11/08/2014

Tips & tricks for awkward corners!

 

Some times when you are piecing a block you quite often end up with an awkward   corner really too small for a motif treatment..  And Mary's block is a good example except that she has four such corners.  I could put a little motif in each corner but that would not help the problem. 
 
I have a bag of tricks for just this very thing...
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
1.  I try to bring the patch into block by moving some of its color and adding something that makes the shape less defined.  This time I chose flowers the same shade as the block and moved some down onto the purple along with some foliage.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2. For the upper right corner I chose something bold to attach to it to make it work as a larger unit.  Notice how it overlaps the seams to help include the small patch into the block as a whole.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
3. Another option is bring some element from the block down into that patch and it just disappears..
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
4. Sometimes rather than make a small patch seem larger I divide and conquer to make it smaller... With two or more pieces of trim you can downsize a patch.  On fact it becomes so small it hardly seems like a patch at all.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
So now there is some variation in the four small corners which were so similar in size and they all have their own personality..

 
5. Another technique I use often and could have used here is to add a coordinating trim (usually ribbon) to make a block larger.    In this case I could have added a wide purple ribbon to the little purple corner patch which would have doubled its size and made the turquoise  patch smaller.   I use this technique often...














And now the tail...  I didn't want to mark on top of the block so I turned it over and sketched a tail.  I already had the peacock body in place so positioning it was no problem.  Then I did quick basting stitches over my lines.





Then I could turn it back over and embroider over my basting stitches.  I use this technique over and over and over again and have long meant to write a proper tutorial on it... Mary Corbet had an article recently on transferring designs and working from the back wasn't mentioned so I am determined to get a tutorial worked up and send it to her....







So I used all the colors in the block in the peacock tail and carried it right down into the pesky little corner patch!!!!!






6 comments:

Marilyn said...

Love your ideas for those pesky little bits. And I always like your tutorials so I'll be waiting. Now time to put the feet up - DS and family were here for the afternoon and to drop the dog of for us to look after for the week. Nice to have a dog in the house again and I'm hoping we can get another one soon.

Maureen said...

Great ideas Gerry. Thank you!

margaret said...

a handsome peacock and you have shared some useful tips re the corners and small areas

traderslostart said...

I love your work, and appreciate your blog and all its hints and pictures. They are all so inspirational. I wish I could get half as good as you are. Thank you for sharing your creative endeavors.
God Bless you and yours,
Sondra
"Traders of the Lost Art 1"
https://www.flickr.com/photos/11713921@N04/sets/

Mosaic Magpie said...

You did it! The corners now blend and become part of the beauty not odd bits on the edges. I like the way you transferred your design and look forward to the tutorial.
Deb

magicmoonmusings said...

Thank you for this - your blogs are superb, I learn so much from you.

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