No tags yet.
Nature is one of my biggest inspirations as a "designer" (seems like a silly word for just making stuff, but you know what I mean). The projects I come up with usually seem to have a theme of either ways to bring nature indoors or ways for my family to enjoy it more while we are outside.
Today's Restyled project has been floating around in my head for a long time. Our Floor Pouf pattern came out around the same time we came up with the Campfire Pillow set and somewhere in my head those ideas merged and I knew I was going to need to make a tree stump floor pouf. Angelique helped me decide on a birch tree, which is the perfect color and design to compliment any room. It was a blast putting it together and honestly it makes me chuckle every time I look at it! It just seems to have popped out of a cartoon right into the room.
Want to make a Birch Stump Floor Pouf too? Dig out your MT Floor Pouf pattern or grab one here or in the shop. I'll walk you through the few adjustments I made here to transform our pouf into a tree.
Birch Tree Floor Pouf
Supplies:
1-1/2 yards Essex in Steel
1/2 yard Essex in Black
1 yard Heat 'n Bond
1/2 yard Natural Cotton Canvas
1-1/2 yards Quilters Dream Cotton Select batting 60" wide*
*The pattern calls for fusible batting, but since we are going to quilt the panels, regular batting works just fine.
Using the pattern piece included, cut out 6 panels from Essex in Steel. Do not use the pattern to cut out the batting panels. Instead, layer the panel pattern on the batting and cut about 2" bigger than the pattern piece all the way around.
Using the original pattern piece included, cut one circle from the Essex in Steel and one from the batting. This will be the bottom circle for your floor pouf. The natural cotton canvas will be used for the top circle and will be cut larger than the pattern piece. I cut my circle at 12-1/2" across. Look around your house for something that is close to that size and trace it onto your fabric. Cut (2) 12-1/2" circles from the natural cotton canvas. I also cut a piece of batting to include in this circle (the original pattern doesn't put batting here). I thought it helped my tree ring stitches show up more and added a bit more cushion to the top.
Apply the Heat 'N Bond to the Essex in Black fabric, trimming as needed. Peel off the back paper, then start cutting random shapes that look similar to birch bark.
I did a Google Image search of birch tree bark and glanced at these pictures every once in a while as I was cutting. I found it easiest to put each Essex in Steel (grey) panel on my ironing board and arrange the black pieces on it as I cut. Then once I was happy with my placement I would press them in place without having to move or transfer anything. Here are a few photos of my process.
Complete all 6 grey panels in this manner. Next, layer the panels with batting and quilt through each panel. I made sure to stitch around each black piece, as well as added lines through the panels to mimic the texture of the birch tree bark. Trim the excess batting from each panel when you have completed the quilting.
Layer the large canvas and batting circles (canvas right sides together, batting on top) and sew around the circle with a 1/2" seam allowance. Leave a 5" section open to turn the circle right side out. Trim away excess batting from the seam allowance to reduce bulk inside the circle. Clip the curve all the way around the circle, then turn it out. Press well using a point turner to make sure the piece is perfectly round.
Collect a series of round objects to trace. I found embroidery hoops and small jars or glasses worked best. (Excuse my mess! That's a real life sewing room picture there!)
Using a frixion pen, or another erasable fabric marking tool, trace a series of circles onto the canvas top. I stitched over the lines using a thick decorative stitch on my sewing machine, but hand embroidering the lines would be great too!
Now, just the follow the steps of the original floor pouf pattern to complete your birch tree stump!
I hope you have a blast sewing this project and that it adds a little fun to whatever room you put it in. It would be amazing in a kid's bedroom or playroom, but with the classic colors of a birch tree, I think it could work in any room! Certainly every Minnesota lake cabin needs a birch floor pouf, don't you think?
Happy Sewing!
Roxanne
