This project came about as an extension of the tree collages I was creating for my handbag line. I got to thinking these collages would be great wallhangings. Then I thought,
So, nearly life-sized, my “tree of dreams” emerged as a project for you. (See the complete wallhanging on page 72.) You’ll be doing a lot of free-motion quilting on this project. For simple instructions, see Keeping It Real: Free-Motion Quilting and Fabric Collage (page 63).
* Your favorite fabric scraps in floral and leaf motifs for the leaves, enough to cut 150 to 200 motifs*
* Fabric scraps about 6” × 36” with brown and green tones (preferably prints with a textured look) for the trunk
* Fabric scraps 6”-12” × 44” for the hill behind the tree
* ½ yard of green printed fabric for “grass” background
* 1½ yards of blue printed fabric for “sky” background
* 2 yards of muslin or flannel to be used in place of batting
* 2 yards of backing fabric
* ½ yard of fabric for binding
* 2 spools of thread to match your fabric
*It’s fun to include textured velvets, silks, and corduroys. I even like putting tulle and lace on top of pieces. Also, don’t be afraid to add in the random selvage or cut words from the selvage.
* From the binding fabric: Cut 6 strips 2¼” × 42".
* Cut the additional fabrics as you go.
1. Use a rotary cutter and ruler to true up your green and blue background fabrics (make the bottom and top edges parallel and the side edges parallel while keeping 90° angles at the corners). Do the same with the muslin or flannel and the backing fabric.
2. Sew the top edge of the green “grass” fabric to the bottom edge of the blue “sky” fabric. Press. You can leave the selvages on for now; you’ll cut these off later when you true up the whole piece.
3. On a large table or the floor, lay out the 3 layers with the backing right side down, the muslin or flannel next, and the background that you just sewed on top, right side up.
4. Align 1 of the long edges, and sew the 3 layers together just on that side. This will help keep the layers from slipping as you sew. Do not sew any other sides together; often this will result in lumps.
5. For the hill, cut curved pieces from the contrasting green print fabrics to layer on top of each other. Refer to the photo (page 72) to lay the pieces on top of the green grass with the hill rising to the side. Pin on securely, using many pins.
1. Now start with your free-motion quilting (page 63). Sew all the raw edges of the pieces now so they are attached and you can remove the pins. Later you will go back to do the decorative stitching.
2. Once you’ve got the hill pieces in place and attached well, lay the piece out flat again and start creating the trunk. Use your various green and brown fabrics to create a trunk effect. Just layer one on top of another until you have the look that you like. To keep proportions correct, your trunk should go about ? of the way to the top of the piece, with the rest reserved for leaves. Pin the pieces in place securely. Quilt the trunk just to make it stable, and again wait to do the decorative stitching later.
3. Cut various floral and leaf motifs to fill the branches of your tree. I cut around 150 to 200 or more pieces. Play with and arrange the motifs so the effect is pleasing to your eye. Pin the pieces securely and quilt to hold them in place.
4. Now go back and quilt all over your whole piece. Remember, free-motion quilting adds shading and texture to your art—you are giving the piece an added dimension that is not there with just the fabric.
5. When you’ve finished quilting to your liking, wet down or wash and dry the whole piece to crinkle the fabric and create a soft texture with frayed edges.
Keeping It Real
It’s All About What You Like
“Pleasing to your eye.” To some people that sounds scary. But this project is really all about what looks good to you. It’s a collage—you can’t go wrong. Imagine the leaves on a tree hanging down or swaying in the wind. Toward the outer leaves, you might want to create gaps the way a tree thins out toward the edges. The motifs hang down around the trunk; they have an active look.
When you are layering fabrics, don’t fret about how it all looks at first. Just keep adding, mixing, and matching until you like the composition. You’ll move and place things several times before it looks just right.
When choosing colors for the trunk and hill, try to pick tones that are similar but that have enough contrast so your leaves stand out from the trunk and the background.
Eventually it will all fall in place, just the way you want it to.
Keeping It Real
Free-Motion “Doodling Ideas”
On the grass portion of the wallhanging, use a back and forth motion to give it the look of grass. Doodle flowers coming up from the grass and trace the motifs in your fabrics. On the trunk, stitch up and down in rough, long ovals to mimic the texture of tree bark. In the leaves, you can trace motifs and stitch flowers and leaves on top of the tracing.
1. True up the edges of the piece as you did in the beginning, before you started sewing, cutting off the selvages. The trued edges should measure approximately 39” × 66”. Bind the entire quilt, following the instructions in Keeping It Real: Binding Quilts and Other Sewn Projects (page 81).
2. Hand sew a rod sleeve to the back or see the Mini Memory Quilt (page 76) for optional hanging instructions.
