The Perfect Leaf Was Worth the Hole!

October 15, 2026 2 Comments

On Tuesday, I “burped” my little mug rug so that it had finished edges without needing binding.

Now it was time to add a bit of AUTUMN!!

I knew that I wanted a couple of leaves, so I found two leaf designs online and printed them out…

Then I traced them onto Wonder Under and got ready to fuse…

But first, there were a few fabric decisions to make!

When I looked at the orange fabric I had chosen, I noticed the wonderful mottled design right in the MIDDLE…

Normally, I would cut from an outside edge. Why leave a hole in a perfectly good piece of fabric?

But this time, that patch of color was just too tempting!

I wanted those exact shades in my leaf, so I positioned it right where I wanted it and cut away.

The result?

A GORGEOUS leaf…and a piece of fabric with a hole in the middle!!

And I was perfectly happy with that trade!

Next, I took another look at the brown leaf. It seemed to blend into the background a little too much…

It needed more contrast!

I first tried a more orangish brown…

But that was too close to the color of the orange leaf.

Then I spotted THIS piece…

YES!! That was the one!

With the fabric choices settled, I fused the leaves into place…

Then it was off to the sewing machine to add a bit of leaf-vein quilting and a line of stitching ¼ inch inside the outer edge.

And just like that, my little autumn mug rug was finished and ready for gifting…

This project reminded me that saving fabric isn’t always the top priority.

Sometimes, getting the EXACT leaf you want is worth leaving a hole in the middle!!

Do you ever cut into the center of a fabric to capture just the right color or design?

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There is a Quilt on the Bathroom Wall!

October 14, 2026 No Comments

Some people walk into a hotel bathroom and notice the towels.

I notice the WALLPAPER!!

And when I saw this design, my first thought was…

“There’s a quilt on that wall!”

Just look at it…

Squares, rectangles, and triangles tucked together in all sorts of combinations. Some are large, some are tiny, and the diagonal lines keep my eyes moving from one section to another.

Doesn’t it make you want to pull out some fabric and start piecing?

Using quiet colors would let the shapes do the talking. But imagine those same shapes made from SCRAPS!!

You could mix bright triangles with quieter rectangles, scatter little bits of a favorite color throughout, and let the different sizes add interest.

Would I ever copy the entire design? Probably not.

But a small section could be the start of a block, an interesting pieced border, or a quilting idea to try.

That’s the fun of looking at the world through quilt-colored glasses…

Even the bathroom wallpaper has possibilities!!

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Let’s BURP it!!

October 13, 2026 No Comments

Sometimes a little quilted project needs a quick finish, and I don’t want to make binding!

That was the case with a fall mug rug I was making for a quick gift. I had put together a small top using fabrics from my Celtic Knot quilt and a few 1.5-inch strips…

Now, how could I finish those edges without making binding?

Let’s BURP it!!

If that term is new to you, the idea is simple. You sew the layers together, then turn the piece right side out through an opening. The raw edges end up tucked inside!

For this mug rug, I put the turning opening in the BACKING.

I found a fabric among the “scraps” I had inherited and cut a piece larger than the mug rug top. Then I cut it in half and sewed the two halves back together, leaving a 2-inch opening in the center…

That little hole is the key to the whole process!

Next, I trimmed the backing and top to exactly the same size and stacked my layers in this order, from bottom to top:

• Batting
• Mug rug top, facing UP
• Backing, facing DOWN

The top and backing were right sides together, with the batting underneath.

This is important because if you get your batting in the wrong order, it covers up the whole…. ask me how I know??

Then I sewed around the ENTIRE piece…

No opening needed along the outside edge. I already had one waiting in the back!

I trimmed off the excess batting…

…and clipped all four corners, taking care not to snip my stitching…

Now it was time to BURP!

I turned the mug rug right side out through that little opening in the backing…

And just like that, the raw edges were on the inside, and I had a piece with finished edges. The final step was to close the hole with a few hand stitches…

No binding to cut, fold, or attach!!

My little mug rug was now ready for some appliqué. Come back Thursday to see what I added!

Have you ever used the burping method to finish a small quilted project?

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Quilts and Other Stuff from Frances

Quilts and Other Stuff from Frances

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The Perfect Leaf Was Worth the Hole!

There is a Quilt on the Bathroom Wall!

Let’s BURP it!!