seasaw2mch

I'm thinking about making a quilt that has some chenille characters in different blocks but I don't want to do the whole block in chenille.
So I was wandering if anyone here has made their own chenille pieces and could point me in the right direction on how to do it without doing the chenille on the whole thing.

for example:
if I want to make a squirrel on a log. I want the squirrel to be made with the chenille so he looks more real sort of like having fur on him but I want all the other parts of the block pieced like you normally would.

My biggest question would be, is it possible to chenille just part of a piece and how do you keep the ends from coming apart. DO you just back stitch the ends or is there something else I need to know?

ckcowl

i will try to find a couple pics but quick answer- yes you can use chenille and use it without a whole block being chenille-
you for your squirl you would make a square of chenille in the color you want your squirl to be- cut him out & applique (blanket or zigzag stitch him to a back ground block-
we have made pieces of chenille for flower petals, leaves, stems, critters, all kinds of stuff- just layer, stitch cut, mist with water & brush to make the chenille- then cut out your shapes & stitch them-
my granddaughter's cheer quilt has a chenilled pom-pom
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seasaw2mch

cool that quilt looks good.
Is it possible to make the chenille shape on the block without doing it as an applique?
I've seen were someone on the internet showed how to make chenille strips. That is where you sew the layers together and cut them into strips, but the problem was they didn't explain any further on how to use them.

They suggested, or I got the impression that you take the strips and sew them onto your project in what ever shape you wanted to and then brushed them out after they are all sewn but again, I'm not sure because I didn't see anything written past the part of cutting them into strips to use.

zipit

Isn't it fabriccafe.com?

irishrose

I would think you could put the extra layers of fabric behind your block, sew around the squirrel shape with a small stitch, then cut the lines for the chenille. I've only made a chenille scarf, so don't quote me. How will you change colors for Mr Squirrel doing it this way?

Handcraftsbyjen

Yes, you can. If you use Chenille Sew Easy (or maybe it's Chenille So Easy). You can do all sorts of fun stuff with the product. It's made by a shop in WV.

GingerK

Shoot, why not? Just look at all the sh--tuff they use on crazy quilts--silk, lace, wool, buttons ans sequins--if you want to use chenille, go for it. After all, IT IS YOUR CREATION and therefore you should have control!

Tartan

Yes you can do just parts of a block in chenille. You can make it yourself or buy it premade. If you wanted certain colours or to match the rest of the appliqué, I would make it myself. You can stack 3-4 squares of fabric on top of each other. Pin them together and draw lines on a 45* angle every 1/2 inches or narrower depending on how high you want the fuzzy. Sew down the line and then cut the strips apart. Before you fluff the strips, sew them down the stitching line in place. You can buy a chenille brush to fluff the chenille so it doesn't have o be washed and dried o fluff it. If you surf the net, I am sure there will be a youtube video.

seasaw2mch

what I was thinking of doing is making the chenille strips myself so I could have them in the colors I want. Then after I piece the block, add the chenille strips on top of the body of the critter sort of like filling in the colors as needed to cover the body parts. Like the squirrel, I could use white over the belly, shades of gray on the other parts and a tad of black for eyes and nose.
I guess I'll have to play with this and see how it might work.