Patchwork pinkeeps tutorial

Many of you are like me in that you enjoy doing various types of needlework. One of the fun things we can do is to combine various types of needlework together. I wanted to share this idea of making a pinkeep, which most of us are used to as a way to finish cross stitching, by adapting it to use patchwork.


For this example, I took it a step further and used a crazy quilt block so I was able to combine some embroidery too.

Take a piece of muslin and draw a crazy quilt block on the fabric with pencil. These are your sewing lines and if you enlarge this photo, you should be able to see my own lines. Be sure to make the outside lines of this block to aide you when doing your decorative stitching. Since these stitches and some beads are bulky, you will have to be sure you do not continue past these lines to make sewing your pinkeep together easier. These lines are the exact size the pinkeep will become and are shown with bold pencil marks where I would be making decorative stitching on a sewn seam.

If you feel uncomfortable with creating your own crazy quilt design, use one from a book or free online site.

To help with the bulk of the various layers of fabric, I have left a bit larger seam than normal. Once the block is sewn, it is helpful to sew a basting line around the outer edge of the block. This helps keep the fabrics well in place when you come to sew the front over your matting board. Have fun with stitching on the block but stay within your lines of space marking the front view of the pinkeep.

For patchwork, simply sew the block, again being sure to leave a wider seam around the finished block than normal.

We are now ready to put the pinkeep together. This is done using the same method as with a stitched pinkeep and my tutorial can be found here .

The finished pinkeep is a unique piece and has a vintage look.

And for those redwork fans, why not try using a piece of your redwork stitching? I hope this might inspire you to try out some new ways to make a pinkeep.