Scrappy Log Cabin Pinnie Tutorial

A few years ago I did a Log Cabin Pincushion Tutorial. I like to make these little pinnies to give as bonus gifts with swaps, bee blocks, at sew days, etc. It's a quick project, and it's a great way to use up tiny scraps.

Project Quilting Challenge 9.6 this week is "SCRAPtastic". I'm running low on my stash of pin cushions, so I decided to make a new rainbow batch. This time around I decided to use muslin as a foundation to make the process quicker and easier (less trimming and fuss this way). Here's another quick tutorial on how to make this version of my scrappy log cabin pincushions.

Supplies:
One 5" x 5" piece of muslin or white/cream fabric for the foundation.
One 5" x 5" piece of fabric for bottom.
A bunch of small scraps.
Poly-Fil

You'll also need general sewing tools & notions such as:
Sewing Machine
Iron
Thread
Scissors
Quilting Ruler
Rotary Cutter
Hand-sewing needle
Pins 

Finished size after stuffing: approximately 4" x 4"

*Note: I like to roughly trim my scraps into square/rectangular shapes for this method. The pieces and seam allowance don't have to be perfect. That's the beauty of using the foundation.

Step 1:
Select two similarly sized small scraps. Place them right sides together, aligning the raw edges on one side, onto the foundation near the center. Stitch along that lined-up raw edge with 1/4" seam allowance.

Step 2:
Turn & Press.

Step 3: 
Working clockwise (or counterclockwise if you prefer), select another scrap that is approximately the length of the first two after they have been stitched together and pressed. Place the third scrap right sides together, perpendicular to the first seam and line up the raw edges along one side. Stitch. Turn & Press.

Step 4:
Continue in this manner until you have worked all the way around and covered the entire foundation. It's OK to go over the edges of the foundation.

Step 5:
Trim back down to 5" x 5".

Step 6:
Place the log cabin rights sides together with a 5" x 5" piece of fabric for the bottom. Stitch around all four sides, leaving a small opening in the center of one side for turning. Clip the corners.

Step 7:
Turn right sides out through the opening. Gently poke out the corners with a turning tool (knitting needle, chopstick, etc). Fold in the seam allowance at the opening. Press.

Step 8:
Fill with Poly-Fill.

Step 9:
Hand-stitch the opening closed with a slip stitch (ladder stitch) for an invisible seam.

Hooray! You're done! Tag me on Instagram @trina_peterson. I'd love to see your awesome Pinnie. :)

Introducing The Cascade Quilt

I'm excited and honored to introduce a new pattern by my friend, Susannah Kate:  

The Cascade Quilt!  

Cascade Quilt

I had the pleasure of meeting Susannah Kate last spring at the first ever Sew South Retreat.  Her new quilt pattern is great for beginner and advanced quilters alike.  It goes together quickly, but is also fun.  The directions are clear and concise.  Best of all, the result reminds me of one of the greatest games of my childhood: Tetris!

The Cascade Quilt pattern is now available for purchase in Susannah Kate's Etsy shop, https://www.etsy.com/shop/SusannahKateSews.  She has generously offered to give away one pattern at each of the stops on our blog hop.  The first reader to post a comment at the end of my post will receive the pattern for free in PDF format.

There are 10 stops on our Cascade Quilt Blog Hop.  This is the first!  The schedule for the rest of the hop is below.  Please stop by to see pictures of everyone's own special version of the Cascade Quilt.  If you don't win the free pattern here, maybe you can snag it at another participant's blog.

Cascade Quilt Blog Hop Schedule

Oct 26 – Trina @ www.trinapeterson.com

Oct 27 – Alex @ www.sewcutebyalex.blogspot.com

Oct 28 – Diane @ www.randomthoughtsdoordi.com

Oct 29 – Jenny Mae @ www.ohjennymae.com

Oct 30 – Courtney @ www.monpetitlyons.blogspot.com

Oct 31 – Heather @ www.quiltsinthequeue.com

Nov 1 – Mary @ www.fairlymerry.blogspot.com

Nov 2 - Summer @ www.artfulife.blogspot.com

Nov 3 – Susannah Kate @ www.susannahkate.com

Also, please visit Amber @ www.olivegypsy.wordpress.com . She has written a great post about the Cascade quilt pattern and has such cute pictures!

We are all “Instagrammers” and have a wonderful feed under the hashtag #cascadequilt . You will find more wonderful examples of the Cascade quilt including a beautiful one made with all solids! Include your own Cascade quilt – We’d all love to see it! 

Log Cabin Pin Cushion

Susannah Kate's pattern leaves few scraps behind - the sign of a conservative quilter!  However, with the little pieces left over, I put together a few fun pinnies.

   Click here to see my quick tutorial for a Log Cabin Pin Cushion you can make with your scraps.











Click here to download the tutorial in PDF format for free!

Thanks for stopping by!

Log Cabin Pin Cushion Tutorial

Log Cabin Pin Cushion Tutorial 

by Trina Peterson 

Supplies:

Scrap Strips

• Assorted fabric scraps at least 1.25" wide and various lengths
• A piece of backing fabric as big as you want the cushion (or you can piece this from smaller scraps)
• Polyester Fiberfill
• Rotary Cutter, Gridded Ruler, Cutting Mat
• Scissors
• Sewing Machine
• Thread
• Iron & Board

Cutting Instructions:

• Cut fabric scraps into 1.25" strips
• Cut two 1.25" squares out of 2 different color scraps

All seams are 1/4".

Step 1:

Begin with the two 1.25" squares.  Place them rights sides together and sew along one side.  Turn and press.

Step 2:

Step 2

Place a strip lengthwise and right sides together along one of the long sides from the two pieces you just stitched together (aligning edges).  Leave the strip a little longer at both ends (1/4" or less). Sew along the outer lined-up edge.  Turn and press.  Use the ruler and rotary cutter to square up the longer edges to match the first two pieces.

Step 3:

Continue sewing on strips in a clockwise rotation (as shown below), making the block larger with each additional strip.

Step 3

Step 3

Step 3

Step 4

Step 4:

When the front/block piece is at the size you want for your cushion, place it right sides together onto the backing fabric piece.  Trim the backing piece to match the size of the front.

Step 5

Step 5:

With the front and back still right sides together, place two pins about 2" apart along one edge.

Step 6

Step 6: 

Starting at the pin on the right, sew all the way around until you get back to the pin on the left.  Leave the 2" space open.  Back-stitch at the start and stop.  Clip the corners.

Step 7:

Turn the cushion right sides out through the opening.  Use a blunt tool (like a chopstick) to poke out the corners.  Press flat making sure the raw edges from the opening are tucked inside matching the seam allowance.

Step 8

Step 8:

Stuff the cushion with fiberfill through the opening until it is as firm as you like.  Pull the fill out of the bag/box in little bits to fluff it up.

Step 9:

Slip-stitch the opening closed, and you are done!  

If needed, find instructions for the slip-stitch at www.wikihow.com/Slip-Stitch.  Go to the bottom of the page to find the slip-stitch for hand-sewing.  There is also a great class on Craftsy.com that includes excellent instructions/demo for slip-stitching: Sewing Studio with Diana Rupp.  This is an awesome class for beginners!

For a different look, try making the strips different widths.  You can see examples of this in my picture below.  Just remember to square up the sides with your ruler and rotary cutter after adding each strip!

Variety in Strip Sizes