Crafty Cut Applique Trivet (In-the-Hoop)

Bring a rustic, homespun look to your kitchen decor with these in-the-hoop trivets! Crafty cut applique details leave the edges of the fabric free to create a soft and natural look. We'll show you step-by-step how to stitch these kitchen treasures in your choice of fabrics!

When you download a in-the-hoop crafty cut applique trivet design, you will find multiple files.

One is an embroidery file, and the others are dieline files marked with the letters "DL". Dielines are used to cut the fabric to the correct shape and size.

Open each dieline file with an embroidery software, and print it. If you do not have embroidery software, Wilcom TrueSizer is a free program to use. Print enough copies so you can cut out each shape.

First, spray one side of a piece of Insul-Bright with temporary adhesive. Smooth the Insul-Bright onto the wrong side of the back piece fabric.

Then spray the back side of the printed back piece dieline with temporary adhesive, and smooth it onto the right side of the back fabric.

Cut the back dieline shape out of the adhered fabric and Insul-Bright. Then remove the paper dieline.

Next, spray the back of all of the remaining paper dielines with temporary adhesive. Smooth the dielines onto the right side of the appropriate fabrics.

Cut out all the remaining dieline pieces. These should only be fabric, and should not have Insul-Bright on the back.

All the remaining applique pieces seen in the design do not have paper dielines. Instead the specific shapes are cut out after the embroidery has sewn.

To create these applique pieces, follow the tutorial below, and place fabric rectangles over the applique dielines before sewing the corresponding tackdowns. Then the fabric will be trimmed to shape.

Once the fabric pieces are cut to the correct shapes, its time to embroider the design.

Hoop a piece of tear-away stabilizer. Madeira E-Zee 1.5 oz. or Floriani Tearaway Medium are good choices. Those brands are more fibrous, less like paper, and will tear more cleanly.

Attach the hoop onto the machine, and load the embroidery file (not the dieline files).

Use a 75/11 sharp sewing needle instead of an embroidery needle. The sharp sewing needle has a finer point, and it will make smaller perforations in the stabilizer.

Embroider the design. The first thing to embroider will be the first dieline (or outline stitch). This marks the are on the stabilizer where the first front fabric piece will be placed.

After the dieline has sewn, remove the hoop from the machine but do not unhoop the stabilizer. Spray the wrong side of the first front fabric piece with temporary adhesive. Place the fabric on the stabilizer inside of the sewn dieline.

Then place the hoop back onto the machine, and embroider the tackdown for the first front fabric piece. A tackdown holds the fabric piece in the place for the remainder of the design.

Next embroider the second front piece dieline.

Repeat to remove the hoop from the machine, spray the wrong side of the second front piece with temporary adhesive, and place it inside the sewn dieline. Then embroider the tackdown step.

Embroider the third front piece dieline. Then repeat again to remove the hoop from the machine, spray the wrong side of the third front piece with temporary adhesive, and place it inside the sewn dieline. Then embroider the tackdown step.

After the three front pieces are in place, the inner borders of the trivet will embroider.

Follow the color change sheet to embroider all the details that sit under the applique pieces. Not all squares will have these details in them.

Stop before sewing the next "dieline" step.

After all the embroidered details under the embroidery have finished sewing out, the first applique piece dieline will sew.

This sewn dieline shows exactly where the tackdown for this fabric piece will sew.

Cut a piece of fabric that is at least 3/4" taller and wider than the sewn dieline. This way, there will be enough fabric left around the tackdown for a raw edge fabric border.

Spray the back side of this fabric piece with temporary adhesive, and smooth it on top of the sewn dieline. Make sure it covers the dieline completely, and for best results, try and center it over the dieline as best as possible.

Then embroider the tackdown step for the first applique piece.

After the tackdown has sewn, carefully trim the fabric, leaving a loose border of fabric around the tackdown. You do not need to cut this border perfectly to shape right now as it is easier to cut after the trivet is no longer hooped.

Simply trim away the excess fabric to make sure it will not get sewn over by any other embroidered detail or the final finishing seam which will sew all around the outer edge.

For some applique pieces (like the tree) all the details sew with the tackdown stitch. For other applique pieces on other trivets (such as the flower seen here) there are additional details that sew across multiple color stops.

Follow the color change sheet, and embroider all the details until you reach the next dieline.

Once the first applique piece is in place and the details are sewn, embroider the second applique piece dieline.

As before, cut a piece of fabric 3/4" larger than the applique dieline, spray the back with temporary adhesive, and smooth it in place over the dieline.

Some of the second applique pieces have details that embroider over the edge of the applique piece.

For these applique pieces, trim the excess fabric away to leave a perfect, finished border around the tackdown like you would want on the final trivet. If you do not trim it nicely now, the unfinished shape of the applique will get sewn over, and make it difficult to cut nicely later.

Return the hoop to the machine, and embroider all the details for the second applique piece.

Follow the color change sheet, and stop before you get to the next dieline step.

The final square will have multiple applique pieces (2 or 3 depending on the trivet). Embroider the first dieline in this square.

Remove the hoop from the machine, cut a piece of fabric 3/4" bigger than the dieline, spray the back of the fabric with temporary adhesive, and smooth the fabric in place over the dieline.

Return the hoop back to the machine and embroider the tackdown. Then trim away the excess fabric around the outer edges. If this applique piece will get overlapped by another applique piece, make sure to cut the border around the tackdown perfectly, so it looks finished. If you do not trim it nicely now, the unfinished shape of the applique will get trapped under the other fabric piece, and make it difficult to cut nicely later.

Then embroider any remaining details for this applique piece.

Stop before the next dieline.

Embroider the dieline for the second applique piece in this square.

Remove the hoop from the machine, cut a piece of fabric 3/4" bigger than the dieline, spray the back of the fabric with temporary adhesive, and smooth the fabric in place over the dieline.

Then trim away the excess fabric, so it will not get sewn over by any of the remaining embroidered details or the finishing seam.

Look at the color change sheet and embroider any remaining details that need to sew on this applique piece. Some trivets will not have any details besides the tackdown.

If embroidering a design that only has two applique pieces in the final square skip ahead to the hanger and back piece steps.

If the design has a third applique piece, embroider the dieline.

Remove the hoop from the machine, cut a piece of fabric 3/4" bigger than the dieline, spray the back of the fabric with temporary adhesive, and smooth the fabric in place over the dieline. Then embroider the tackdown, and trim away the excess fabric.

Then embroider any remaining details on the applique pieces.

Stop before sewing the "back piece tackdown."

Before sewing the "back piece tackdown" step, remove the hoop from the machine, and turn it over so the back side of the embroidery is facing up.

To add a hanger onto the trivet, cut a length of ribbon 7" long, and make it into a loop. Then tape the loop into place along the top center edge of the trivet.

Then spray the Insul-Bright side of the back piece with temporary adhesive and smooth it into place on the back side of the embroidery with the Insul-Bright against the stabilizer.

As the embroidery from here on out will be seen from both sides, wind a bobbin to match the remaining thread colors used in the design.

Place the matching bobbin into the machine, and follow the color change sheet to embroider the rest of the design. The "back piece tackdown" will sew first, followed by the "finishing seam".

Once the embroidery is finished, carefully tear the excess stabilizer away from the outside edges of the trivet.

Now that the trivet is free of the stabilizer and hoop, it is easier to cut around the applique pieces.

Use a pair of scissors to clean up and cut all your finished borders on each of the raw edge applique pieces.