Appliqué journal

By Spotlight

Travel destinations provide design inspiration. Depict your destination on your journal.

Final Result

Materials

• Grants journal
• 30cm silk dupion in 4 or 5 different colours
• matching and co-ordinating sewing threads (some metallic)
• small sharp scissors
• sewing machine with drop feed dogs feature
• hand sewing needle
• seed beads to embellish
• tracing paper, pencil, pins

Step 1

Measure the journal and cut all 4 - 5 fabrics to size leaving a generous border all around (5cm). Stack the fabrics on top of each other with the colour you would like to see the most of on top and the colour you would like to see the least of on the bottom. Tack through all fabrics top to bottom and side to side to keep them together whilst working. Roughly tailor tack to mark where the spine and the corners of the journal will be.

Step 2

Draw a design for the journal cover and the spine onto tracing paper. Using thread the same colour as the top fabric, machine stitch an outline of the design for cover and spine. If necessary, place paper onto fabric, sew through the paper then tear it off to get the outline of the design onto the cover and spine. Drop the feed dogs on the machine, loosen off the tension a little and free motion stitch your design onto the area for the front cover of the journal. Stitch around the design three or four times.

Step 3

Using the sharp scissors cut down through the layers of fabric one section at a time to expose the different colours. When the areas have been cut away free motion stitch around and over the exposed raw edges using either matching or contrasting threads or both. Create a design for the spine and the back in the same way and fill in any blank areas with free motion stitching. Embellish areas with seed beads. Finish the outer edges with a zigzag stitch to prevent fraying, fold over the top and bottom edges and create pockets at both ends to slot the journal into.

Handy Hint

Create the design based on the travel location.