Inspired I.D Wallet: Free Pattern

OK! It's here! I've added this FREE PATTERN to my Craftsy Pattern Shop! Enjoy!

Stash Baskets

I just finished up this Stash Basket using some leftover fabric! Perfect colors for my work office. The pattern is: Kwik Sew Ellie Mae Designs #107. The project was fairly straight forward to make. I used Pellon Peltex 70 interfacing - and there are two layers, so a #16/100 needle and a sturdy machine are a must. My Bernina chomped right through it!

The interfacing is NOT fusible. I suppose you could get the one-sided fusible (Peltex comes as sew-in, one sided fusible, and two-sided fusible). I imagine that the one-sided (I think it's the 71) would work, but it is more $$$. I sprayed 3M Super 77 to adhere the fabric to the interfacing and it worked like a charm. 

When I got done with the basket, it was a bit wonky. A quick pressing took care of that and flattened it right out.

There are three sizes of baskets that come with the pattern. This is the small one - it measures 11" x 6" x 3 1/2" - about the size of a shoe box. 

Free Craftsy Class: Sewing Machine Feet

I just saw this in an email from Craftsy - A FREE CLASS! Learn more about using your feet! Check it out...Sewing Machine Feet from A to Z.

Michigan Pillow DONE!

Yesterday I wrote about a state pillow I saw in a catalog. I found this wonderful applique embroidery design at Embroidery Library and just finished up this pillow. I am trying to merge the brown circle fabric with the green and brown plant fabric and this seemed to work! These are 24" pillows.  

Next time I'll add a little heart where I grew up!

State Pillow

Recently I was looking through my HGTV magazine and came across a state pillow for my home state of Michigan. I immediately thought, "$75... who are they kidding!?" OK, for $60 you can just get the cover. Really? Ridiculous! Just do a little applique and add some machine embroidery and you are done! Looking for states designs? These State Coloring Pages are a perfect place to start.


I read some of the reviews on Red Envelope and one poster made a great recommendation. These pillows look great with states with distinct shapes, but square shaped states need a little help - possibly with the state name embroidered over the top. 

If you have an embroidery machine, check out the state shapes at Embroidery Library! Love 'em!

What do you think?

UPDATE: Here's my finished Michigan pillow.

Inspired ID Wallet

Back in December I won a Vera Bradley ID Wallet when I attended a Fund For Women event at Connor’s Mercantile here in Corning, NY. It’s a great little wallet, so I thought I’d see if I could figure out how to make one. It wasn’t that difficult…and here is what I ended up with! Not bad considering it’s made from scraps.

The original one is on top. I will do some minor tweaking and write the pattern up for all of you!



















It’s zippered on top and has a vinyl window for an id card (or in this case, my friend’s business card…I love my Mica Pure Water Adya Clarity!).

I used a non-stick foot to sew on the vinyl but you could use a walking foot. For some insight on sewing on vinyl and laminates, check out this article.

The only tricky part was sewing the bias tape around the raw edges on the inside. It looks a little messy but it’s not really seen, so who cares!

Keep your eyes open for the free pattern!  Pattern is finished and available in my Craftsy Pattern Store for FREE!

Ruffled Slipcovered Sofa Table

About ten years ago my friend moved to Australia and gave me a vacuum cleaner and this table. I’ve used the table off and on since then (and the vacuum all the time!). I loved the size, shape, and the style of the table legs. The only problem was that the top veneer was peeling off and I had no idea what to do with it.

Yesterday I decided to make a slip cover for it. And this is what I ended up with. I’m really happy with how well it turned out.
Here are some basic instructions for making something similar. I used a heavy duty drop cloth (that I used to slip cover my sofa) and some home dec fabric for the ruffle.

1. Table Top: measure your table and add an inch. My table is 24” x 48”, so I cut 25” x 49”.

2. Side Panel: my panel is 5” but you can make it any depth. So cut two pieces the length (5” x 49”) and width (5” x 25”) of your table top piece.

3. Ruffle: my ruffle is about 4” but you can make it any depth. I cut four pieces 8 1/2'” x WOF – so I ended up with four pieces of fabric that were  8 1/2” x 54”.

Prepare side panel and ruffle:
Using a 1/2” seam, sew your ruffle pieces together, along the 8 1/2” ends so you have one long piece. Then sew the two ends together to create a loop. Make sure that you don’t twist this.

Press seams open. With WST, press in half so it’s 4 1/4” deep. You should be looking at the RIGHT side of the fabric. We aren’t turning this right side out! Set aside.

Using a zig-zag or overcast stitch, zig-zag the 5” ends of your side panel. This will reduce fraying. Then, using a 1/2” seam, sew your side panel pieces together – if your table is a rectangle, make sure they are in correct order! You should have a loop. Set aside.

Mark your side panel and ruffle: Now you’ll need to make some registration marks. The purpose of these marks is to help you get the ruffle evenly distributed along the side panel. 

Side Panel: Much of this depends on the size of your table, so just fold in half (so it’s long and narrow) and mark on the folds (on the right side); fold in half and mark on the folds, then maybe one more fold and mark. I typically recommend going no more than 24” between marks. If it’s more than 24”, it’s difficult to ruffle. Because my table is even, I went every 24”, using the seams as a registration point.

Ruffle: Do the same with the ruffle – just fold in half and mark, then again…until you have the same number of marks that you have on your side panel. Next, beginning at a registration mark, make your ruffle following these directions. Don’t ruffle yet! You are just adding the embroidery floss.

