How to Find Applique Patterns
To find just the right appliqué patterns, you really need to think outside of the box and look beyond the ordinary pattern books. Although there are many wonderful books that provide a wide variety of patterns, creating your own unique design by combining images from a variety of sources takes it a step further.
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Things You'll Need
- Coloring books
- Children's picture books
- Magazines
- Classroom bulletin board pattern books
- Overhead projector sheets (optional)
- Photocopier
- Pencils/marker
- Fabric marking pencil
Instructions
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Collect a variety of coloring books for the theme you would like to create. Coloring books are available in just about any theme you can imagine. Consider jungle animals, baby animals, farm animals, and other wild life books to complete a set of animal templates at your fingertips. Fantasy and fairy tale coloring books will provide a variety of castles, flowers, and fantasy animals. Coloring books also provide a nice assortment of house styles, vehicles, and plants and flowers. Images in coloring books generally have strong outlines and simple designs that are ideal for a basic template.
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Check children's picture books and magazines for images you can use for a template. Quality books for children often feature images with clear bold lines that make them ideal as appliqué patterns. Advertisements in magazines frequently provide creative images that are fun to duplicate. These are a great source for landscape and natural images that are found in backgrounds.
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Another wonderful source is the large pattern books for bulletin boards and classroom displays. these can be purchased at educational supply stores or book stores. They often include seasonal and holiday images that are perfect for appliqué.
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Photo copy the patterns you wish to create a template of. Make two copies for each template. Mark the pieces with the appropriate colors on both copies. One copy will be kept as a reference and the other will be used to create the actual template.
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Photocopy the marked pieces onto overhead projector sheets. You can do this yourself by following the directions for the bypass tray on your photocopier. Any quality photo copy service can make these for you for less than you would pay for a patterns.
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If you do not have access to a photocopier, simply trace the pattern onto thin cardboard and cut apart the pieces. Cardboard from cereal and cracker boxes is ideal.
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Cut the templates into individual pieces.
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Trace the templates on to the appropriate fabric, cut and appliqué as usual.
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Tips & Warnings
Be sure to use photocopier quality overhead sheets. These are designed to withstand exposure to heat in the copier.
If you intend to sell your work, be sure the pattern you copy is copyright free.
