You'll love making our old world cushion.
Candlewicking uses just a few easy stitches.


With its pretty blue background, this is an updated look on the traditional cream on cream look of traditional candlewicking. The designs can be adapted to quilting and appliqué.

You'll need
Fabric: 1m x 115cm-wide blue cotton fabric, such as Homespun and 1m x 3cm-wide cream cotton lace for cushion front; 45cm square washed cotton fabric to back wadding; 45cm square thin wadding for quilting or two 45cm squares of pellon
Lace for frill, 3.2m x 5cm
Candlewicking cotton, one ball
Assorted chenille needles and one quilting needle
White chalk pencil or fabric pen, fine black felt-tipped pen, plastic ruler
Sheet of template plastic and thin cardboard
Buttons or zipper for cushion
Matching sewing thread
30-35cm embroidery hoop.

Here's how
Getting started


Click here to enlarge

Step 1 Enlarge the design to fit your cushion. This one is 19.5cm across at the widest point. Trace all components of design onto template plastic and cut out with paper scissors. On the heart shape mark the points around the edges where the diagonal lines meet outline. Use a large needle to make a hole for the birds' eyes.

Step 2 Cut a 43cm square of fabric for the cushion front (includes 2.5cm seam allowance). Draw seam lines on the fabric with chalk pencil. Fold fabric in half vertically; press lightly with a fingernail or warm iron to mark the centre and halfway line.

Step 3 To make it easier to plan the design, fold a piece of paper in half and draw around bird template. Cut out two paper birds. Centre plastic heart shape on fabric with branch line and birds above it. Draw around the shapes when you are happy with placement using chalk pencil or fabric pen. Place birds with their wings exactly opposite each other and trace the top edge of the branch template. Use a ruler to join the marks on the heart outline, creating 3cm diagonal squares. Mark a dot in the centre of each square.

Step 4 To mark the diagonal lines for the corner lace, make a 12cm paper square and cut in half diagonally. Align with the corners of the fabric and mark diagonal lines with chalk.

Embroidery
Step 5 Using a large chenille needle and full amount (five strands) of candlewick thread, outline heart, birds, wings and branch with colonial knots, pulling thread firmly around needle before pulling through the fabric to make firm, even knots. Place stitches about a knot's width apart round all outlines. The birds' eyes and centres of squares on the heart are worked after the wadding is applied.

Step 6 Wash, dry and carefully iron the cushion front face down on a folded towel. Cut a piece of thin wadding or two squares of pellon and a piece of washed cotton for backing, same size as cushion front. Stack backing, wadding and cushion front on table. Smooth them and tack through all layers at 10cm intervals horizontally and vertically, then tack around edges. The fabric should be perfectly flat.

Step 7 Using a quilting needle and a single strand of thread, evenly quilt the diagonal lines on the heart keeping stitches even. Then, using three strands of thread and a smaller chenille needle, work one colonial knot in centre of each square working in vertical or horizontal lines. Stitch a colonial knot for eyes.

Step 8 Tack a strip of lace along each corner diagonal line and machine stitch in place using matching thread. Sew a line round the seam allowance to make it easier to place the gathered frill and lace.

Frill
Step 9 Cut 18cm-wide strips of fabric and join together to make a strip twice as long as the machine seam outline (about 310cm allowing for joins). Fold in half lengthways and press. Join short ends to make a large circle. Sew two rows of gathering-stitch about 1cm apart, the first row 5mm from raw edges. Pull up gathering stitches until the frill fits round the cushion, allowing extra fullness at corners. Gather lace in the same way. Pin and tack gathered lace to cushion front, with frill facing inwards, following machined seam line on fabric. Pin fabric frill on top of lace frill, pinning fabric flat and out of the way of the seam line at corners. Machine-stitch through all layers, just inside previous machine lines, slightly rounding corners as you stitch.

Cushion
Step 10Cut another piece of fabric for the back 43 x 54cm, and cut in two across the short width. Turn under and press 1cm then 3cm allowance on both these cut edges, stitch. Make four evenly spaced buttonholes across one hemmed edge, lay the two pieces together, the piece with the buttonholes overlapping the other by 3cm. Stitch across raw edges. Sew on buttons to correspond with buttonholes. Lay the two cushion pieces together, right sides facing, trim completed back section to same size as front, pin and sew two pieces together along same stitching line as for frill. Turn to right side and insert cushion filling.

Source: Better Homes and Gardens