Make Greta Songe’s Embroidered Coasters!

Hello everyone! Greta here, and I’m so thrilled to host a tutorial.  I am a relatively new designer with Marcus, under the Studio 37 line of fabrics. This is my first guest post on the blog. I hope you enjoy the project. Feel free to post any questions in the comments section below or shoot me an email at gsonge@gmail.com.  Fabric will be arriving in your local quilt shops in just a couple of weeks!

 I am often trying to come up with simple projects that allow me to work on my sewing skills and can be used as great gifts. I came up with this little coaster project using KITSCHY KITCHEN as the focus fabric and Marcus’ Oasis canvas as a fantastic backing for the embroidery portion. It’s just the right weight and stiffness for the handwork, and comes in a great variety of colors. This is a great project for beginners.

 I realized that a coaster is something I use everyday. Don’t you?   The coasters at our house were really sad excuses for coasters, made up of mostly beat up, overused paper ones collected from who-knows-where. (uck!)  I thought it would be nice to have something beautiful, handcrafted, and enjoyable to look at, especially for an item that I use everyday!

  I have really been getting into embroidery lately. I took a class in African Folklore Embroidery from Catherine Redford at our local quilt shop, Home Ec Workshop. It really got me back into embroidery and totally hooked.

How can i buy cialis online? Its very easy, just go at buycheapcialisonlinemg.com and place your order.

 I just love the texture and charm that a little embroidery adds to a project. I’ve learned to take my time with the embroidery. Small stitches will come out a lot better, and you will enjoy the final product much, much more!

 This tutorial provides information for only three coasters, but I think six would be an ideal set. You could also add a few simple coasters using Kitschy Kitchen fabric for the entire front piece and a coordinate for the backing. Mix and match as you please and make it your own!

Okay, so let’s get started…

 First, download the embroidery pattern PDF from the link below. On the far right of the navigation section at the top of the page, you’ll see “EMBROIDERY PATTERN”

Once you click on it, the PDF should automatically download to your computer and print it out. Be sure to un-check “FIT TO SIZE” so that it prints out at 100%. Otherwise the sizing will be off.

 http://gretasonge.com

It should look like this: (Note: the image shown here is not full size)

Cut the fabric for embroidery pieces:

 (1) 8×10 inch piece of OASIS CANVAS

(I used 0100-3802 for this project. It’s a great neutral.)

Note: This will be cut down into the smaller 2 1/4 x 4 1/2 inch pieces of embroidered pieces later—Keep it larger at the beginning for ease when embroidering

Cut fabric needed for one coaster:

(1) 2 1/4 x 4 1/2 inch embroidered section of coaster

 (1) 2 3/4 x 4 1/2 inch piece of coordinating KITSCHY KITCHEN fabric (Fussy cut your favorite part for the main fabric. There are a lot of fun little vignettes to choose from)

(1) 4 1/2 x 4 1/2 inch piece of coordinating Kitschy Kitchen backing fabric of your choosing

 (1) 4 1/2 x 4 1/2 inch piece of cotton batting

 To begin, use a window or a light box for tracing the embroidery image and seam allowance markings onto the 8 x10 inch piece Oasis Canvas with an erasable fabric marker. You may also use the reversed version of the patterns from the PDF and an iron on transfer pen. Choose your favorite method. In the image below, there is no line for the seam allowance, but there will be one on the PDF for tracing.

For the embroidery, choose your favorite stitches. I used the chain stitch, the stem stitch, backstitch, French knots, and the seed stitch for most of the embroidery on the samples shown. There are lots of wonderful tutorials online and on YouTube if you just type one of the above stitch names into the search box. Mix it up, and have fun. That’s the number one rule of it all. Also, don’t worry if it is not perfect. My stitches are far from it, and I like to think that’s what makes handwork so lovely.

Once you have all of your pieces embroidered, cut them out along the solid outside lines.

Pin them right sides facing to their coordinating fabrics, and sew a straight stitch 1/4 from the edge….no need to backstitch these seams

Press the seam allowance towards the embroidered side. Press the front seam open. Square up this piece if it’s lost its right angles in the sewing process. You may be a pro, but I often end up with a couple wonky edges here & there that need squaring up every now and then! 🙂

Sandwich the pieces together as shown below with right sides facing…embroidered front side facing the backing piece, and the batting behind one of those. Pin the edges.  Straight stitch around the edge with a 1/4 inch seam making sure to backstitch at the start and end of this stitch, leaving about a 2 inch gap open for turning right-side out.

Clip the corners to reduce the bulk, making sure not to cut too close to the stitching. Turn it right side out, making sure to push out the corners using dull scissors or a chopstick.

 Pin the opening closed, and top stitch around all four sides with close to the edge. I went around a couple of times just for fun. Make sure to backstitch at the beginning and the end of your stitch.

Press them flat—and VOILA!  You have yourself a fun little coaster for you or a friend.

If you have any questions or comments, please post them below!