Project of the month: Acufil quilted mug rug using the JANOME HP2 foot for the quilt binding

 

Just look what we made……. a neat little mug rug. but how did we do it?

• The quilting was done using lime green Madeira embroidery thread: We sandwiched a small quilt sandwich and quilted it in the hoop. Madeira thread is distributed by Janome in Canada. Check if your local Janome or Elna dealer is stocking this awesome thread.

• Many of you who are familiar with our Janome embroidery machines may recognize the design we used. It is an old favorite embroidery machine built-in quilting design. The embroidery goes right through all 3 layers of the sandwich so our embroidery unit becomes the means by which we quilt! Pretty quick and easy.
• You don’t need to hoop up a big quilt sandwich (and then trim off and waste fabric). All we used  was a small 8 inch square. That may not be large enough to hoop. No matter, just ensure the bottom layer – your quilt backing – is a little larger.  We used the Janome SQ14 hoop – all you need is a hoop large enough for the design of your choice. The batting and top layer can be smaller.
• Next up was to baste the 3 layers using the wonderful basting function in the embroidery mode. This secures the top 2 layers to the backing so no shifting will happen during the embroidery. You can spray with a little glue if you wish but it is not essential.
• Now trim the mug rug to the size you require making sure you square it up so that the design is centered perfectly on the fabric. Our trimmed size was 7 inches square.
• Cut a 2 inch wide strip of fabric for the binding. I could certainly have added the binding using the JANOME QUILT BINDER SET. However, in this case, I decided to see how it would work using the NEW JANOME HP2 foot. We have done quite a few posts about this foot already so be sure to check this link. Please note that this foot is ONLY compatible with the HP needle plate and JANOME models where the HP foot and needle plate are compatible.

• •  I usually do not use the HP2 foot for this because it is quite fiddly to get the straight stitching really precise and perfectly equi-distant from the edge of the binding. I find it much easier to use a decorative stitch such as the Serpentine stitch. However, that is not possible with the HP2 foot as it is for straight stitching only …….So I took a deep breath and went for it! I needn’t have worried as the inside edge of the left part of the foot rode perfectly along the edge of the binding allowing a lovely straight stitch just onto the binding to the right of this. The Acufeed Flex system worked like a dream and I am pretty buzzed with my mug rug and the Janome HP2 foot which did a great job for me!

  

Note the inside edge of the left side of the foot is lined up along the edge of the binding

• We sewed the binding onto the BACK of the mug rug as the plan was to flip the binding to the front to sew it down.
• It is very helpful to use the Auto presser foot lift/ pivot function as it will be a lot easier to turn and have perfect, neat stitching at the corners.

Many of our Janome Machines’s have this clever feature: icon marked black on the top right is pivot function. Be sure to select this is you have this feature as the foot will lift up when you stop at the corner and it will be so much easier to turn the corners.

• Sew all the way around but leave a section of about 5-6 inches open.

Make sure you have needle down selected so that your needle drops into the mitered fold just before you turn the corner.

• Join the binding tails with your preferred method.

What will you make today with your favorite JANOME machine and feet?