Juggling Snowman

  Let me show you my sweet applique design Juggling Snowman... I love Christmas and the whole holiday season so I drew up this whimsical snowman. He such a happy fellow, juggling snowballs. Of coarse I had to find a way to use my favorite embellishments, buttons and yo-yo's...

The design is shown here centered on a 12 1/2" x 12 1/2" square.

Juggling Snowman



Let's make a fun table topper quilt with my Juggling Snowman applique design! Following the directions center the design on a 12 1/2" x 12 1/2" block. When I sew around my applique snowman, I use dark brown thread and a buttonhole stitch found on my sewing machine. I use a 'small' stitch setting on my machine. ( width- 2.5mm length- 1.2mm) I use white thread to stitch around the snowman's head and body. I then use dark brown thread to go around everything else.

The snowman block will be the center block of our table topper. I wanted my table topper to be scrappy so I decided to use a Cozy Christmas Jelly Roll from Riley Blake. I just love this fabric line! Makes me think of baking cookies with grandma! I open up the jelly roll and layed all of the fabrics out next to my machine. Grouping together similar colors... I used two light colored strips to frame my snowman block. Your center block should now measure 16 1/2" x 16 1/2".

I then made eight log cabin blocks using the 2 1/2" strips. It's a challenge for me to make something 'scrappy' I tend to over think things. Don't over think it... your blocks will turn out great! Use the photo above as a quide for your log cabin block layout. In order to get a 16 1/2" square, my center square is offset. I think it adds a bit of charm and actually enhances the scrappy look of my 'table' quilt. Finished blocks should also measure 16 1/2" x 16 1/2" square. Again, try not to fuss too much about planning out a scrappy block. Make a total of 8 log cabin blocks. Now the fun part is the layout. Again, I tend to over think layout... so have fun and arrange your quilt blocks out with your Juggling Snowman block in the center. Sew your quilt top together. If you want to add an additional border onto your quilt top, you sure could at this point. I did add a 2 1/2" border using the same fabric that I used for the background for my Juggling Snowman block. Then layer your quilt top with batting and backing and quilt it. Instead of embroidering the snowdrift on the snowman block, I quilted it. Leftover strips and scraps from my jelly roll make a wonderful scrappy binding for my quilt. I love scrappy bindings. This table top quilt is also a great size for a lap sized quilt. I was able to get project done in a weekend and it would make a wonderful gift for someone special.

This happy quilt is one of my favorites... I'm
ready to serve some tea and Christmas 

Juggling Snowman is such a happy snowman design.

This is one of my favorite projects and a trunk show favorite when I visit guilds. This is a wonderful project to make to give to that someone special. I love that I can use it on my table and it instantly screams Christmas festivities shall begin! This sweet design can be found in my Etsy shop as an instant PDF download.



 Quilt Doodle Designs Etsy Shop

This mini quilt could be made with any appliqué center. Just think of all of the possibilities…. You could use my Christmas Delivery design or even Peppermint Santa. Find a fun jelly roll that coordinates and you are on your way to a fun project! 

Happy Quilting!

Cindy & Belvedere

Oh Hallows Eve

Growing up my mom had these spooky paper decorations that she would put in the windows. I knew Halloween was right around the corner when mom would tape them to the inside of the windows. I can sometimes find them now at vintage shops. Well, my owl design is inspired by my childhood memories of these black and orange decorations. If you were a kiddo that grew up in the 60's and 70's you know exactly what I'm talking about. I took some liberties and added some green and purple too. The project I worked on today is a spooky owl perched on the moon on Halloween night. I decided to use wool for the applique and Primo Plaid Heather in gray from Marcus Fabrics for the background. This project could easily be done with cotton fabrics too using heat n bond. This design would be lovely on a tea towel or made into a table runner. Today I'm going to use this design to make a seasonal pillow for Halloween. Let me show you how I did it.....

Since I am using wool, I traced all my pieces onto freezer paper. Iron the freezer paper onto my wool and then cut the shapes out using my applique scissors from OLFA.

I used a 12 1/2" x 12 1/2" background square for my design. Here I have placed my owl design sheet onto my fabric and ruler to get an idea of placement on my square.

I looked at my owl design and decided the best place to start will be the owls body.

I always test my stitching on some scrap fabrics to make sure that it's the length and width that I want for my project. For my pillow I am using Lana Wool from Aurifil.

This is the stitch setting on my machine. I will be machine stitching my blanket stitch on my design. I love doing handwork, but my stitches aren't as beautiful as my wool working friends. Alas, I will machine stitch mine...

I begin stitching on the Owl's 

body.

I always test my stitching on some scrap fabrics to make sure that it's the length and width that I want for my project. For my pillow I am using Lana Wool from Aurifil.

This is the stitch setting on my machine. I will be machine stitching my blanket stitch on my design. I love doing handwork, but my stitches aren't as beautiful as my wool working friends. Alas, I will machine stitch mine...

I begin stitching on the Owl's body....

Then I stitch the moon, layering it over the body...

I move onto the Owl's feet and eyes....

Then the top of his head... see how I build my layers to make the design?

…. then the beak... or nose....

Lastly, I stitch the bats in place and add a few star buttons. I used micro mini buttons for his eyes.

To make the pillow back. I have sewn two 7 1/2" x 12 1/2" rectangles out of the same fabric I used for my design background. I left a 3" gap in my stitching so I can stuff my pillow later. You'll see, it's pretty awesome.

Next I trim my backing piece the same size as the applique front. (12 1/2" x 12 1/2") I then match them up together wrong sides together. Yes, I said , wrong sides together.

For my binding, I cut 2, 2 1/4" x WOF, then sewed them together end to end and ironed them in half lengthwise. The same way you would if you were making binding for a quilt.

Let's get back to our design front and backing. Remember I had you put them wrong sides together. Pin them together with the backside facing up.

Sew you binding on using a 1/4" seam. (Back side up)

Miter your corners.

Then fold your binding over to the front and stitch down using a decorative stitch. Remember to miter your corners. I find my wonder clips to be super handy to hold my corner and binding in place

I decided to use my Serpentine stitch.

Here's a closeup of my binding using a Serpentine stitch. I think it's a nice touch for my project.

If you didn't want to make a pillow, the 12 1/2" x 12 1/2" square makes a lovely mini quilt for a table runner. You could have used batting and quilted it then bound it for a table runner, mini quilt. My mini pumpkins from my garden sure look cute with this design.

To make a pillow, stuff the pillow through the opening you left in the back of the pillow. I used a blind whip stitch to close the opening.

~Oh Hallows Eve~

I hope you enjoyed todays project. My designs aren't just for tea towels! Just a few more days until Halloween, plenty of time to whip up this spooky pillow! I'm off to go buy some Halloween treats. We get tons of kiddos, even on a school night.

Happy quilting!

Cindy and Belvedere