If inspiration has been eluding you lately, consider using one of the widely available, often inexpensive printed panels to get those creative juices flowing.
Printed panels are a terrific jumping off point for creativity. They are your not so blank, blank canvas on which to create and a terrific way for you to test some of the stitches, features and those lovely Janome presser feet available for your machine. I hear it all the time; you have so many presser feet, but you have no idea how to use them or what to do with them. Or, how about all those stitches? Perhaps you have one of our most-popular machines like the Janome 3160QDC or Janome 4120QDC.
That’s 60 stitches and 120 stitches respectfully, so you have a lot of creative opportunities at your disposal!
Below is a photo of a work in progress, which is actually a teaching sample I take to some of my Janome events. I’m not sure when or IF it’ll ever get finished as I prepared it as a sample to feature some of the UNLIMITED creative options Janome has available for you. It’s already a cute, fun scene printed on the central panel, but I made it extra-cute, extra-fun and totally unique by using a variety of Janome specialty feet and some of the features of my Janome machine, which in this case is the top-of-the-line Horizon MC 15000 Quiltmaker.
Since I wanted a larger wall-hanging I first added the two outer borders. Alternatively, I could have added some pieced blocks, or used a dramatic large-scale print, but instead, I left the borders plain to feature some special AcuFil Quilting, – another fabulous Janome innovation; one of my all-time favourite features of the MC 15000 Quiltmaker.
For those not familiar, AcuFil Quilting is done in the hoop of the embroidery machine. YES! IN THE HOOP! That’s how I quilted all the stippling in the centre panel. Though I’ve been quilting for 27 years, I could never stitch all that so consistently!
Since the Janome Horizon MC 15000 Quiltmaker is a 3-in-1 machine; sewing, quilting and embroidery, I can easily switch back and forth between the different sewing modes. If you have a MC 500E, Janome’s top-of-the-line embroidery only machine, you are in luck! There’s an AcuFil Quilting Kit available for your machine as well!
Once quilting was complete, I used some of the Janome specialty presser feet to stitch some fun embellishments. This is a GREAT time to open that drawer; get out all those little boxes of the left-over lace, bits of trim, ends of ribbon, yarn, etc. which you’ve been collecting for years. Come on! I can’t be the only one! lol!
Be sure to check back for Part 2 of Sewing with Panels where I’ll share with you all the fun speciality presser feet and embellishment techniques I used.
Happy Sewing!
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Janome Life 