Quilted Leaves-- "Quick" Fall Decor

After dropping my son off at preschool yesterday I stopped off to get a Chai Latte at Sarah's Coffee House in Hartford. I was longingly checking out the empty storefronts I passed on the way home dreaming about the day when Hartford Stitch has a brick and mortar and I can decorate a window with fabric-y goodness.

At home I popped on Facebook to check out some messages and realized we had a Cover Photo that was in need of some updating and I realized that could be my mini-storefront for the time being!

So I looked at the stack of projects I needed to work on: a dress to finish for a wedding this weekend, another for the following weekend, a couple of sample projects to photograph and of course the holiday gifts I haven't even started-- and decided it made total sense to push all those aside to work on something new (sometimes you just have to give in to a Creative Calling)!

Thanks to Pinterest I found the pattern and tutorial by BuzzinBumble on Quilting Board to make some quilted foliage. She provided excellent step-by-step drawings and I had everything on hand so I was patting myself on my back for such a simple project choice.

I made 8 leaves in a little over an hour. Then I got to the turning the bottom part under. Had I thought this through I would have left more of a seam allowance for turning, but of course I didn't and I really despise turning under small seam allowances.

I spied a piece of leather on my cutting mat leftover from another project, grabbed a leather needle and leather thread and went to work. And my machine jammed. Repeatedly. Then my other machine jammed. Repeatedly. I was trying to sew through 2 layers of leather, two layers of cotton, batting and quilting. I was so confused since I've sewn leather on to bags before so I tried again. Another jam. Then I remembered I've always used "vegan leather" which of course sews like a fabric. Whoops.

So my "I have everything for this project-- go me!" attitude turned into dragging the kids to the craft store to buy a sewing awl. And then figuring how to use it. Then hand punching all the holes for the leaves and sewing them. A bit more complicated than intended.

 

I love the look of the leather with the quilting though! If I were to do it again I wouldn't cut the half moon out of the bottom so that I could do a more narrow stem like on the red (Kaffee Fassett leaf). The other stems are bigger to cover that cut out.

It may have taken my free time that should have been used for something on my Must-Do list, but I love these little leaves and they brightened up our facebook page and my home!! Though I have to say, right now I'm thankful I don't have to make enough to fill an entire storefront!