EPP Appliqué Tote

Add personality to a plain tote bag blank with an EPP Appliqué. EPP (English paper piecing) is a fun, and portable!, way to add a bit of vintage whimsy to quilty projects, but also works great as an appliqué element, too!

EPP Basics

For the basics on EPP (English Paper Piecing), check out this post. It also contains information for how to assemble an EPP Travel Kit so you can take your sewing on the go.

EPP Arrangement

For this design, hexagon papers are used for the EPP process. Hexagons are very traditional but also easy for beginners to tackle with ease. The paper used for EPP is cut 1/4″ smaller on all sides than the fabric. This allows the fabric edge to wrap around the paper, providing enough of a seam allowance to hand sew them together.

Place a paper shape on the wrong side of trimmed fabric.

Glue one edge at a time with a glue pen or fabric glue stick, folding and pressing lightly to secure.

Rotate and repeat for all sides. Use minimal glue—you want enough hold for stitching but easy paper removal later.

EPP Stitching

Arrange as many hexagons as desired in a ring.

Place two pieces right sides together, clip, and use a small whipstitch to attach the two adjacent edges. Use Sulky 50 wt. Cotton Thread for a lightweight thread that leaves no telltale “bump” on either side of the seam.

Repeat until the ring is fully stitched into a flower shape.

Paper Removal

Gently press the stitched flower to crease the petals and loosen the glue. Peel away the paper templates carefully, then press again for a crisp finish with no papers inside.

You can also remove papers as you go, making sure that nothing is removed until all edges are sewn.

EPP Appliqué

Trace or trim Sulky Perfect Appliqué Fusible Web to slightly smaller than the flower outline. Fuse the web to the back of the flower using a hot iron, following the manufacturer’s instructions. Press firmly using a press cloth.

Once fused, peel away the backing paper. The EPP flower now has fusible edges.

Position the flower where you want on the tote blank.

If you have leftover hexagons, consider placing them around the flower as additional accents.

Press the EPP appliqué firmly onto the tote using a medium-temp iron.

With matching Sulky 50 wt. Cotton Thread, stitch just inside the flower edges using a small straight stitch. Or choose a blanket stitch to mimic the vintage style.