Fabric Christmas Trees, Using Scraps for a Rustic Look

The Inspiration for my Strip-Pieced Fabric Christmas Trees

I made a bunch of these fabric Christmas tree and it all began with a recent obsession with “strip-piecing”. (In the sewing/quilting world that means joining strips of fabric together to make larger pieces.)  This obsession has been with me for a while now, starting with a Quilt of Valour.

Then came a set of hot-pads for one of my children, inspired by a photo I saw on the internet.

Then Bonnie Hunter designed Appalachian Autumn with strip pieced leaves, and I was hooked again.

Next came a totebag.

And now it’s Christmas Trees, lol. The inspiration came from here, and my creativity took over. 

Herr’s How I Made Mine:

Here’s how I made mine:  I folded a sheet of printer paper in half longways and drew half a tree that looked like this when opened out.  Download a PDF of my .tree pattern

I added a line at 45 degrees, and 2 dots at the bottom, each 1 inch away from the center fold.  Place the pattern on a piece of muslin and roughly trace around it for a guide.  Mark the 45 degree line as shown onto the fabric.

Dig into your scrap bin of Christmas fabrics and pull out strips of contrasting colours in widths from 1 to 2 inches.  Iron them if they look like mine.

Place one on the marked muslin with one long straight edge along the 45 degree line, right side facing up.  Place another strip directly on top, along the line, with the wrong side facing up.  Sew through all 3 layers, 1/4″ from the raw edges of the strips.  Flip the top one out so the right side is showing and press.

Continue adding strips until the entire tree outline is covered.  Lay the paper pattern on top to be sure.   Add decorative stitches if you want to jazz it up.

Slip another Christmas fabric in underneath so the wrong sides are together, pin the pattern on top and cut out leaving about a 1/4 inch border.  I used pinking shears.  Remove the paper pattern, then sew around the outer edge, 1/4 inch from the raw edges, leaving a 2 inch opening at the bottom for stuffing.  I used black thread to keep the rustic look going.

Oopsie!

Use a chop-stick or skewer to gently stuff your tree,  You don’t want it stiff, just full enough for it to hold it’s shape.  You can use a 6 to 8 inch long dowel for the trunk, I used a twig from outside, and inserted it into the tree so about 3 inches was sticking out at the bottom.

Make the Base

I cut a 7 inch circle from a piece of muslin.  Burlap would have been better but I didn’t have any. 

Thread a 20 inch long strand of embroidery floss into a sharp needle, tie a knot at the end and take long stitches around the outer edge of the circle to gather it.

Pull the thread to gather it into a bowl shape and fill with stones or sand.  Tie the ends of the threads tightly, leaving a hole just large enough for the tree stem to fit into.  Push the stem down and pack the stones or sand around it to stabilize it.

I used the bit of remaining floss to tie a small ornament to the top of my tree.  Then I made 3 more trees!  One of them uses a small quilt block as a center then I strip pieced around it. These were fun!