Quilt and Sew Forever: Chenille Trivit Tutorial

So much fun was had this weekend as I played with my fabric and experimented with a new gift idea. I recall seeing this idea months ago, maybe on the Moda website, and have been waiting for a good time to try it out....Chenille Trivits (aka hot pads).

So I pulled out a mixture of fun fat quarters and larger scrap pieces and let the fun begin.

Materials Needed:
5 - 10"squares using 5 different fabrics
1 - 10" square 100% Cotton batting
1 - 2 1/2" x width of coordinating fabric (approx. 43") for binding

Choose a piece for the back side of your trivit and place it face down on your work table...

Then place batting on top of backing fabric square.....

Next layer remaining 4 fabric squares face up.....

Draw a line diagonally in the center, from one corner to another. Use a few pins to keep your 6 layer sandwich together. Because of the many layers, it will be best if your use a walking foot (or if you own a Pfaff, you already have the integrated walking foot feature built in). Sew the first diagonal seam using the drawn line as your guide....

The next step will take a little time. Continue to sew diagonal lines approximately 3/8" apart, using the previous seam as your guide. I was excited to have an opportunity to use a pressure foot called "adjustable guide foot" that I purchased years ago. Most machines come with a guide bar you can attach for this purpose, or you can just eyeball it if your pretty talented at sewing straight lines on your own. :)

The back of my Trivit......

Time to square it up....either to 9 or 9 1/2" square....your choice....

Now the fun, yet scary part.....cutting between the seams to make the chenille.

IMPORTANT....MAKE SURE YOU ONLY CUT THROUGH THE TOP 3 LAYERS OF FABRIC! DON'T ACCIDENTALLY CUT THE 4TH LAYER THAT IS AGAINST THE BATTING!!!!!

You can use a Chenille cutter, or you can use sharp small scissors. I did it both ways to make sure it could be done. :)

In my case, I placed the lime green fabric on top of the batting, so it's my 4th layer and I don't want to cut through it....on this one I used my Olfa Chenille cutter....placing the plastic guard between the 3rd and 4th fabric layers....

Continue cutting between all diagonal seams....

For the second Trivit, I used a small, sharp pair of Fiskers scissors.....Again.....place blades between the 3rd and 4th fabric layers......

After cutting between all seams, it's time to bind your trivit. I chose to machine sew binding to the BACK of the trivit first......

Then I machine sewed the front side of the binding.....

I'm certain you can attach the binding using your favorite method. :)

Since I was having fun, I cut more fabric and batting to make a couple more....

ALMOST finished...but still one more step required before my four trivits are completely done.

Time for the last and best part.......to get the full effect of the chenille process the trivits need to be thrown in the washing machine with a load of towels and machine dried.

Just look how they fluff up and the different colored fabrics create a unique design. Aren't they just the cutest things?