by Terry Crawford

What can take a 'plain' quilt and jazz it up with a sparkling personality all of its own? Embellishing!

I'm a fabricaholic; an avid collector of fabric. And as if that's not enough, like many other quilters, I also collect buttons, lace, charms, beads, etc. Adding any of these things to a quilt enhances the quilt, adds dimension, and also is a great way for a quilter to express his/her creativity.

There are two key factors to ensure that an embellished quilt is appealing to the eye. First, the quilt has to be constructed well. All the embellishments in the world won't disguise a poorly-constructed quilt. The quilt should *always* lie flat and hang evenly. Second, keep in mind that your embellishments not only give your quilt a 3-dimensional look, they also add weight to your quilt. Make sure that your foundational fabric is sturdy enough to support the embellishments used.

There are four phases to making an embellished quilt. Here are some useful tips for each phase of the quilt-making process:

PLANNING THE QUILT

Always make the piece you're working with larger than what you want the finished product to be. This margin of error is necessary because the addition of embellishments many times causes some type of distortion to your work. The extra fabric will allow you to square the block or the finished quilt top to the proper size. This is especially importing when setting blocks together.
Keep the quilt borders simple. They'll be easier to trim or square if they aren't intricately pieced or appliqued.
Don't place embellishments near the very edges: Keep them inside the margin of error.
Select embellishments that enhance the look of the quilt. Don't select ones that will overpower the quilt. Keep the block and the total quilt in perspective when making your selections.
Make sure you place embellishments around the quilt in a balanced manner. Don't overload one area and leave another empty. You want the viewers eye to be able to smoothly travel around the entire quilt.
Select a wide variety of embellishments. Vary the color, size, and texture.

STABILIZING THE QUILT

Use the stabilizer as a foundtion to help support the weight of the embellishments.
Use muslin as a foundation for appliqued blocks. Cut away excess muslin as you complete each applique. This will reduce bulk and will make quilting much easier.
If you find your quilt rippling or buckling under the weight of embellishments, use additional stabilizer for support. Adding batting to the back should eliminate the problem.
To eliminate overall additional bulk, pin or baste the quilt top to batting and use the batting as the stabilizer. After your finished adding embellishments, pin or baste the backing fabric onto the embellished top and then quilt. This method will eliminate the necessity of trimming muslin away for easier hand quilting.

EMBELLISHING THE QUILT

Try to balance the weight of embellishments by distributing them around the quilt, rather than all together. This will help ensure that your quilt will hang nicely.
Embellish as much as possible before layering the quilt with the backing. This will prevent the unsightly stiching on the back side from showing up on the back of the quilt. If you use an embellishment that is too large or cumbersome to be added before quilting, then make sure that you attach it to the quilt through only the top layer and batting. Avoid going all the way through the quilt and allowing it to show on the quilt backing.
Use a hoop for beading or embroidery to maintain proper tension and avoid puckering.
Stitch embellishments to the quilt as much as possible. I try to never hot-glue embellishments. If the embellishment item doesn't have a hole to stitch through, try to make one. If it's plastic, you might can melt a hole through it by heating the tip of a pin in a flame. Be sure to embed the pin in cork or use tongs when doing this, so as not to burn yourself. If the object is metal, it might be possible to drill a small hole in it with an electric drill.
To hide the thread when stitching an embellishment on, you might try adding a bead.
Only use glue to attach an embellishment as a last resort.
If you use a an embellishment that pins on, such as costume jewelry, you might want to add a drop of glue to the pin closure after pinning it on to keep it securely in place. One disadvantage to doing this is if you ever need to launder the embellished quilt.
Use a fusible product to adhere odd shaped textile embellishments to the quilt. It may be easier to iron on a thick patch than it would be to sew it on.
Hide the raw edges of ribbon, lace, etc. inside seams or underneath other embellishments.
Before permanently attaching embellishments, lay them out on the quilt top and view it from a distance to make sure that it's balanced and your eye flows smoothly around it.

EMBELLISHMENTS

Here are a few suggestions for embellishments:

Awards. Many awards students receive are either felt or ribbon. Try appliquéing these on. If the ribbon isn't made of a heavy enough fabric, try ironing on a fusible product to the back. Sometimes, awards come in the shape of pins. If this is the case, the solution is simple: Pin them to the quilt so that you can remove them if the quilt needs laundered.
Beads. You'll be amazed at how beads can add pizzazz to your quilting designs by giving sparkle and depth to the finished products. Try placing beads in a flower center, or to outline something. The two most common used sizes are pebble and seed beads. They come in a variety of colors to match your thread or embroidery floss. To sew on beads, use a needle that is fine enough to pass through the bead. When placing a bead directly on fabric, use one strand of floss or thread that matches the fabric.
Buttons. Buttons can simply be stitched on or try stitching them on in small groups to add interest to a plain area. Buttons sewn onto folded ribbon or embroidery can also create some interest to draw one's eye. Buttons can add dimension to your work. Tip: When sewing on a button that has four holes, first stitch the button on using two of the holes, tie it off, then stitch the button on with the two remaining holes. This will keep your button from coming off, in the event that the thread unravels.
Charms. Charms are becoming quite popular now and can be found in discount stores, jewelry stores, flea markets, garage sales, everywhere! When securing a charm to a quilted project, use either floss or thread to match the charm as closely as possible.
Doilies. Doilies and other bits of tatting or crochet can fill a plain shape, such as the handle in a fan block and can add such an old Victorian look to the finished project.
Embroidery. Embroidery can either be done with floss or silk ribbon and adds such a delicate touch. Use French knots for texture and use outline stitches to define the edges of an area needing more focus. Here's where to show off your fancy embroidery stitches!
Lace. Lace can be added in a variety of ways. It can be stitched on flat or gathered up to give it a fuller, more three-dimensional look. It can also be caught in a pieced seam or tucked under the edge of an appliqué patch. It can even be tacked on top of a seam to hide it. Again, the Victorian look can be accomplished by embellishing.
Ribbon. Ribbon can be added to form streamers and bows. When doing this, however, be sure to tack it into place using small, invisible stitches or better yet, French knots. Can we say VICTORIAN again? :)

QUILTING THE QUILT

The more heavily embellished the quilt, the more quilting it will require to prevent the front from sagging. Insufficient quilting is the major reason many embellished quilts won't lie flat.
Hand quilting is preferable for most heavily embellished projects. Machine quilting can take its toll on embellishments. Not to mention that the embellishments sometimes get in the way of the machine needle.
Use a hoop to quilt, in order to maintain proper tension.
If embellishments don't get in the way, machine quilting may be a good choice.

The resulting embellished quilt will reflect your personal attention to detail and creativity. If you're just starting, choose a small project to get the feel.

Embellishing a quilt can be fun!