The Stitching Parliament – A Picture Walk Stand-up Finish
I just knew that I would stitch all 4 of The Stitching Parliament together & frame so that these fearsome foursome could hang on the wall in my studio!
I also had a ‘vision’ that each Hoot would be marvelous as a stand-up! These are stitched with 4 strands of DMC on 20ct Lambswool linen – they make awesome stand-ups!
There are plenty of Stand-up Finishing Tutorials out there (google it!) so I thought I would keep my finish to a simple picture walk!
I chose a fun quilting cotton for the back & base of my stand-ups.
Iron lightweight fusible interfacing to the back of each owl.
Print the template (link here & at the bottom of the post). Cut out template. (I traced my template onto tissue paper so that I could easily center my template.)
Trace onto the back of each owl (I use a Frixion style marker than irons away).
I wanted my quilting cotton to be a little weightier for this finish.
I marked the fabric with cross-hatch lines 1″ apart.
Lay the quilting cotton on top of a layer of Warm & Natural batting.
Quilt on the marked lines on a sewing machine.
A peek at what the quilted lines look like!
Place right sides together & sew 1/4″ inside the marked line (be sure to adjust your stitch length back to a normal setting after you adjusted for quilting lines).
Cut away excess, 1/4″ away from the sewing line.
Cut small snips into the seam allowance to accommodate the curved lines.
I can’t stress this enough, make many tiny snips in the curved sections to help avoid ‘dents’ & ‘points’ in the stand-up when you turn it right side out.
Turn the stand-up right side out. Use a knitting needle or other pointy item to work the curves so that they are smooth. Press lightly.
Turn the bottom edge of the stand-up to the inside & press with an iron.
Stuff with filling of your choice. (I used wool).
Good stuffing can take a while. Grab small bits & keep packing the wool in to make stand-up very firm.
When you are mostly stuffed, placed the stand-up onto a piece of mat board & trace around the base of the stand-up.
It will not be a perfect circle or oval. That is OK.
Each stand-up is unique & this method gets you a good fit.
Trim as needed to fit just inside the bottom opening.
Cover the base of the stand-up by lacing the quilting cotton (see my circular finish tutorials).
I place a bag of BB’s onto the base to help give my stand-up a good understanding.
Slip stitch the bottom into place. Tuck more wool as you go to make sure you have a firm finish.
These directions are provided to complement The Stitching Parliament chart. Pictures & instruction are the property of Hands On Design. Please do not copy for distribution or use in a video.
Enjoy, Cathy – Hands On Design
I just finished stitching Snips and can’t wait to get him together. Thank you.
Regarding the new ‘Stitching PARLIAMENT’ pattern…
What is the color chart to make the owls in blue rather than grey?
I’m not sure what you mean?