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Classic and Creative Corners
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Classic and Creative Corners
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Recently I've received a few questions from
stitchers about the corner designs. "Love the
corners," they wrote, "but what do I use them for?"
It's true that corner designs are a pretty odd
shape. They look like Ls, and sometimes the curvy
corners can get pretty abstract. I use corner
designs for napkins and placemats primarily, but
there are countless ways to use these designs. Below
are a dozen examples of both classic ways to use
corners, as well as creative and non-traditional
uses, too.
Corners usually like to "live on the edge," and
hooping edges of fabric can be tricky, whether
you're a newbie or a seasoned and savvy stitcher.
Below the examples you'll find links to tips and
tricks for positioning the corner designs perfectly. |
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Nan and her Janome 300E stitched
up these delicious napkins,
featuring a strawberry corner
design. I like the way that she
used a muted color for the
napkin, really letting the
bright red in the strawberry
shine. |
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Nan and her
Janome 300E stitched these
delicious napkins with a corner design!
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Along with napkins, think of
coordinating placemats with the
corner designs, too. And, the
edges of a tablecloth are
exactly right for a coordinating
border, and tuck the corner
design again on the corners of
the tablecloth! |
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Speaking of coordinating
placemats - here's a great
project by Peggy. She designed a
set of six placemats, and used a
larger ristra design on the left
side. Not only did she find the
perfect pepper fabric for the
center of the placemat, but she
also tucked a chili pepper
corner on a napkin.
Now that adds a whole lot of
spice to the dining table! |
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Peggy and her
Janome 11000 made these
sassy and spicy table linens! |
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When I first saw this project,
sent in by one of our French
customers, Marie-Antoinette, it
took me a while to recognize the
design. Marie-Antoinette used
one corner design, and mirrored
it horizontally and vertically
to make a magnificent feature
design.
When I saw this, the corner
designs took on a whole new
dimension for me. Just one
design, but endless
possibilities. |
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Using just one
corner design, Marie-
Antoinette made a magnificent feature
for her pillow! |
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Now this one's a head-turner!
Selma from California saw a
Rosemaling corner, but turned
her head a bit and thought of a
different use. By rotating the
design 45 degrees, it becomes a
fashionable feature to this
shirt.
Seeing this creative twist on a
corner is inspiring. Thanks,
Selma! |
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Selma turned the
corner on creativity,
and the result is a fashionable feature
to a shirt! |
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Sylvia and her Brother ULT
mirrored a corner design
horizontally to stitch a
beautiful symmetry on this
messenger bag.
Along with mirroring the design,
Sylvia chose bright colors for
the flowers and stems, and they
really shine from the blue
denim. Nice work, Sylvia! |
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Sylvia mirrored
a corner design for
stylish symmetry. |
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Jan and her Bernina 200E found a
creative use for a corner
design. She turned the corner by
45 degrees, and mirrored it,
too. Another example of stylish
symmetry!
Jan also added a way to change
the look of her pillow. She made
the pillow with an inner panel
that buttons, so she can swap
out the center feature for a new
look any time she likes.
Yep, this is a project that
sweet dreams are made of! |
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Jan made this
dreamy pillow by
rotating and mirroring a corner design! |
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Danielle loves ladybugs, and
stitched up a sweet pair of
jeans for her granddaughter. She
tucked a corner design onto the
pocket for an extra-colorful
touch!
Another creative use for corners
- bravo, Danielle! Danielle
stitches on a Brother Galaxie,
and she tucked the coordinating
border right underneath the knee
area. |
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Danielle
stitched a corner design on the
pocket areas of these pants. That shows
a lot of creativity in the genes AND jeans! |
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One corner design does its duty
on a placemat, and again on a
coordinating pot holder!
Mary used her Brother PC8500 to
stitch this lovely set as a
wedding gift. The
brightly-colored fruit look
delicious on the neutral fabric,
and the quilted placemat gives a
cozy feeling, too. |
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One corner
design does double-duty! |
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Mary in the UK found a great use
for fruit tiles and coordinating
corners. The tiles are
centerpieces on placemats, and
the corner is the perfect
addition to napkins.
Mary writes that she also used
the designs to make a tote bag,
too! I'm sure it's just as tasty
and tantalizing as these table
linens. |
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Tasty and
tantalizing table linens, made by Mary! |
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Sylvie lives in The Netherlands,
and when her friends were
getting married, she used
lavender corner and border
designs to make this fabulous
gift basket.
Corner designs fit perfectly on
hand towels and wash cloths.
And....is that part of the
corner design on toilet paper?
