Tea for Tuesday - Primitive Flower Mug Mat

A great idea for Mother's Day!

This is a really quick and simple way to learn how to do applique.  Our little mug mat is made from some simple squares of muslin and scrap fabric, a square of cotton quilt batting, and some scraps in bright colors.  You can decide how you want to shape your flower (I used an oval), your leaves, etc., and the colors you want.  I loved the combo of that funky pink with just a plain orange.  I also liked how the green made such a wonderful dark contrast to the brights.

You'll also need basic sewing supplies (including pins) and a sewing machine.

So let's all get started.  Cut fabrics and quilt batting to 6" square.  Dig through your scrap stash to find the color(s) you want to use for your flower and for the leaves.

Cut your flower fabric into desired shape(s). I used an oval and a circle.  You can use 2 circles, 2 ovals, a "standard" flower shape.  This is "primitive", meaning it can look like a three-year-old drew it.  Think outside the box!  Then, cut your leaf fabric into desired shape.  My leaves are just pointy ovals.

Pin the larger shape into desired position onto the muslin square.  Stitch it down with straight stitch, zig zag, or blanket stitch.  I used blanket stitch, and I also used an orange thread.  You can use matching, coordinating or contrasting thread - your choice.

Not sure which one is blanket stitch?  It looks kind of like this:

___|___|___|___|___|___|___|___|___|___

Set up your stitch so the flat side follows the outside edge of your item, and the up-and-down line points toward the center.  You may also have to adjust the tension on your machine to avoid puckers.  I should have loosened mine a bit.  If you're not sure, do a few test pieces.

If you'd like to really go vintage on this project, hand stitch the blanket stitches.

Repeat this process with the center for your flower.

Position leaves below flower, and repeat process.

Now, we are going to do the quilting part.  Make your mini quilt sandwich by placing the flower square face up on a table.  Then, place the backing square on top, wrong side (back) up, and place the batting on top of it.

Stitch around 3 sides, using a 1/4" seam.  Trim all 4 corners.  Turn right side out.

Turn edges of open side in towards the inside, about 1/4.  Pin closed.  Stitch around all 4 sides, close to the edge.

To quilt this, just use a straight stitch and go around the edge of the large part of the flower.  You can also stitch around the leaves, or do more quilting around each of the pieces, if you'd like.  I used hot pink to stitch the outside edge and around the flower.  Again, matching, coordinating, contrasting - the choice is all yours.

Make these in a bunch of color combinations.  Try soft, country colors.  Or more bolds and brights.  Or your gift-recipient's favorite colors.

Make these for any holiday or occasion.  Use a simple triangle for a Christmas tree, add rick rack or trims, or decorative stitches from your machine as decorations.  Make an oval from orange and a rectangle from green to make a pumpkin.  Add simple small black shapes to turn your pumpkin into a jack-o-lantern.  Think black half-circle with super thin black rectangle for a graduation cap.  Add a tassel for fun.

Be creative, and have FUN!