Springtime applique flowers with the Brother Innov-ís BQ3050 machine

Yesterday I showed you how to use the Brother Innov-ís BQ3050 sewing and quilting machine to prepare the background for some machine applique.

Finished background for applique flowers

Today I’ll show you how to use the Brother ScanNCut SDX225 electronic cutting machine to cut the applique shapes and the Brother Innov-ís BQ3050 to machine applique the shapes.

Flower Appliques

Using my Brother ScanNCut SDX225 electronic cutting machine and pieces of Banyan Batiks Sugar Crystals fabric leftover from the binding fabric, I cut six simple flower shapes in three different sizes. I used the Brother Fabric Mat and the Brother Thin Fabric Auto Blade to make sure I got accurate cuts of these flowers.

Place fabric on the fabric mat and load into the ScanNCut SDX225.

Applique flowers are perfectly cut on the ScanNCut SDX225.

I arranged the flowers on the quilted background and basted them in place using my favorite basting stitch on the Brother Innov-ís BQ3050 – stitch 1-08.

Baste the flowers in place using stitch 1–08.

Once I basted the flowers, it was time for some stitching. I wanted to try a few different methods of machine applique for the flower shapes, so my table runner is now a bit of an applique sampler! The first four stitches were done using the MuVit Digital Dual Feed Foot. There are 30 stitches in the Q section, many of which can be used for applique. You can also use any of the straight stitches in the utility stitch menu.

For my table runner, I used:

• blanket stitch Q14
• quilting applique stitch Q12
• straight stitch
• hand stitching with a long-running stitch and embroidery floss
• free-motion stitching

Three free motion feet come with the Brother Innov-ís BQ3050: foot C, foot O and foot E.

Three free motion feet come with the Innov-ís BQ3050.

When in free motion mode on the Brother Innov-ís BQ3050, the internal sensor detects the thickness of the fabric, and the free motion foot is raised to the height specified in the machine settings screen. Settings can be changed on the settings screen. For example, you would increase the setting when sewing very soft fabrics.

Free motion key on the Innov-ís BQ3050

When using the Free Motion Quilting Foot C, you must use the included straight stitch needle plate. Free motion stitching requires some practice, but the finished results are well worth the effort. It’s a good idea to do some practice stitching on scrap fabrics before stitching on the quilt.

I used the Open Toe Foot O to stitch around two of the flowers.

Here are some close-up views of the raw edge applique stitches:

Blanket stitch and free motion stitching on the appliqued flowers

Hand stitching, quilting applique stitch and straight stitch on the appliqued flowers

And here’s my finished table runner using Banyan Batiks Sugar Crystals. Hopefully, we’ll all be able to get together soon with family and friends and enjoy a nice cup of tea!

Finished table runner with raw edge, machine stitched applique

I’ve really enjoyed using my Brother Innov-ís BQ3050 machine, with all its wonderful features, to make these raw edge applique pieces this week. I hope you’ll give this technique a try too!

This is part 5 of 5 in this series

Go back to part 4: Machine basting and topstitching a spring table runner

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