Beaded Applique

Someone on a blog asked the question "What is your favorite Christmas decoration."  I have so many that bring back special memories, but this one is my favorite. 

This is my mom's Christmas tree. When I was growing up, we would always go into the woods and select the perfect cedar tree for our Christmas tree, a task my oldest brother Michael seem to enjoy the most.  Then we would decorate it with lots of pretty ornaments that Momma and Daddy had collected and that we had made.  As the years went by, and we grew up, they switched to a huge artifical tree, that was beautiful with all our ornaments on it.  I would help Momma get it decorated each year.  I have pictures of my children looking in awe at Grandma's Christmas tree.  By the time the great grandkids had started arriving, the big Christmas tree and all the decorations were just too much for my parents.

Momma had this sweet "feather" tree that Daddy had made for her many years before and she put her special ornaments on it.  This was the only tree she used in the last 15 years or so of her life.  I would go down in the mornings and help her put the decorations on and it was so very special to me.  The angel on the top of the tree was "Me" according to my mom and of course I believed her :) at least I knew I was in her eyes. She had choir boy ornaments for my brothers - but I was always on top of the tree! The tree is at my house now, and I feel so very priviledged each year to put my Momma's tree up in my home.

Now for the beaded applique.  In my last post I mentioned a bed runner I was working on.  I am now doing the applique on the borders on each end.  I drew some ornaments and when I started putting them on they just looked like they needed a little bling.  Having taken a beading class at the Quilters of SC Piecable retreat in the Fall, I decided to try out some beading on my ornaments, but I  wanted to incorporate the beading with the back basting applique.

I started by adding a bead with each applique stitch, but the beads were laying on their side, not a very attactive look!

Then I remembered that in class, we took the thread  back through the beads, so I tried this and the beads all stood upright, like soldiers at attention.

What fun!  It takes longer to do than back basting without the bling, but I love the look.  Here is what the end border looks like with all the beads.  I added gold chains using DMC gold metalic  floss - not my favorite thing to work with, and a few stitches at the top of the ornaments to be the ornament hanger. I am having fun with this one!

Hope you all have a wonderful Christmas week and a joyous Christmas Day!


Teresa