I made this trapunto Hawaiian table topper as a project for the 20 Fresh Appliqué Techniques with Amanda Murphy Craftsy class. I've had great success with Amanda's designs and knew it would be an enjoyable learning experience.
This was a quick and fun topper to make and I used some fat quarters from my stash so it was a mini stash buster too. I worked with fusible web, wash-away thread, and FINALLY, my yo-yo maker! There are quite a few techniques to try with this project and I highly recommend Amanda's class if you want to experiment with applique. In addition to the topper there are patterns and instructions for a quilt, table runner, and pillow and so many different topics are covered, from stitching curves, making bias bars, working with decorative stitches, and the trapunto in this Hawaiian inspired table topper, among others. Amanda is a super teacher and answers any questions you have along the way.
I love how mine turned out even though it has quite a different feel than Amanda's bright and tropical theme. The only drawback is that the trapunto is quite puffy so you couldn't actually put a glass or something small on the uneven topper. If you used it purely for a decoration in the centre of a table or under a heavy glass bowl there wouldn't be a problem at all! I ended up pinning mine to the wall in my workshop and addd it to my collection of wall hangings. It was a lot of fun to do and I really enjoyed making those yo-yos. I used the Clover yo-yo maker I bought way back in July of last year and they were very quick and easy to make. I was surprised how small they ended up but they were the perfect size for the project. I didn't like sewing them on by hand much and the centres could have been tighter.
The topper is finished with a facing so that there is no need to mess with binding the scalloped edge. I preferred that method to using bias binding! I hand stitched it closed on the back (which wouldn't be seen anyway).
Here are some other pics of the work in progress. I used poly batting for the trapunto and my flexible ruler to create the shape of the quilting. I used my Horizon to free-motion quilt the stippling. Click on any photo to see it larger.
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