curves
Showing posts with label curves. Show all posts
half circle scallop trim ✽ a mini tutorial
I was given a beautiful low volume nine patch block that I wanted to turn into a cushion. After spending a long time thinking about it, I was inspired by the Glam Clam quilts on social media. This is made from circles rather than clamshells and they are so tactile, like rounded prairie points.
They are really easy to make!
Decide on the size of scallops you want to fit your project, find something circular with a diameter of that size (like tape or a cup or plate). Cut fabric squares large enough to draw circles and leave a 1/4" seam all the way round. For each scallop you need two pieces of fabric. You could use muslin or something plain for the back if you prefer.
Draw a circle on the back of one of the fabric squares and place on top of another square so that the right sides are together. Pin in the centre.
Sew around the drawn line. For larger circles this is quite easy, just gently turn the fabric as you sew. Smaller circles will require more stopping and starting to make sure you are sewing on the line.
Trim around the circle using pinking shears. This helps you have nice curves :)
You now have two scallops. Turn right side out and give it a good press with an iron.
My scallops were 4.5", to stop them from folding in on themselves or getting lumpy, I top stitched around the edges for stability.
Decide on your placement and then layer scallops right sides down, so the outer edges line up with the edge of the block. The floral scallops you see peeking out below will actually be at the front after sewing:
Place a border strip right side down over the top, lining up the bottom edges:
Pin it all in place and sew using a 1/4" seam. You might want to use a quilting needle (rather than a piecing one) in your machine because there are a few layers of fabric there.
Now I have to admit to a mistake you may have already spotted. By sewing on the borders I cut off some of my scallop edges! To avoid this you could just move the scallops 1/4" away from the edges on the first two rows you sew on the cushion. It doesn't bother me enough to redo it. I actually think it might work to stop the scallops sticking out from the cushion so much when it's stuffed!
I'm going to enjoy ruffling these!
space ~ le challenge ~ Levi's 2.0
It's time for the le challenge link again and this month's theme was space.
I have to admit to just not being able to make any of the things I had thought about for this month. Winter illness has swept through the household and it's been exhausting.
There were things that needed to be made though and I have a stack of WIPs that I want to get to, so I decided to literally make space. Instead of starting something new I pulled a project from the pile that's amassed on my desk!
I made this cushion for my sister to give to my brother in law. She gave me his old Levi's t-shirt that had a great monochrome pattern on, which happened to match beautifully with Doe by Carolyn Friedlander (you can still find some here and here).
I cut out the panel from the front of the t-shirt (I use pinking shears) then ironed some fusible interfacing on the back.
I kept it really simple, just adding some pieces either side of the t-shirt and then strips above and below.
I used a piece of wadding and a plain piece of cotton for the backing then quilted the strips using quilt as you go so it came together really quickly. The fabric is fairly busy so I didn't want to add too much with the quilting. I sort of echoed the curved shape of the Levi's logo in the strip of fabric underneath the t-shirt panel and did the same on the top strip . I used grey/white variegated perle thread.
For the backing I used a grey/mustard Intersections, Doe print and made a covered zip closure.
I hope he likes it!
Now it's your turn to link up - head over to le challenge for a chance to win some fabulous prizes! The link is open until 8pm GMT on 16th December.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)