Boo to You Too!

Beautiful October! I don’t understand how it arrived so soon, but I love it. The house outside is all decorated for Halloween and I can’t wait. Each year, we get fewer and fewer kids…we started out in the early 90’s getting well over 250 trick or treaters each year. Now, we’re fortunate to have around 60.

Checking in on my website today, I find I have 250 comments to narrate. Many of them are trash, several are in Russian or Chinese. Commentors have names like “Benji” or “Tubby”. The posts are about fashion or viagra or publishing or tattoos. I wish I knew how to stop the spam!

Today, I’m posting another tutorial that I’ve completed for Julie Hesketh at Designs by JuJu.…my favourite embroidery design website. You still have time before Halloween to make this little gem – it’s pretty simple and will only take you a day or two to make. As always, please let me know if you have any questions. Thank you so much for visiting.

Happy Halloween Mug Rug Tutorial       10″x12½”

Welcome everyone. As Halloween approaches, I’m so happy to bring you a quick and easy project to make for Halloween, using Designs by JuJu’s whimsical Halloween filled designs. This little mug rug, which is basically a mini-quilt, can easily be made in a day or two. You can whip one up as a teacher’s gift, or use it to decorate a Halloween table. How about making one just for yourself….to have with your morning coffee? So cute, so simple and so very easy. Let’s get started.

Please be sure and read through all the instructions prior to commencing.

Shopping List:

Designs by JuJu DBJJ689 – Halloween Filled Set Three

Designs by JuJu DBJJ864 – Simplicity Font

Yellow for background, witch embroidery and square border – Fat Quarter (18×22)

Orange for pumpkin, square border and backing – Fat Quarter

Red for borders, exclamation point and binding – Fat Quarter

Red rickrack – 30“

Medium weight tearaway stabilizer – One piece 8″x10″

Quilt Batt – One piece 12″x14½”

Fusible Web – One sheet

Embroidery thread, embroidery bobbin thread,

embroidery needles, embroidery scissors

Pencil, omnigrid ruler, rotary cutter

Pinking shears

Temporary Spray Fabric Adhesive (optional)

*I use Brother Embroidery thread for all my projects

 CUT:

• From yellow fat quarter – 10″x12½” piece for mini quilt top, 8″x10″ piece for witch embroidery background and one strip 2″x22″ for side border, sub cut to 2″x11″
• From orange fat quarter – 12″x14½” for backing, pumpkin (using template – posted at the end of the tutorial) and one strip 2″x22″ for side border, sub cut to 2″x11″
• From red fat quarter – two strips 1½” x22″ for top and bottom border and one side border, one strip 2″x22″ for side border, sub cut to 2″ x11″, three strips 2″x22″ for binding and exclamation point (using template).

FUSE:

• Using manufacturer’s instructions for the fusible web that you have chosen, fuse the orange fabric pumpkin in place on the yellow fabric backing.

MACHINE EMBROIDERY:

• Download both the “witch on a broom” and “dangling spider” designs. Load them both into your machine.
• Hoop yellow fabric measuring 8″x10″ with corresponding piece of stabilizer. Stitch out the witch on a broom.
• Remove the hoop from your machine and tear away the stabilizer. Press the witch design and trace a 5″ diameter circle around the design with a pencil. Cut on the pencil line using pinking shears. Set aside.

• Hoop yellow backing fabric and pumpkin, marking the center of the pumpkin with a pencil. There is no need to use stabilizer for stitching out this design. The double layer of fabric and fusible web is more than sufficient stabilizer.

• Stitch out dangling spider design in center of the pumpkin.

FUSE:

Using manufacturer’s instructions, fuse the witch on a broom in place on the yellow fabric backing.

MACHINE EMBROIDERY

• Download the word “Boo” from the Simplicity Font design collection. Load the three letters into your machine.
• With a pencil, mark a short, straight line 1″ above the pumpkin.

• Stitch out the word “Boo” being mindful to line up the bottom of each letter.

FUSE:

• Using manufacturer’s instructions, fuse the red exclamation point in place after the word “Boo”.

CONSTRUCT: 

• Blanket stitch/applique stitch the pumpkin to the yellow background fabric.
• Using a ½” seam allowance, stitch together the 2″ strips of orange, red and yellow.

• Sub cut at 2″ intervals.

 

• Stitch together one long strip of nine 2″ squares. Set aside.
• Stitch 1½” red border strip to left hand side of mug rug top. Trim to even. Stitch remaining 1½” red strips to both top and bottom of mug rug top. Trim to even and press. Stitch on right hand side border. Be mindful to line up seam intersections. Trim to even and press.

• Make a quilt sandwich. Right side down, place quilt batt over the orange mug rug backing fabric and smooth. Lightly spray the quilt batt with temporary fabric adhesive and layer on the mug rug top and smooth. Quilt as desired. (Be sure to carefully quilt over the exclamation point so as to firmly secure it. Trim mini quilt to even.
• Stitch on red rickrack around the three sides as per photo.
• Using 2″ red strips, make binding* and stitch it to the mug rug to complete your project.

Pumpkin and Exclamation point template

There you go….all done.  Happy Halloween to you. Please contact me via email at km.hanson@shaw.ca if you have any questions. Thank you so much.