BERNINA Corporate Blog -Do you also have this problem? Tiny fabric scraps pile up in your leftover box, waiting to be used someday… Today, we’re going to pick out a few of those fabric scraps and transform them into cool appliqué patchwork letters on a shirt, bag, or similar item.
Appliqué Patchwork Letters – Carry Your Favorite Fabrics with You
I’m Stephi from the label Frollein Tausendschön. Over at instagram.com/frollein_tausendschoen, I focus on sewing, embroidery, and plotter crafts. Today’s sewing project uses treasured fabric scraps from your leftover box to create a unique appliqué patchwork letters. We’ll piece together a lovely mix of fabrics to form a cool lettering style in patchwork. This project involves elements of quilt-as-you-go (QAYG) and improv methods, offering a taste of patchwork and quilting.
Appliqué Patchwork Letters – Preparation
In principle, you can design your patchwork letters with any lettering style. Just make sure the font is bold enough, as we’ll be appliquéing it later. At the end of the blog post, you’ll find my “YEAH” text for download. It’s the perfect size for appliquéing onto a sweater, tote bag, or pillow.
I’m sewing the Letters with my BERNINA 770 QE PLUS and using the Patchwork Foot #97.
First, sort through your fabric scraps. Decide on the combinations you like for each letter and arrange them accordingly.
Materials
- Fabric scraps in various sizes and colors, cotton
- Matching sewing thread
- Vliesofix
- Printed letters
- Iron
- Rotary cutter or scissors
- Pins
How to Sew Appliqué Patchwork Letters – Step-by-Step Guide
General Notes Before Sewing
Similar to the quilt-as-you-go method, we’ll be sewing fabrics onto a backing material—in this case, paper for the letters. Reduce your stitch length to about 1.7-2 so the paper can be easily torn away later. Sew with a seam allowance of 1/4″; if you’re not using a patchwork foot, a 0.5 cm seam allowance will work to keep the seams narrow.
Preparing the Vliesofix
Take your printed letters and a piece of Vliesofix. Place the Vliesofix over the printout and trace the letters with a ruler to keep lines accurate. Note: the rough side of the Vliesofix should be on top (not the backing paper), so the letters won’t be mirrored later.
Then cut out the letters roughly, leaving some space around the traced lines.
Preparing Fabrics and Paper
Now, gather your pre-selected fabric scraps. Next, cut the paper letters with a paper scissors into rectangles, leaving space around the printed letters. Ideally, mark a rectangle with a 1-cm border around each letter.
Appliqué Patchwork Letters – Let’s Start Sewing
We’re combining QAYG (quilting on a backing) and improv quilting. Unlike traditional patchwork blocks, the improv technique allows for free-form cutting and piecing. Straight lines and even spacing aren’t essential; we’re aiming for a cohesive final look.
Place your first fabric scrap right sides down on the paper letter, ensuring it fully covers the starting edge (in my case, bottom left).
Position this first scrap to cover the corner. Place your next scrap right sides together on top and pin all layers. Align each piece as you like. In improv, it’s more about aesthetics than precision. What matters is the final look.
Now, sew through all layers with a 1/4″ seam allowance. Using a patchwork foot gives you a clear view of your work.
Alternatively, you can use the Reverse Pattern Foot #1 or the Reverse Pattern Foot with Clear Sole #34 and sew with a 0.5 seam allowance.
Trim the seam allowance to 1/4″ (if using a rotary cutter, fold back the paper like with foundation paper piecing).
Press open the top fabric layer so both layers are visible from the front.
Repeat these steps to cover the whole paper letter in a patchwork style.
Completing Appliqué Patchwork Letters
Turn your work so the paper backing faces up, then trim excess fabric to match the paper edges.
Carefully tear away the paper from the back. Pulling sideways from the seam works best; tweezers may help.
Now you can create each letter block using this same method.
Special Fabric Pieces for Appliqué Patchwork Letters
Place any special fabric pieces on your template first if you want them to be prominently featured.
Then continue cutting additional scraps and work around your featured fabric piece.
Completing Appliqué Patchwork Letters
Apply Vliesofix and Cut Out Letters
Once your blocks are finished, iron the prepared Vliesofix pieces onto the backs of the patchwork blocks. Be sure the Vliesofix is applied so the letters don’t end up mirrored.
Iron the patchwork blocks following the Vliesofix instructions.
Only once the Vliesofix is attached should you cut out the letters precisely along the traced lines. Accuracy matters here, as these edges will define the appliqué lines later.
Great! You’re almost done: Your Appliqué Patchwork Letters are ready to appliqué.
Appliquéing Patchwork Letters
Fixing and Appliquéing Letters
Now that your letters are ready, you can apply them to any project. I’ll be appliquéing my Patchwork Letters onto an older handmade sweater using the Appliqué Foot #23.
To appliqué, remove the backing paper from the Vliesofix. Then, iron the letters onto your project according to the Vlies manufacturer’s instructions. For my sweater, I use a special template for positioning.
I use variegated thread for a unique effect—in my case, it’s Poly Sheen Multi from Mettler.
With the appliqué foot, it’s easy to sew the already ironed-on letters. I use a narrow zigzag stitch, though a straight stitch will also work (Vliesofix prevents the cotton edges from fraying), and you can stitch around each letter once or multiple times.
That’s it! Your Appliqué Patchwork Letters project is complete!
Here’s my template for the “YEAH” text:
download_yeah (A4 PDF for printing)
Happy sewing!
Yours, Stephi
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