Re-Inventing Chenille

16 years ago

Re-Inventing Chenille by Nannette Holmberg. I took this book out of the library & ended up buying it from Amazon.

She makes chenille strips by cutting bias strips in 3/8 or 5/8". She doesn't sew layers of fabric in strips. She uses 1 - 3 strips & stacks them on top of one another & sews them to her project.

I made 2 practice pieces with 3/8" flannel strips. One had 2 strips stacked & the other had 3. After chenilling, I couldn't tell the difference between the 2.

She also has projects using 1 strip which gives more of a fringing effect. She even used a ruffler to ruffle the strip before applying.

I'm working on a small baby quilt that has crazy pieced squares out of fabric from one of those wreaths where you used little squares of fabric & pinned them into a straw wreath. My daughter made this wreath for our bedroom. Now it will be used for a quilt for her daughter's first little girl. The fabrics are rose & country blue - from the 80's?

I will sew 3/8" bias strips to quilt between the rows & 5/8" strips to go around the edges. The edges only need to be serged or zigzagged first - no binding. I have plain squares inbetween the pieced squares, & I'll make some kind of design in them with chenille. You could make this without pieced squares making it just a sewing project. It will have cotton batting & a flannel backing. I used a fingernail brush to chenille the strips.

There are lots of projects in the book - vests, jackets, aprons, pillows, some applying strips to ready-made clothes & many others.

I haven't tried this yet, but it might work to lay down some fusible thread on the stitching line, center the 1st strip on top & press. Then stack as many strips as you want & sew down the center.

I hope you'll all try it. It's fun.

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Comments (6)

pris
16 years ago
Please post a pic of your project or a link to a site where we can see how this looks. (I'm more of a visual type person and would like to see what it looks like.) My idea of chenile is like the bedspreads my mother used to have and I can't reconcile your description with how I remember these looked.

Thanks, Pris
gram999
Original Author
16 years ago
Hi Pris,

It's not finished yet. I'm not a member of anyplace where I can post pics & I don't know how to insert them in a post, but I'll set something up when it's done. I have until the 15th to finish it.

The chenille strips look exactly like what was on the old bedspreads. You could copy one of those bedspreads--if you wanted to--with this method.

Thanks for your interest.
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dody40
16 years ago
That sounds wonderful, I will have to try it when I finish a project that I am working on.

dody
carolb_w_fl_coastal_9/10
16 years ago
Thanks for sharing = )

I've been wanting to try this for some time - & here's a page of images fyi....

Here is a link that might be useful: Faux Chenille
gram999
Original Author
16 years ago
Dody, all I've done is practice samples, but it IS fun!

Carol, thanks for the website. Those samples are where you sew 3 layers of fabric into 3/8" bias strips, then cut the top layers.

In Re-Inventing Chenille, you cut bias strips in 3/8 or 5/8" strips & sew on as many strips as you want; 1 - 3 layers. You can make designs with them--criss-cross, crossed over, straight strips on something, curve them into designs such as hearts or flowers, etc., & lots of other things. It really looks like the old chenille bedspreads when done.

Our library had the book. Yours may too. It's worth a peak.

I'm the only one that sews in our family, so I have GOBS of baby items yet to sew. I'm saving the quilt for last, but will post a pic "somehow" when it's done.

Gram

Here is a link that might be useful: Book at Amazon
izzie
16 years ago
I saw this done on a craft show once. Always wanted to try making chenille. They made a pillow. Used scissors to cut fabric. This gadget looks like it works well. I really need to try this. Maybe make a bathroom rug or something.

Here is a link that might be useful: utube video making chenille