We used the Merry
Hedgehog Set to make a pretty Summer Hedgehog Quilt. The finished
size is about 18" x 24".
You'll need a 14 1/2" x 20 1/2" piece of plain natural cotton fabric
for the top; 4 strips of brightly patterned fabrics for the borders; a
19" x 25" piece of cotton fabric for the backing; a 19" x 25" piece of
batting; scraps of cotton fabric of any colors and patterns for the letters
(preferably bright); quilt binding; small fabric flowers and "insect" buttons
for finishing touches. All fabrics must be pre-washed.
Step One: To make the inscription "SUMMER", you have two options.
If you have a printer, use a word processing program to type the letters
and print them out. You might need more than one sheet of paper. Otherwise,
you will have to draw the letters by hand. Cut them out.
Each letter should be around 2" high. The letters don't have to be perfectly
straight and regular.
Step Two: Take the scraps of colored fabric/fabrics and press
them with starch. Place the paper letter patterns over the scraps and cut
out the fabric letters.
Step Three: Take the piece for the top and with the removable
marker draw two perpendicular lines, dividing the piece into four parts.
Place the letters along the vertical line. Mark the center of each embroidery
design. Now set the letters aside for now.
Step Four: Out of patterned fabrics cut out 2 strips measuring
2 1/2" x 14 1/2" and 2 strips measuring 2 1/2"x 24 1/2".
Attach the shorter strips to the upper and lower sides of the central
part. Attach the longer strips to the left and right sides on the central
part.
Step Six: Hoop the fabric for the first design. For stabilizer,
we recommend a light-weight tear-away stabilizer. We used Madeira's tear-away.
Embroider all four designs one by one. Tear the stabilizer away and press
the quilt top.
Step Six: Place the letters along the vertical line again. You
can either glue them with a temporary adhesive or pin them in place. Then,
zigzag the letters. It's also possible to attach the letters with a fusible
net; just follow the instructions on the label.
Step Seven: On an even surface, place the backing, cover it
with the batting and cover with the embroidered top. Pin or baste all three
layers together. Quilt around the edges of the letters and embroidery.
Then quilt all over the top.
Step Eight: Even up the edges of the quilt and finish them with
the binding. You can use either ready binding or make your own. The width
of our binding was 2 1/2" and we used binding made of different fabrics.
Step Nine: Now add some finishing touches - decorate the quilt
with fabric flowers and insect buttons. The quilt is ready and we hope
you like it!
Here are some more close-ups:
We hope you like our designs and come up with many of your
own ideas. Enjoy!
