Category: Uncategorised

Here’s another of the series of circular designs that I’ve been working on. I particularly like this one – I made a little bag with it and I have to say it looks very nice. As always, the pattern includes an appliqueed circular background to the flower, but you don’t have to se that if you don’t want to. The design will work just as well without it

So it’s just a colourful autumnal sort of design, for the 4×4 inch (100 mm x 100 mm) hoop. Here it is, in .pes v.6

I’m still having major problems with this new version of the blog, so I would be VERY grateful if you could let me know if you have problems with it. For example, if you can’t download the design, just let me know and I’ll send it to you directly

Right – onwards and upwards with the circular designs! I seem to have done a lot of them recently, so I’l be posting more of them as freebies over the next few weeks

There’s nothing much to explain about this one – it’s pretty much just as it looks. As with last week’s design, it’s digitised with an appliqueed circular background, but you don’t need to add this if you don’t want to – it will be fine if it’s stitched straight on to the backing fabric. And of course you can leave out the circular frame entirely if you like

Here is the design file, in .pes v.6

So it’s back to normal (I hope!) after a very long holiday break – made to seem even longer by the fact that here in the Scottish Highlands we were completely snowed in for something like three weeks

I spent a lot of this time going over my huge collection of old designs. I’ve been digitising now for nearly 15 years, and my files are full of designs that I no longer use, and I would really like to make many of them available to blog readers

So we’ll start 2026 with a free round design featuring flowers. I have several similar round floral designs which I’ll put up in coming weeks, but this will do to begin with. Here it is, in .pes v.6

It’s digitised so as to stitch on a circular appliqueed background, but you could just as well leave out the applique steps, as I’ve done on the stitchout that I’m showing

By the way, I’m still having problems with my new blog provider, so I hope that you can download the file successfully. Please let me know if you have any difficulties

Three Christmas freebies (I hope…)

Well, I’d be lying if I were to say that this blog is as easy to do as the last one – it’s a MAJOR headache. But let’s give it another try

I’m probably asking for trouble here because I’m going to try to post three freebies, which involves trying to post three images and three .pes files. But nothing ventured, nothing gained…

Here are three Christmas decorations – they’re very old and I think I posted them as freebies something like 12 years ago. But I don’t suppose I have many readers left from those years, so let’s give it a try. They have an appliqueed background with decorative motifs on top – you should be able to see how they’re meant to look

Good luck! Buy the way, if you’ve sent a comment in to the last posting I won’t have answered it because that’s a complicated business now. But I did read them, and I really appreciate it. And who knows – I might get used to this new system in time!

I’m still getting used to this new blog format, but with luck I should be able to post again with no problems (wish me luck!)

So – here’s a new freebie, as I promised. Many years ago I was fascinated by many of the older “schools” of design, such as Arts and Crafts and Art Nouveau, and did a great many designs based on their principles. And here is something from my old Art Nouveau collection.

It’s a very simple little floral design which could be used in many different ways, and is perhaps most obvious as a quilt square. The green frame is quite optional- it stitches out last so can easily be left out if you prefer

It’s for the 4×4 inch (100 x 100 mm) hoop. Here it is in .pes v.6

 I found these two birds hidden the files, relics of some forgotten project. They had originally been done with appliqueed bodies, but I wanted to give them away as freebies and I sometimes get the impression that some people, especially beginners, find applique a little too demanding. So I’ve re-done them, and they’re now entirely embroidered

 

 

Horizontal Bird 1

 

Horizontal Bird 2

I’m not sure where you could use them, but long thin designs can often come in handy as borders, or to fill in gaps in pieced quilts. They’re both for the 5 x 7 inch (130 x 180 mm)  Click Download Horizbird 1 v6 for the first one, and Download Horizbird 2 v6 for the second, in .pes v.6

Now – I’ve been having my usual difficulties with Typepad, so if you have problems downloading these just drop a line to the “Comments” section, making sure to include your e-mail address, and I’ll get them out to you in e-mails

 

Recently I’ve been spending more time than I’d like with an excellent local physiotherapist, who’s been helping me a lot. The other day I was wearing a pair of earrings in the shape of owls, and she admired them, saying that she loved owls. So I thought I’d make her a little thank-you present in the form of one of my old owl designs

It’s just one of a HUGE owl collection I did some years ago. I’ve always liked owls as subjects – they’re interesting and unusual, and you can make them funny or realistic or dramatic or cute, but they always have character

I’m still going through my (immense) collection of old designs and haven’t managed to organise any new freebies for this week, but I’ll be back next week with more. By the way, if you have any ideas for free designs you’d like to see posted here, just let me know

 

What the physio wants, the physio will get!