Appliqu simply refers to sewing one piece of cloth onto another. Erica shows examples of appliqu from West Africa and from India. The main project for this episode is an appliqud potholder, with the pieces of appliqu cut out of felt. Since felt will not fray, the edges of the appliqu may be unfinished, or as Erica demonstrates, finished with a variety of stitches, including chain stitch, stem stitch, buttonhole, or couching. Taking inspiration from the Indian piece that she showed at the beginning of the episode, which has appliqu edged with cord, Erica demonstrates how to make cord for edging out of wool. Next, Erica shows a quilt made in Belfast, Maine in 1840 of appliqud velvet on silk and done with a variety of different embroidery stitches, including feather stitch, herringbone, and double feather stitch. She turns back an edge of the appliqu and reveals that there is paper backing the velvet. Reverse appliqu is also discussed in this episode. Summary and select metadata for this record was submitted by Amanda Sikarskie.
