I did a thing last month. I started a Kawandi Style Quilting group on Facebook. Turid, who is a blogging friend from way back, shared a needle book she made with a tiny Kawandi piece, and I was inspired. I have her permission to share a tutorial, so here you go – my tutorial for a Kawandi style quilting needle book.
My first step was to decide what size needle book I wanted. Here is my plan (all of my sketches look wonky like this.)
I decided to use Night Rainbow by Deborah Fisher, as it is my fabric for the week.
I’ve got links for everything I used today. Some of them are affiliate links, others are not. If you use my links – thanks!
Materials for a 3″ x 4″ needle book
- Batting – 6″ x 4″ – Hobbs silk blend or Cotton/wool blend are my favorites, or any scrap.
- Interior fabric (back of Kawandi) – 8″ x 6″
- Fabric scraps – less than a fat quarter – I used Night Rainbow by Deborah Fisher
- Felt pages – 2 pieces 3 1/2″ x 5″ – Sue Spargo textural wool
- Thread – 12 weight Wonderfil Fruitti, color 32
Tools (my favorites, not required, but frequently asked about)
- Needle – Sue Spargo Milliner’s #3
- Thimble – Fidget spinner ring by Boho Magic
- Scissors – Karen Kay Buckley Perfect Scissors
- Pins – Dritz Easy Grasp
- Needle puller – Clover rubber thimble
Center your batting over the interior piece, right side of the fabric down.
Fold the edges of the back around the batting, give it a press to keep everything together.
Fold over your first scrap, pressing two sides. I fold over 1/2″ of fabric. Pin in place, lining up the corner with the corner of your base. (My pic might be confusing – I decided to cut out the fancy bit of selvage and show it off on the cover of my book.)
Begin stitching, about 1/2″ from the corner. Keep your stitches very close to the edge of the piece. Stop stitching 1-2″ away from the edge of your scrap. Fold over two sides of your next piece, position it with about 1/2″ of overlap, lining up along the edge of your base. Continue stitching along the edge, adding pieces as necessary.
Keep stitching along the edge, until you get back to your beginning stitches. Turn your line of stitching and keep going, creating concentric rows of stitching. Add more fabric as needed to cover up the backing.
Once your tiny quilt is finished, fold it in half. Fold your felt pieces in half and line up the middles. I attached mine to the quilt with a running stitch that shows through on the front. I opted not to add a tie or any closure.
Isn’t it cute! It took me a couple of hours – a perfect little Saturday stitching project in the yard.
Observations on making tiny Kawandi style pieces.
- Tiny pieces are harder than something that 10″ or larger. There isn’t as much space to figure things out.
- Don’t try to use really small pieces for fabric, thinking to keep the scale of piecing similar to a larger one. Too many overlapping bits are hard to stitch through.
- Be prepared to be overwhelmed by the urge to make Kawandi style needle books for everyone you know.
The Night Rainbow Blog Hop is still going on! Don’t miss all of the fun projects!
Night Rainbow Blog Hop Schedule
| 7/20 | Jen Strauser | dizzyquilter.com |
| 7/21 | Tara Miller | quiltdistrict.com |
| 7/22 | Sherri Noel | rebeccamaedesigns.com |
| 7/23 | Lissa LaGreca | lovinglylissa.com |
| 7/24 | Siobhan Fitzpatrick | www.cdm365studios.com |
| 7/25 | Heather Valentine | www.thesewingloft.com |
| 7/26 | Autumn Shatto | Geometryandjoy |
| 7/27 | Sandra Starley | https://utahquiltappraiser.blogspot.com |
| 7/28 | Jody Groenendyk | www.gingerberryquilts.ca |
| 7/29 | Swan Sheridan | https://swanamity.com/blog |
| 7/30 | Brianna Roberts | https://www.quirkyb.com |
| 7/31 | Deborah Fisher | https://fishmuseumandcircus.com/blogs/tutorials |
Kawandi Style Quilting with Jen Strauser on Facebook
For the Facebook group, you are welcome to come play. Shockingly, it has taken off, and there are over 1,600 members. So now I have to do something with it, lol. I’ve been thinking about it a lot for the past few weeks. Mostly, what do I want it to be, and how much time do I want to devote to it. It is very easy for me to get side tracked by something, and sink a lot of time into something non-productive.
I’m planning to do a lot of sharing there. I was reminded today to make sure I share about the originators of the craft. That was a good reminder for me. Make sure you check out Anitha N Reddy and her work with Siddi Kavand. She’s really inspirational.
Oh, and I have an on-demand class for making Kawandi Style quilts over at Gotham Quilts. It has lots of detailed videos, and a lot more words!