I LOVE bias tape. Always have. I know it’s weird but, I do. I love everything about it. I love making it, looking at it, using it.
So, after making yards and yards of bias tape for bindings I thought “what else can I use bias tape for?” Then I thought why can’t I use it to ‘draw’ designs as the main elements of a quilt. When I started to research how Bias Tape Applique is used in quilting I found that traditionally it is used in two main ways. In Celtic Applique it is used for intricate, detailed, precise symmetrical designs. And it is also used for vines and stems in traditional applique. In my mind I thought why can’t we use it to make bold, striking, modern designs.
The very first quilt that I made using this technique was an early version of Convergence, the quilt featured in this blog post. Sometimes I just want to get the idea out of my head and to test an idea so, I just make the quilt to prove my concept. So the first version wasn’t constructed the best. So, when we it came to entering a quilt in the Modern Quilt Guild Exhibit I knew I wanted to remake it. I remade it in the exact fabric. But, it was never photographed properly before it was sent out. It came back from traveling a few weeks ago and I was finally able to get good photos.
The background fabric is Antiquity Old Script in Aqua by Michael Miller. The bias tape applique is Robert Kaufman Kona Coral and Robert Kaufman Aqua.
This is machine sewn bias tape applique. It is top stitched in thread colors that match the bias tape – so coral and aqua. I wanted the binding to be the same size as the bias tape applique so I bound this in my signature chunky 1″ binding.
And a quick detail shot. You can see a bit of the top-stitching here and my favorite part of the quilt – the two aqua stripes!