Why, yes it is! Didn't know that
was possible?
Click here for that tutorial.
(Guys love that, by the way, so
if you're looking for the
perfect gift for the guy that
has everything...) |
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Corner designs
are an extra-special touch
to make a gift basket or towel set complete. |
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Tina and her BabyLock Ellure
can't be stopped when it comes
to coordinating with corners.
She stitched a corner design
onto linen napkins, and arranged
each so that the corners peeked
out the front side. Faux fruit
and veggies create a yummy
summertime effect.
This wicker basket trio would
look just fine without liners -
but with the addition of
embroidered napkins, Tina gets
the Queen of Corner Coordination
Crown. Wear it with pride, Tina!
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Tina, the Queen
of Corner Coordination,
made this baskets extra-beautiful with
embroidery! |
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Debbie and her Designer 1 used
corner designs to add a classy
touch to a purse.
Debbie used shades of colors in
the same family as the fabric,
and the result is subtle and
stunning at the same time.
The corner designs are mirrored
to make a frame, and smashing
symmetry! |
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Debbie cornered
the market on
creativity when embellishing this purse! |
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Janet stitched this cardigan for
her granddaughter. The
leaf-shaped buttons are such a
nice touch for autumn.
Janet used designs from the
Curious Kitty design pack.
The spray design landed on the
left side, and the borders are
just charming on the sleeves.
Janet placed the corner design
on the right lower placket, and
paired with the spray on the
left, makes a charming scene.
Beautiful work, Janet! |
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Janet's vision
for this kitty cardigan
turned out purr-fectly cute! |
Most of the above
examples were taken from the
Stitchers Showcase - it's my favorite place to
spend time. Seeing the creative ways that you and
others use the designs gives me loads of
inspiration.
After surfing through the
Stitchers Showcase to
round up projects that use corner designs, I also
looked through my own archives to find projects that
use corner designs. There were more than I
remembered. Below is a brief description of the
project, and you can click on the picture to get to
the full instructions.
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Corners are most commonly found
on table linens. And, as I
mentioned earlier, stitching
close to the edge can be tricky,
no matter how many hours you've
logged in the sewing room.
This project shows how to
position and stitch designs as
close as possible to the corner
or edge.
Click here for free
instructions. |
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This free project is all
about "upcycling" - making
something new out of something
not-so-new. A large design is
the focal point of this
pillow, and corner designs are
on the top right and lower left.
This free project is also a
great one to practice
positioning. I find that the
best tool with positioning
designs is a template - those
are essential. Most embroidery
software programs can print
templates. If you're new to
embroidery, or don't have a
program that prints templates,
try Embird at
www.Embird.com, or a Buzz
product from
www.BuzzTools.com.
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This free table runner project
explores the idea of using a
corner design as a "point." I
used Celtic-themed designs, but
you could certainly use any
corner and coordinating border
to make this table runner.
Click here for free project
instructions. |
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This tutorial is primarily about
repeating borders, but shows a
creative use of a corner design,
too. Rather than being flush in
a corner, we rotated the
pillowcase by 45 degrees so that
it accents the feature medallion
design.
Click here for information on
this free project. |
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As I'm writing this, the heat
index outside is 105 degrees, so
the perfect way to warm bread
today is just to stick it
outside.
But I'm dreaming of the time
when this heat wave ends, when
something extra may be required
to keep bread warm. This free
project uses corner designs --
and keep in mind that you can
use the same designs on napkins
and placemats for an elegant
table display.
Click here for more details. |
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Another example of "upcycling" -
making a skirt out of a pair of
jeans. I put corner designs on
either side of the inset for a
symmetrical look on the bottom,
but added only one coordinating
design at the hip. The result
is, well, pretty hip, if I do
say so myself.
Click here for these free
project instructions. |
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So, to answer
the question "What can I do with corners?"
My answer is, "What can't you do with
corners?" They can be tucked onto pockets,
placemats, napkins, sheets, pillowcases,
quilts, wash cloths, and towels of any size.
They can be used on totes, purses, and
wallets. They can be flipped up and around
and upside-down to make symmetrical and
stylish focal points. Whether your use is
classic, or contemporary, corners make any
embroidery project complete.
How do you use corners? Send pictures of how
you've "cornered" creativity! Email
stitch@emblibrary.com.
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Kenny is a
master digitizer and Vice President of
Production at Embroidery Library, Inc.
Ask Kenny! Send your questions to
stitch@emblibrary.com.
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Click
here for a printable version of this page.
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If you don't have it, you can download a free copy by
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Previous "Korners"
can be found by clicking on the link below:
See Them All |
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