Pyramid Pincushion

Inspired by Tiny Triangles from designer Giuseppe Ribaudo

Project tester: Jody Sanders

Finished pincushion: 4" square

Yardages and cutting instructions are based on 42" of usable fabric width.

• Scrap of orange print
• 2×5" piece pink print
• 3×7" piece dark orange print
• 12" square dark pink print
• 5"-square cotton batting
• Lightweight tracing paper or other foundation material of your choice
• Hand-sewing needle, such as a betweens
• Perle cotton: variegated orange
• Crushed walnut shells or polyester fiberfill

Cut pieces in the following order.

From orange print, cut:

• 1--1- 1⁄2" square

From pink print, cut:

• 3--1- 1⁄2" squares

From dark orange print, cut:

• 3--2" squares

From dark pink print, cut:

• 1--4-1⁄2 ×6-1⁄2" rectangle
• 1--4-1⁄2" square
• 1--3-1⁄2 ×5-1⁄2" rectangle
• 1--2-1⁄2×4" rectangle

Click on "Download this Project" above for the Foundation Pattern.

To foundation-piece, stitch fabric pieces to a foundation paper with the marked side of the paper facing up and the fabric pieces layered underneath. The resulting pieced unit is a mirror image of the foundation paper.

1. Use a pencil to trace the Foundation Pattern onto lightweight tracing paper (or foundation material of your choice) once, tracing all lines and numbers. Cut out traced foundation pattern roughly 1⁄4" outside dotted lines to make a foundation paper.

2. Gather foundation paper, orange print 1 -1⁄2" square (position 1), pink print 1 -1⁄2" squares (positions 2–4), dark orange print 2" squares (positions 5–7), and dark pink print 2-1⁄2×4", 3-1⁄2×5-1⁄2", and 4-1⁄2×6-1⁄2" rectangles (positions 8–10). Working in numerical order, foundation-piece pincushion top (Diagram 1). The pieced top should be 4-1⁄2" square including seam allowances.

1. Remove foundation paper with tweezers or the blunt edge of a seam ripper.

2. Layer pincushion top, wrong side down, atop batting 5" square; smooth to eliminate any puckers (Diagram 2).

3. Referring to Diagram 3 and Running Stitch Diagram, use a hand-sewing needle and perle cotton to make evenly spaced running stitches 1⁄2" from triangle edges. Trim batting even with pincushion edges.

4. Layer pincushion top and dark pink 4-1⁄2" square with right sides together (Diagram 4). Sew together, leaving a 2" opening in one edge for turning, to make a pincushion cover.

5. Turn right side out. Fill cover with walnut shells or fiberfill. Slip-stitch opening closed to finish pincushion.