Also, take a look at Hollis Chatelain's quilts to see how she does it. Hers is exquisitely done.
Kathy

I hear ya Margo The funny thing is she is a very hairy child but not on her face. I have started on her hair and have the tiara done quite sparkly trying to follow the way the hair grows. One suggestion was to outline her face and let it pop out but I see it as totally quilted, it is surprising how many colours there is in the photo. I plan on taking my time until I get the confidence. Thank you everyone for your input. Great idea Rosemary to practice on another photo. Joan

Please don't quilt my chinny-chin-chin hairs on this gorgeous child!! :shock:

That is fantastic! You did a super job of putting your pieces back together. Your granddaughter is darling. I know you'll quilt it just right.

(When I did a family photo that finished about 13" x 20", I only outline quilted around them. I used clear thread.)

How about printing up another copy (or 2) in a smaller scale to practise on so you can see how the lines of stitching flow on the face. Also consider how the hairs grow on the face (go on admit it - we all have them ) and use them as as a starting point for your stitching lines.

joan, she's beautiful - well done - look forward to see the quilted result

Joan, your granddaughter is cute! You might want to use Quilter's Preview Paper http://www.quilterstouch.com/previewpaper/
or a piece of plexiglass (hardware store) with a dry erase marker to divide up the different areas of her face before you start stitching it.
You can also try out different angles for stitching that will work for each area.

I printed a photo of my granddaughter tiled on nine pages. Now I am trying to free motion quilt it but I am afraid of ruining it when I quilt on the face. I purchased ten shades of flesh coloured thread when I muster the courage to quilt. The background I have started stipple quilting on the blue that is not so scarry. All advice greatly appreciated.

My daughter has had a number of different fabrics custom-printed on Spoonflower.com -- they came out great!

I have done larger photos by dividing and printing on the EQ inkjet sheets. I followed Jeanie's advice here as well as a tutorial on her website for dividing photos for multiple pages. I buy my EQ sheets off of Amazon... much cheaper.

grandedesign wrote:
OH MY WORD!

I could drop some serious money on that site! Not only that, but I could see some serious applications for designs such as the Plimouth Jacket could be printed for embroiderers to make their own - If the V&A would permit the printing of their designs, I will have to try and contact the textiles curator there and see what they think?

That's fantastic that they will print with no minimum yardage. Hey, who knew that watching Project Runway would come in handy one day?

Thanks for the compliment on my quilt- that's the 2009 BOM, which I took to Ricky's retreat last July for show and tell. He snapped the picture and put it in my profile for me, God bless him!

Kathy

I saw the same thing on Project RunWay! I just found the website "Fabric on Demand" they say they will print anything and no minimum. I will give it a try and see how it works. Thanks (and love your quilt

Wendy, I know that there are places that custom print fabric in small batches. I watched Project Runway one year and they printed some yardage for each contestant one week. I also think I've seen something at quilt shows, I wasn't interested at the time so didn't pay attention but I know it can be done. Probably expensive, but certainly less than buying Ricky's 36 inch wide printer :shock: .

Google will no doubt bring up lots of hits. Let us know what you find out!

Kathy