Friday 1 August 2014

Wool felt applique cushions

While I was in Sydney I went to the Material Obsession shop, and was fortunate enough to meet up with Wendy Williams again. I'd first met Wendy when she taught a class at Handmade in Wellington in June 2013. I was really inspired by her designs, and have used quite a few of her patterns since then.

I took my cushion covers along to show her. These are made by cutting circles or flowers out of fabric, and then appliqueing them onto felt. If you're going to try this at home, don't cut the felt until you've sewn the fabric on - it's too hard to made the fabric fit a precut circle. Once you have a pile of flowers on felt, you can plan the layout and hand stitch them onto the background using Perle 8.

my first wool felt applique cushion

and the second one
I purchased these patterns from Wendy at the Handmade workshop, but they are available on her website: Flying Fish kits if you're interested. They're also included in her book called Wild Bloom and Colorful Creatures, along with may other templates for birds and other creatures. The book is better value because it contains lots of patterns, but the book wasn't published at the time I bought the patterns.

Wendy William's book

As you can see, I changed the patterns up to suit my colour scheme - pinks, blues and the odd bit of purple.



Those with eagle eyes will note some of the fabrics from my Bordered Diamonds quilt have made it into these cushions. I've been making good progress on quilting those last diamonds and now only have 3 more to go (plus the 10 I'm going to redo). I'm hoping to get them all finished this weekend, but I don't think I'll be able to get a photo because the forecast is terrible.

While I was at Material Obsession I saw this great cushion on a chair, which had clearly been made by Wendy:


I think that I might just have to make myself a 'W' cushion too, but not until I've finished some of the other projects I have on the go.

31 comments:

Karen - Quilts...etc. said...

really neat pillows!

Oops-Lah said...

I love both your cushions and the colour scheme you've used. Du you turn the seam allowance under when you applique the flowers onto the felt or is it raw edge. I have recently bought Wendy's book and I too see some felt work in my future ;)!!! But like you, I have a few other projects to finish first. The W pillow is "to die for", isn't it?

margaret said...

cushions are lovely so colourful. The W would work for me to if I turned it upsidedown!

Joanna @ Riddle and {Whimsy} said...

These are so pretty! It's ingenious what people come up with with fabric. I wish I had more time to try all of these things out :)

HeathersSewingRoom said...

You definitely need that 'W' cushion on your list! I really love it. The cushions looks great and I love the bright colourful designs that you get from working with the felt. Think I need her book!

Gina said...

Love the cushions and you have to make a W one for yourself xxx

seabreezequilts said...

Fantastic work.

Helen@Till We Quilt Again said...

Again--yours color choices are great! What a cute project.

Hettie's Mum said...

Your cushions are beautiful! Clever you. I reckon you deserve a W cushion :-)

Serena @ Sewgiving said...

Love them! So bright and happy :)

Granny Maud's Girl said...

Oooh! I love these! I need a C cushion! And one with flowers! And the ability to do without sleep so I have time to sew them!

Staci said...

Love your cushions! I just bought this book a couple days ago. Awesome book!!

Ruth said...

They look fabulous! love the W especially.

schmidt1016 said...

Your pillows (cushions) are beautiful! Was it hard to find fabrics with circular flower motifs, or did you already have them in your stash? They are so happy and bright. They would certainly cheer up a room in the gloomy days of winter.

Leslie S. in Minnesota, USA

Lisa in Port Hope said...

Looks like a fun project and such a beautiful finish!

France Nadeau ❅ inspiration imagination creation said...

Those cushions are gorgeous! Your colors and mixed beautifully and make for a striking look. I'm sure you spent many happy hours choosing those colors, looking for the right threads and stitching those wool appliqués. I would!

Wendy said...

your cushions are gorgeous! I thought I recognised the second one and yes, I did, I made the same one from Wendy's book.

(this is Wendy, commenting on Wendy's post about Wendy... all getting a bit odd!!)

Vicki said...

Your cushion covers are beautiful. Love how fun they look and the bird.

Chris Dodsley @made by ChrissieD said...

Gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous Wendy and great tip about cutting the felt after sewing - Chris :D

Anonymous said...

Wow, so beautiful! Fantastic idea! Thank you for inspiration! x Teje

Marly said...

Wow. I would never have thought felt could look so beautiful! Your cushions are too good to lean on!

Pam @Threading My Way said...

Stunning cushions, Wendy!!! Every time I go to Material Obsession, I admire the floral appliqued cushions that are on display. How does the felt go with washing?

Unknown said...

Is it hard to work with wool? They look very interesting- looks like fun. I WANT the W pillow!

Lorna McMahon said...

Wow! Those are some fabulous cushions! They look like so much fun! The perle cotton really adds such a wonderful element. I can see how this could easily become an obsession!

Tanya Quilts in CO said...

The cushions are so vibrant! I love to work with wool felt and perle cotton, but I have not tried this technique. Thanks for sharing!

Kirsten said...

Your cushions are just beautiful! And you really need to make a "W" one for yourself too:)

Brenda said...

Fun! I just bought that book myself and can't wait to get at it!

Anonymous said...

Those cushions are really pretty.

Seraphym said...

So cool! I haven't come across applique to felt, It gives such a great effect and would give a nice variation in the texture of the pillow!

Cassandra said...

These cushions are gorgeous! You have inspired me to want to give this technique a try!

Julie said...

Stunning work! I'm a sucker for bright and beautiful, and you got me here. I would also be enticed to do a monogram pillow.

Julie