 I have some leftover fabric from my large 365 Challenge quilt. I want to make a 40x40 cm cushion out of it. An applique seems like a fun idea. |
 For making this cushion, you will need a few things. First, of course, some leftover fabric. As you can see, most of the fabric is used in the background of the cushion. You will need about half a meter for this. Besides the large piece for the background, you will need at least 6 different scraps of fabric.This technique uses Freezer paper. Freezer paper has a shiny plastic coating on one side. By placing the paper with that side on the fabric and pressing it with a hot iron, it adheres to the fabric. The Freezer paper comes off easily and leaves no glue residue. Of course, you will also need the pattern for this cushion. You can download that pattern here. |
 Carbon paper is very handy for transferring the pattern onto the freezer paper. You can easily use black carbon paper from the stationery store. I have some colored carbon paper from Burda that I use. You will also need a paper scissors and a pencil with a hard point. I use a mechanical pencil. To trace the large pattern onto the background fabric, I also use a special pen that disappears when it gets wet. There are different types of these pens. Some disappear when you go over them with an iron, but that's less convenient because you might want to iron your pattern from time to time. |
 Once you have downloaded the pattern, print it out. Make sure not to scale the pattern, or the measurements will be off. Transfer the small pieces one by one to the rough side of the freezer paper. The easiest way to do this is with carbon paper. Simply trace over the patterns with the pencil. Press hard enough so the pattern transfers well. If you look closely, you'll see that all the pieces are in reverse. This is also noted at the top of the pattern (pages 10 and 11). |
 By shifting the pattern a bit, you can transfer all the pieces as close together as possible. If the carbon paper is unclear on some pieces, touch it up with the pencil. |
 After transferring all the pieces to the freezer paper, they need to be cut out accurately. Cut as neatly as possible. I find it handy to store all the pieces in a small container. Some pieces are very small and easy to lose. |
  Once you have cut out all the pieces neatly, tape the two pattern pieces of the rooster together (pages 8 and 9). The rooster needs to be transferred to the background fabric. I chose a light cream-colored fabric for this. You can do this with a light box, but if you don't have one, this method also works well:
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  Choose a scrap fabric for all the pieces you have cut out of the freezer paper and iron the freezer paper onto the back of the fabric. The shiny side of the paper goes on the back of the fabric. |
 After ironing the pattern pieces onto the fabric, cut them out with a seam allowance of about 1/4 inch or 5 to 6 mm as shown in the photo. |
  The piece is now first pressed into shape and then sewn in place on the background. To press the piece into shape properly, make small snips in the curves. The snips should not reach the template. Cut corners diagonally but not all the way to the edge of the template. Indentations get a snip just before the template. A mini iron, as shown in the photo, works very well for pressing. |
 Here is an example of how you could make the snips. The more snips, the better you can press a curve into your piece. If you snip all the way to the template, you may sometimes get a hole. Therefore, it is best to snip just before the template if possible. |
 After snipping the pieces, you can easily fold them inward around the template and press. If the points do not stay well or if some fabric sticks out, you can adjust this while sewing. |
 Remove the template before sewing. Some people leave the template in and make a snip in the back of the fabric when everything is done. They then pull the template out through the snip. I don't like this, so I remove the template before sewing. Since the shape of the rooster is also transferred onto the background fabric, you can easily see how the final shape of the piece should be. |
 Once you have pressed the piece into shape, place it in the correct spot on your pattern. Some parts overlap, like here at the bottom of the dark rooster comb. Also, the right side and the bottom of the beak piece fall under another piece. These pieces do not need to be pressed into shape. You sew them onto the background with a straight stitch close to the edge. After sewing the remaining pieces on, the straight stitches will be completely hidden. You can see that the bottom of the head is not pressed into shape either. Another piece will overlap here as well. |
 To make the stitches as invisible as possible, use thread that matches the color of the piece you are sewing on. Secure this thread at the back of your background fabric or under the piece to be sewn. Then, insert the needle through the piece to be sewn right next to the edge. Next, insert the needle directly beside the piece down and diagonally up behind the fabric, so it comes out right next to the place where your thread exits the fabric. This makes the stitches almost invisible, as seen in the photo. |
  Some pieces are quite tricky to press into shape. When you lay them on the fabric, they may not stay in shape. The legs are an example of this. A "Hera marker" from Clover can be very handy here. It has a point with which you can push pieces of fabric back into place. It looks a bit like a plastic sculpting spatula. |
  You can adjust the order of sewing the pieces as you find convenient. You might even prefer some pieces on top for a better look. Do what you find most enjoyable. If you're unsure about the order, you can follow the one given here. After the legs, I first attached the body. Look closely at the photo to see which part needs to be pressed into shape and which part can remain flat. After the body, I started with the tail. You can see that I first pinned the tail in place. |
  Again, you can see that the pieces are attached with very small stitches. In the far-right photo, you can see that the tail lies flat and is well-attached. Note that light-colored thread was used to make the stitches visible. Use thread in the color of the piece you want to attach. |
   The next pieces to attach are the back, the wing, and then the collar. |
   Here, I attached the eye and two more parts of the tail. It is starting to look like a beautiful rooster. |
   Three more pieces of the tail are neatly attached. |
   Finally, the rooster is finished except for one piece. It already looks beautiful, and I am very pleased with the colors. |
 This is it, the rooster is finished. Once all the pieces are attached, press it well. If there are still small lines from the pattern, you can gently remove them with some water. |
 In the pattern, you will find the parts of the border as templates or rotary cutting. The template for the center block (the rooster) consists of two parts (pages 3 and 4). You can tape these pages together and use them to position the rooster neatly in the center of your cushion. To do this, cut out the middle part of the template, leaving the seam allowance. Now you have two taped pages with a large hole in the middle. Slide this paper over your piece with the rooster until the rooster is nicely centered in the hole. Check with a ruler if your hole is square and adjust the paper if necessary. Now you can mark the four corners on the fabric with the applique using a water-soluble pen. Connect the points with a ruler and the water-soluble pen. You now have the stitching lines for your applique on the fabric. Cut out the applique with a seam allowance of 1/4 inch. Attach the diamond border to this. |
 Here, the outer border with a diagonal seam is attached to the diamond border. You can do this by hand or with a sewing machine. |
 To make the rooster stand out nicely, place the piece on batting, with a backing fabric underneath, and quilt it. I stitched close to the outside of the rooster with the sewing machine, using thread in the color of the background so it doesn't show. |
 In some areas, this can be tricky due to the small curves. Sew slowly and carefully, and don't forget to quilt the space between the two legs. |
 The diamond border is quilted 1/4 inch from the seam, as is the long seam of the border itself. You can see this clearly in the photo next to it. |
 Once the mini quilt is completely finished, make a back for it. Make the back out of two pieces so you can insert a cushion. Instructions on how to do this are briefly described at the end of the article with the butterfly cushion. |
 Using a firm cushion will make your rooster look the best. |
  I made the rooster here in red tones, but other color combinations also give beautiful results, such as blue or multiple colors. |