has anyone done any celtic quilting? i need to pick your brain...

Welcome, Doris! Hope you stick around and join in on the fun and games here!

Are you talking about appliqueing symbols? or the actual quilting of celtic designs? I believe Meg (OhioRose) has done some - she'll be around soon.

Sorry I couldn't be of much help, but I haven't done any.

Gerda

Welcome to the forum, Doris. How can I help you?

Welcome Doris.
Lots of great quilters here, and we always have an opinion!
Have you tried doing a search for 'celtic quilting'? I just did and came up with lots of info about it. But, we'll still be happy to help you here.

Hi, Doris, to BC!

May you make many quilts and many friends here.

Is this the type of pattern you mean?
http://www.quilterscache.com/C/CelticSunriseBlock.html

I think these designs are beautiful, but I have not tried them myself, yet. I have been quilting about 3 years. This one is on my long "must do" list. This one is paper-pieced and I mostly do traditional piecing.

There was a very nice "Irish" quilt in this issue of McCalls Quilting:
http://mccallsquilting.com/curiss/208_celticcrossing/

Does this help?

Pat, love the block from quilter's cache! Oh my, just when I thought I was beginning to catch up, another added to my list as well. LOL just what I need, another pattern!

Denise, I really love the look of these quilts. This block makes me want to learn to be a better paper piecer.

Doris, I studied a display on a quilt shop quilt hop once and, I think, this book:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/reader/1564773108/ref=sib_dp_pt#reader-link
If this is the right book, these were done by applique. The pages shown seem to be very detailed in terms of tools and technique. This may be something you can teach yourself though patience and practice.

I almost bought the book ...

so many quilts to make, so little time ...

Hi all,

thanks so much for your help. i know i didn't give you much info in my first post. here's the thing..(now don't faint like i almost did). my daughter wants me to make a quilt from her wedding dress she's not a patchwork kind of gal so i really didn't know what to do at first. then i found out she and new husband were tattoo'd (sp?) by my grandson (oh well...). they've been on mission trip to Wales and fell in love with it. anyhow, his tattoo is a celtic heart. i think it's called faithful heart - it's really nice. so i thought i'd do a center medallion on point with the heart enlarged, which i think she'd love. i've done one celtic for her and had success with it using 1/4 inch bias. this heart pattern tho is different. i really don't know how to explain it, except to say that it looks more like a stained glass pattern. if you can picture just a plain heart pattern with an open center. now add leading all around...inside and outside. that's what i need to deal with. the 1/4 inch bias is no problem. it's what's in between the bias that has me stumped. it measures about 1/2 inch. how do i work the fabric (a silky polyester) so that the center is smooth and flat? her colors are lilac and green. green will be heart interlace and lilac will be background. i know this post is way too long, but i reallllllly need some help on this one. thanks so much!
doris

Is this the design? I found it by the same name on a couple of sites.

http://www.rankmytattoos.com/tattoo-designs/celtic-hear...116968241210619.html

Are you saying that the heart will be her wedding gown fabric, the interlacing around it will be green and the background lilac? By the center being flat and smooth, are you asking how to keep the negative space (the background) from puckering?

Are you planning to applique the bias tape by hand or by machine? If you are planning to applique by hand, the important thing to remember is to not pull the thread up too tight. You certainly want to avoid having it too lose, but I think this is what trips up new hand-appliquer more than anything else. I try to take a backstitch every 15 to 20 stitches; does two things. Secures the pieces to the background if a thread should break until it can be repaired. Because it locks the stitches, it keeps the stitcher from pulling the thread too tight as she works.

If you are planning to machine applique, since you are using a silky-type fabric, two things come to mind immediately. Use a smaller needle, a 65 or even a 60, if you can find it. What size needle does the manufacturer of your machine suggest for silk? Also, make sure you only use silk pins. Secondly, to keep the fabric from puckering due to shifting, you are going to have to baste. I believe I would baste this type of fabric regarless of the method of applique, but especially for machine stitching.

If this were my project, I would hand baste, because I believe it gives me the most control over the project. Regardless of the method of basting or of appliqueing, I would strongly suggest a trial run to see what works best for you.

It sounds like a lovely project. I hope I understood your questions correctly and was able to give you some useful suggestions. Please let me know if there is anything else I can help you with.

STABILIZER, Stabilizer, Stabilizer.... the kind you would use for machine embroidery will help to keep the center from pulling. I agree, i would most definitely practice with the silky fabric, needle size, thread, stitch length, etc.

Once you get it figured out, it will be a treasure!