Making Squirrels

This is the current state of my work table. I have reached a place on my vine and leaves where I really need to add the squirrels to determine where they will fit and what branches and leaves will go around them. I was making great progress appliqueing the vines and leaves till I hit this roadblock. So This past week has been all about these two squirrels. When you design everything yourself you have to do lots of work and research to find the image, draw it, tweak, it and tweak it more, again, and again till it works. I found images on the internet and got to drawing but they did not look right. I had my artist daughter help and then they were better but looked more like dragonlike cartoon features (she draws that style). Well now I had the proportions right and kept drawing. I had pages of squirrels till I finally settled on these two. The one on the too is pretty easy and is ready to be appliqued down, the bottom one is much more complicated and I am still tweaking.

I made templates for the outline and this is the starting point. I have simplified the idea and some of the lines will be defined with quilting instead of different parts. This is a process of designing as you go. I am pretty happy so far with how they are coming together and hope to finish the second squirrel this week and get them appliqued on the quilt.

This is a little preview of where the first squirrel will go. There will be lots of branches and leaves added before he is appliqued down but at least now I can figure out that design.

Here is the placement for the four applique creatures. The squirrel on the top right will be behind the vine so that is why he is so problematic to figure out. I am making progress with his design though.