Four Seasons Table Topper

This bright, appliqued table topper, made for every season, is one of my favorite patterns we published on QUILTsocial. This project depicts winter, spring, summer, and fall scenes in one 26” [66cm] circle. Fusible applique, decorative stitching, and a little extra batting add texture throughout. Download the free pattern here.

materials

fabric

• 26” [ 66cm] square background fabric, light blue for the sky
• scraps of fabric for applique, mostly solid colors plus a few novelty prints for the sports balls, mini quilt, and flowers
• 30” [76.2cm] square backing fabric
• bias binding, about 85” x 2½” [215.9 x 6.4cm]
• two 30” [76.2cm] pieces of quilt batting (two layers recommended)

thread

• invisible nylon thread
• variegated thread (optional)
• embroidery, decorative, and metallic thread (optional)
• thread to match your fabrics

notions

• paper scissors
• fabric scissors
• small embroidery scissors, for tiny applique pieces
• rotary cutter
• printable fusible adhesive sheets
• fusible adhesive, sold by the yard [meter]
• basting spray or basting pins
• pencil and a black marker
• tape measure
• sewing clips for the binding (optional)
• hand sewing needle, for finishing the binding (optional)
• string or yarn, for drawing a circle
• decorative buttons, lace, novelty fabric, or other embellishments to suit each season
• push pin
• white freezer paper

feet and equipment

• open toe foot for applique
• ¼” foot
• free motion quilting foot
• printer
• iron
• sewing machine capable of a small zigzag or satin stitch, and free motion stitching

Draw and prepare the circle pattern

Start with a simple pencil protractor to draw a perfect circle. Tie a 15” length of string or yarn securely to a fine-tipped pencil. Tape a large sheet of freezer paper together to fit a 26” [66cm] circle. Mark the center on the matte side. Pin the string to that center point with a push pin. Adjust the string length to about 13” for a 26” circle.

Hold the pencil taut and draw a half circle from side to side. Draw a straight center line through the middle. Fold the paper in half, shiny sides together, along that center line. Cut along the drawn half circle to reveal a full circle once unfolded.

Press the shiny side of the freezer paper circle onto the right side of the background fabric with a hot iron. Cut the fabric using the paper’s edge as a guide. Peel away the freezer paper, and the sky background is ready for applique.

Print and fuse the appliqué pieces

The original pattern comes as three pages. Print page one four times for the houses, doors, windows, and smaller decorative shapes. Tape pages two and three together for the landscape pieces.

Load printable fusible adhesive sheets into a printer, fusible side up. Print the house and detail pages directly onto the paper side of the adhesive. Test a single sheet first, since printers vary in which direction they feed paper. Cut out the house and detail pieces with paper scissors once printed.

Trace the taped landscape pages onto the matte side of freezer paper, using a light source if needed. Cut those pieces apart individually.

Fuse the freezer paper landscape shapes to the right side of chosen fabrics, temporarily, to serve as cutting guides. Then fuse a lightweight adhesive to the wrong side of each fabric piece with a hot iron. Press for about 10 seconds without sliding the iron. Once the adhesive cools and turns shiny, peel off the paper backing. Cut out each landscape piece using the freezer paper as a guide.

For the houses, windows, doors, and other printed details, fuse the printed adhesive sheets to the wrong side of chosen fabrics the same way. Cut directly along the printed lines and peel away the paper.

Marking the background into four quadrants first makes laying out the four seasons much easier. Arrange all the pieces on the background circle. Once the design looks right, press everything down firmly to fuse it permanently in place.

Add stitched and thread-painted details

With everything fused in place, secure the raw edges with decorative stitching. Set a small zigzag, roughly 1.5mm wide and 0.5mm long. Satin stitch along the landscape lines using different thread colors to make each season’s terrain stand out. An open-toe foot makes it easier to see the stitch line while sewing.

Switch to a variety of thread types, embroidery, metallic, iridescent, and variegated, to satin stitch decorative details throughout the design. For the smallest details, like tiny leaves, tulips, and sports balls, switch to a fine invisible thread instead. Use a much smaller zigzag here, about 1mm by 1mm. This way the stitching disappears into the fabric rather than overwhelming it. A separate thread stand can help control tension when sewing with invisible thread.

Finish by lowering the feed dogs and switching to a free motion foot. Thread paint fine details like a clothesline, a swing set, snowflakes, and texture on the pumpkins and winter tree. This lets the stitching add realistic shading and movement to each scene.

Quilt, bind, and add buttons

Tape the backing fabric right side down to a flat surface, smooth but not stretched taut. Center two layers of batting on top, then layer the appliqued top right side up over that. Baste all three layers together with basting spray or pins. Trim the batting and backing, leaving about 2” extra around the edge.

Lower the feed dogs again for free motion quilting. Start in the center and work outward, stitching close to the applique lines first. Fill the background with wavy lines and swirls that suit each season’s mood. Quilting close to the landscape lines last brings out the hills, fields, and snow.

Once quilting is complete, trim the piece to about 25” in diameter. Sew the bias binding to the front, fold it to the back. Hand-stitch or machine-stitch it in place. Finish with a scattering of decorative buttons in each season’s theme. Flowers suit summer, leaves suit fall, snowflakes suit winter, and butterflies suit spring, for one last layer of dimension and charm.

Original series by Robin Bogaert on QUILTsocial.com. Photos by Robin Bogaert