Burrito!

A celebration of an adorable feline named Burrito 💜…begins, as always, with a great photo. Run through one of my apps, I grab the image:

…and turn to my stash for fabric selection:

Opting for a light batik and a pale grey flannel for the fur colors, the next big decision is the best background:

Since the fabrics for Burrito’s fur are a solid and a very subtle blender, an interesting red background (love Marcia Derse!) and an solid black with personality (love Grunge!) seem to be good choices.

The light batik is, in fact, very light, so I can trace the eyes and nose right into the fabric before MistyFusing all:

Then, trim and fuse the kitty onto the background:

And, add ink! I used my Tsukineko pens to mark dark and light areas in the grey fur…I think of this as a roadmap for my Bernina, so I know where to use which thread ;).

The more shades of thread you use, the better the effect…ditto different weights. I use a number of spools from the Aurifil thread box I curated for my pet portraits :)…try 40wt for fur in multiple shades of the main fur color, and 12wt for the best whiskers! Of course after you complete your subject’s fur, the background will look a little wavy 😂:

For this background I used 50wt dark red and black Aurifil, following Marcia’s design for the red and stitching in imaginary paneling in the black bottom. Note that I always do the whiskers last– makes the background quilting much easier.

Finishing with satin piping and zigzag stitching provides a frame for this irresistible boy :). 🐾🐾💜