I started organizing my sewing room a bit this weekend. I didn’t get too far because I was distracted by some of the patterns, books, and fabrics that I “re-discovered.” One of those books is called Picture Piecing by Cynthia England.

Picture Piecing Book

The idea behind this technique is to create realistic pictorial quilts by piecing fabric together rather than using an applique technique. It differs from paper piecing in that you use freezer paper and iron it to the right side of your fabric rather than using it on the back of the fabric. Another major difference is that you don’t sew through the paper like you would in paper piecing. This means that there is no paper to remove at the end of your project!

I highly recommend getting a copy of Cynthia’s book to learn more about this fascinating technique.

The book contains a small butterfly practice pattern so you can get a feel for the technique before moving onto more complex projects.

Here’s my sample butterfly:

Batik Butterfly

I really like how the butterfly turned out and plan to use it in a yet-to-be-determined project!

One of my goals this year is to design my own picture pieced pattern. Before I do so, I went ahead and ordered one of Cynthia’s patterns to gain more experience. You can order the patterns directly from her website.

Have you sewn a picture pieced quilt before? If so, please share in the comments below!

Happy piecing!
~Jennifer~