Let’s Make a Christmas Tree: A Holiday Wall Quilt
I love decorating my house for the Holidays! I also love making something decorative that I can give to my friends and family.
A Christmas Tree Wall Quilt is a perfect gift, and it’s also a perfect decoration for my house. It works well on a door, or on the wall. Furthermore, it can be decorated in a zillion different ways: presents, and glitter, ribbons, beads, fabric ornaments, and decorative stitches. It’s a fun way to spend your time.
This workshop, which is presented in 5 different Chapters, approaches a quilt a bit differently from what you may be used to. The background is pre-quilted, and the raw-edge appliqué celebrates the stitches: instead of trying to hide them they become decorations.
First, you will choose background, tree, and present fabrics for your quilt, including a group of plain background fabrics which will be cut into strips. They will be sewn together and arranged in different directions to create a visually textured background. The background will then be sandwiched and quilted using lazy curves and decorative stitches.
Next, the tree fabrics will be cut out using the templates given in the workshop packet. You will be encouraged to use 8 different fabrics for the tree branches. This will allow the branches to be easily distinguished from each other when stacked and decorated.
Tree Branches will be placed on the background and sewn together in groups. Although the tree branches are different green fabrics, the groups are identified by different colors, which makes it easier to place the branches in the right position.
The tree branches are sewn to the background by raw edge applique. Fusible web is used as a ring around the outer edge of each branch. This will allow you to easily sewribbons, beads and other decorations on the tree branches. Using fusible web for the entire branch can make it difficult to sew on decorations.
Once the tree branches and presents have been placed, they are sewn using decorative stitches and metallic threads. This insures that the threads enhance the tree motifs. Bows are placed on the presents, and glitter can be used to create decorations.
The finished trees can be decorated using fabric circles with beads, ribbons and bells can also be added, or the tree can be left with only decorative stitches. It’s your tree you can decorate it the way that you want to.
Or, you can make another tree - then another, and another, and another..............
Blue Spruce
Evergreen
Christmas Tree Fabric Kits are available on my website: suebeevers.com
They come in two different color variations: “Evergreen” and “Blue Spruce”
Each kit contains: (8) 9” x 20” different Tree Branch fabrics (2) 9” x 20” decorative fabrics that will enhance the tree branches (1) 9” x 20” fabric for the tree trunk. (6) 10” squares of fabrics for the presents under the tree
Students will have to provide their own Cream/White Background fabrics along with Quilt Backing, Batting, and Binding fabrics. Tree Branch fabrics can be sewn together for binding strips
by Sue Beevers, Trillium Ridge Patterns
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