3 trees to match the pine trees with the flying geese. They were too small to make leaves, so I just made tree tops with the pieces.

The new challenges I tried, which I have not done before:

1. Machine embroidery for the trees. I started with a double needle, but quickly broke one of the needles and did not have a replacement. So I finished with a single needle. I have never had a machine with any fancy stitches before, and I gave myself a new sewing machine for my birthday.

2. I used foundation paper to keep the fabric from bunching when I embroidered. I learned this when I took a class to learn to use my machine.

3. My tree tops have a piece of batting in them to make them stand out. This is a trick our Dorinda grandmother used, to make her applique stand out. Pretty fun effect.

Here are the 3 blocks sewn together. Notice the trail continues through this block. I put it on before I embroidered the tree, then ran a few extra layer over it to hide the trail behind the tree. That technique worked better than trying to piece it in.
Sorry the seam is not pressed. Too many small helpers!

I took the pictures on my sofa, in front of the picture window, and let the natural light shine through instead of using the flash. It makes the colors and the background stand out better.

I love this background material. It has a sheen that makes it look more like satan than cotton. Of course the pictures do not show that as well as the real thing, but it is really appealing. I really love this piece.