MarimeFaux Wall Hanging

You may recognize the inspiration for this piece as a print by Marimekko. It was a very large scale print; I'm guessing the motif was a yard across. Recently the design has resurfaced as a special line at a certain big box store and can be purchased on items like napkins and boogie boards. I guess you could say I'm on trend, but I've actually been working on this this needle turn applique wall hanging for over a year, finishing it just in time to photograph it in some beautiful spring weather.

I developed a new technique to create the design, something of a cross between Hawaiian applique and cutting paper dolls. I folded the fabric several times and cut out the motif using a template I designed. The result is not quite as smooth as I would like, but the slight irregularity of the shapes is somehow pleasing.

I finished the piece with straight line quilting and a faced binding, made following this tutorial.

I'm currently revisiting this technique in a table runner and print fabrics. I've adjusted the technique to fold and cut freezer paper to create a full size template to apply to the fabric, rather than cutting the fabric itself folded. This has allowed me to make smoother curves and more regular shapes. I hope that project will be finished more quickly than this was.