We love our longarm renters. They are so much fun and bring in some very pretty quilts for us to admire. We’ve seen everything from bargello to wholecloth, classic blocks to modern marvels. Some of my favorites are the creative applique quilts. Applique can literally be anything. There is very little that limits what you can add to a quilt by cutting it out and stitching it on a background fabric. Check out what some of our longarm machine renters have quilted with us.

Peggy's Appliqued Baby Quilts

Obviously the quilt on the right is a jelly roll race and with no applique. Peggy did the smart thing when you have two small quilts with similar color schemes. She quilted them together! Because they were placed side by side on the same backing, Peggy was able to quilt them as if they were one quilt with a pantograph called Heart Fancy. Since applique can literally be anything, this quilt's applique is simply the hearts made with licensed fabric. My favorite thing about the applique quilt is the “How to Train Your Dragon” fabric. Such a fun movie!

This is also from Peggy and again she brought in two quilts with the same colors so she could use the same backing and thread. However this time we had a challenge. Besides the appliqued elephants and pinwheels, she also applied cord to connect the pinwheels with the elephants. This is super cute, but even with a Scoop Foot, the thickness of the cord she chose was going to cause problems. The cord was just a little to thick to allow the hopping foot to clear it. Solution: quilt free-motion from the front and avoid running over the cord. I think it turned out adorable, and I just love the nautical flags. I’m not sure if they are actually nautical flags, but they sure look great with Star Dance, the pantograph she picked for this quilt.

Karen's Appliqued Wall Hanging

This is a fun quilt. I know Karen worked very hard on this. With the exception of the girl, this beautiful beach scene is mostly pieced, not appliqued. I thought she did a very clever thing with the wave crests. Karen used lace that she sewed in on only one side, and then topstitched down afterwards.

Some of the fun of applique is finding the perfect fabric. The little girl's hair was actually a lion's mane from a fun animal print. What a clever way to find the perfect hair texture! She also quilted this with the Star Dance paper pantograph. She felt the stars would draw to mind the starfish and the swirls would be like the waves. I think it’s a nice touch.

Darcy's and Nancy's Classic Quilts

This is another one where the majority of the quilt is not appliqued, just the top left block. Darcy made this quilt in a beginning piecing class. I love the bright colors that match that border and sashing fabric so well. She quilted this with a paper pantograph we no longer carry called Lorien’s Paisley. It is a lacy design similar to Mandarin Lace.

This is another quilt that includes both pieced and applique details. Nancy created this fun Christmas inspired Cardinal quilt. The log cabin details are of course pieced as is the cardinal. However the branches and leaves are appliqued. She also wanted to add a lacy effect onto her quilt and chose to use the Lorien’s Phoenix paper pantograph to get it. I love the red border around the bird’s block. It’s a nice pop among all the dark green.

Lisa's Travel Throw

Lisa made this sweet appliqued quilt just for fun. Although some have banners, all the blocks are of the same travel trailer made with all sorts of fabric. It’s bright and cheerful, and would make a great stash buster.

She found a great fabric to be the sashing and border. It contains many of the colors found in her blocks. She quilted this with a loopy meander paper pantograph called Seamless.

Mary's Laura Heine Collage Quilt

This last quilt is a collage applique quilt created by Mary from a Laura Heine pattern called Lola and Olive. The original pattern had only the two large pigs in profile. Mary decided to add the third little pig in the center. This is a wall hanging so she made this with raw edge applique. These quilts tend to be very thick with fabric and adhesive and therefore a little stiff. I really like the border along the bottom of sunflowers. It’s a nice touch.

As you can see, applique can come in different levels and in different styles just like any other quilt style. Whether your taste runs along the classic or the modern, applique can be a means to create the art you envision. Give it a try and post it for us to see. We’d love to see what you’ve been working on!