DIY Holiday Ornament Pincushion

These adorable little Christmas ornament pincushions are a great gift for any sewing friend! Gather up a few favorite holiday fabrics and you can whip up a few in no time. Happy Holidays!

DIY Mini Holiday Ornament Pincushions

Supplies (makes two pincushions)

*Fabric shown is Daysail by Bonnie & Camille for Moda

Holiday fabrics

Step 1) Cut the fabric pieces.

From the white fabric cut the following:

  • Cut 4 squares 6″ x 6″
  • Cut 8 squares 1-1/4″ x 1-1/4″
  • Cut 2 pieces 1-1/4″ x 3-1/2″
  • Cut 2 pieces 1-1/4″ x 3/4″
  • Cut 4 pieces 1-1/4″ x 1-5/8″
  • Cut 4 pieces 1-1/4″ x 5″

From one charm square or mini charm (gray text) cut two pieces 1″ x 1-1/4″ for the ornament tops.

Patchwork Block

Cut each of the eight Moda candy 2-1/2″ charm squares (greens and reds) into four 1-1/4″ pieces. Select two of each print (16 squares total) for the patchwork ornament.

sixteen patch block

Striped Block

From the charm squares cut the following:

  • From one charm square (red/aqua stripe) cut two pieces 3-1/2″ x 1-1/4″
  • From one charm square (red dot) cut 1 piece 3-1/2″ x 1-1/4″
  • From one charm square (aqua text) cut 1 piece 3.5″ x 1.25″

All 4 strips make up the striped ornament.

Step 2) Assemble the blocks.

Patchwork Block

Sew the sixteen 1-1/4″ squares into four rows of four. Alternating pressing direction with each row, then pin and sew the rows together to make the block center.

kite tail patchwork

Striped Block

Sew the four strips together as shown below to make the block center. Press well.

four fabric strips

Both Blocks

Each block is finished the same way. First, draw a diagonal pencil line on each 1-1/4″ white square and sew one on each corner (on the pencil line) to make a snowball block as shown below.

snowball patchwork block

Snowball block

To make the ornament top, take one gray 1″ x 1-1/4″ strip and sew one 3/4″ x 1-1/4″ piece on top of it to make one 1-1/4″ x 1-1/4″ piece. Press seams to the dark side.

patchwork ornament top

Sew one 1-5/8″ x 1-1/4″ piece of of white fabric on each side of it as shown, making it 1-1/4″ x 3-1/2″ Sew this part on the top of each ornament block, RST.

Sew one 1-1/4″ x 3-1/2″ white strip on the bottom of the block. Press. Sew one 1-1/4″ x 5″ white strip on each side of the block. 

ornament patchwork block

patchwork ornament

Repeat for the second ornament block.

ornament patchwork blocks

Tip: When piecing tiny things, it is easy to not have things measure perfectly. If you need to adjust the bottom or side measurements a bit to make them fit, that’s fine! Just make sure to measure the finished block and trim the pincushion bottom to be the same size.

Step 3) Assemble the pincushions.

patchwork blocks

Make a quilt sandwich with the pincushion top, batting, and one 6″ white square.

quilt sandwiches

Quilt however you would like. I outlined the ornament shape and added some shadowing using my quilting foot and dual feed. (It might also be fun to experiment with embellishing the ornaments using decorative stitches! I didn’t think of this until it was too late. 🙂

quilted ornament block

Make a second quilt sandwich with a charm square (for the bottom of the pincushion), batting and one 6″ white square. I quilted these along the stripes.

quilted stripes

Trim each of the quilt sandwiches down to 5” x 5” then place them right sides together. Pin each side once or twice.

Sew along the edges with a 1/4″-wide seam allowance, leaving a 2″ gap in the center of one side. Backstitch at the beginning and end.

quilted stripes

Turn the pincushion right side out and use a funnel to fill it. I use crushed walnut shells, but you can use whatever you prefer.

DIY Mini Holiday Ornament Pincushions

 Hand-stitch the opening closed using a ladder stitch or whipstitch.

close opening

Repeat to finish the second pincushion.

DIY Mini Holiday Ornament Pincushions

Make 87 more for all your quilting friends, family, and anyone else you can think of. They are a little addicting. 🙂

DIY Mini Holiday Ornament Pincushions

Thanks for joining me for this little tutorial, I hope you enjoyed it! Come see me at my blog camilleroskelley.com anytime.

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