Sew your ruffle to your side panel:
Put on your walking foot and lengthen your stitches to about 3mm.
Put panel and ruffle RST. Find a registration point on the side panel and your starting point on the ruffle (where you started with the embroidery floss), line them up, and tie off your embroidery floss. Pin at that registration point. 

Using a 1/2” seam, take a few stitches. Find your next registration marks and pin the ruffle to the panel at that point. Take the embroidery floss at that mark and work it out of the zig zag. Slowly pull and ruffle (you’ll have a loop of embroider floss). Evenly distribute the ruffle as you sew. Stop at the registration mark and tie off your embroidery floss (this will tie off the loop). Find your next registration marks, line up, pin, and repeat. Do this all the way around. Then remove the embroidery floss. I just cut it at the knots.

Zig zag (or overcast) the raw top edge of the ruffle/side panel. This will be just above your row of stitches. This stops fraying.

Sew side panel to table top:
On the WRONG SIDE, mark the middle of each side of the side panel. On the RIGHT SIDE, mark the middle of each side of the table top.


With RST, start at one of the marks and using a 1/2” seam, sew side panel to table top. I recommend putting the side panel/ruffle on the top and the table top on the bottom. When you reach a corner, stop 1/2” from the end, put the needle down, and pivot. When you pivot, you should be right on the panel seam. Continue sewing until you are done. 

Zig zag over the raw edge to stop fraying! 

To keep the slipcover from sliding, put a rug pad on the table first. It grips the table and the slipcover and gives it a little bit of cushioning!

I finished it off by top stitching just above the ruffle (on the right side). Just flatten the ruffle and using a walking foot, sew around the perimeter of the slipcover. This will keep your ruffle flat so it hangs straight.


 
Celebrate!

Embroidering on T-Shirts

My friend's sister-in-law opened a yoga studio and on Monday I'm taking a class. I work out but... this will be a big change. I run and I have no flexibility. I don't know what has me more concerned: doing yoga in a 110 degree room or doing yoga for 90 minutes! Nonetheless, I embroidered some t-shirts for us.

I love personalized, embroidered t-shirts, but they can be a bit tricky. So I recommend reading this great article from Embroidery Library on embroidering on t-shirts. Additionally, here are my tips:

1. Pre-wash your t-shirt.

2. Use a ballpoint needle. For these I used a Schmetz Stretch 11/75. This is a knit so that's why I use a ballpoint.

3. I used an iron on tear-away stabilizer (like Sulky Totally Stable) first. This is paper and when it's ironed to your t-shirt, it makes it stiff and not stretchy. Then it just tears away when you are done. The only purpose to to keep the t-shirt from stretching when the design is stitched on. I prefer this to spray adhesive.

4.  Mark AFTER you've ironed the stabilizer. I do this because I worry about the heat from my iron permanently fusing the marks to my t-shirt. 

5. Add a cutaway stabilizer. For most t-shirts I use a medium weight. 

6. Follow the hooping directions at Embroidery Library. The hair clip idea is genius.

If you like the yoga design, you can find it at Embroidery Library.

Gadget Cord Holder

While I was reviewing email, I came across a gadget holder called a GRID-IT. It's basically elastic woven and sewn down on the ends.



What do you think? It seems to me like it would be easy to make. They are sold with a flap, too. I think I'll go to work creating my own design!

Making a Queen Sized Dust Ruffle

Last year I bought a new mattress. It’s awesome (Sealy Memory Foam). The only problem is that it’s really thick and I have low ceilings. Although I’m tall, climbing into bed shouldn’t be a chore, so I opted for 5” split box springs. That meant that my dust ruffle would be too long.

Fast forward a year later…I finally finished my dust ruffle. It wasn’t that difficult to make so I thought I’d share the process with you. But before tackling this project, please note that there is a lot of fabric so it’s cumbersome to work with. And making the ruffles is a bit of a pain just due to the sheer volume of the fabric. But I love custom dust ruffles, so I really think it’s worth it! 

I don’t have a lot of pictures because I didn’t take any as I was making this. I was on a mission to simply get it finished!

You will need three things: (1) a foundation that you sew the ruffle to, (2) the ruffle fabric, and (3) a walking foot. I used an old sheet for my foundation (the top of the sheet was already hemmed) and 54” home dec fabric for the ruffle. 

Foundation Fabric:
A queen mattress is 60” wide and 80” long. So, cut your foundation piece 60 1/2” wide and 80 1/4” long. The extra fabric will account for 1/2” seam allowances – yes, it will be slightly smaller, but I didn’t want the seam right at the edge of the box springs…I wanted it to to be in a bit so the mattress would hide it.

I did this by putting two cutting mats together and folding the fabric then cutting with a rotary cutter and ruler. It wasn’t exact but I didn’t really care! You could lay it out and, using a tape measure and marker, draw lines and cut on the lines with scissors.

Set aside.

Ruffle Measurements:

First measure the distance from the floor to the top of the box springs - mine was 11 1/2” – then take that number and add 2 1/2” for seam allowances – mine was 14”. That is how wide you’ll cut your fabric. If you want your ruffle to drag a bit, add an inch or so. I have cats who like to get under my bed, so I made it easier for them!

For the right amount of fullness, you’ll need seven rows.
I like to draw everything out. So here is what I drew:


On the right and left are the selvages. The line in the middle is the fold. I used about three yards of fabric. If you are using 42” wide fabric, you might want to add two more rows and purchase accordingly. I recommend sketching your dimensions! The seven rows seemed to add the right amount of fullness to the ruffle. If you want it fuller, add a few rows – but keep in mind that it’s more difficult to work with.

Cut your rows. Remove selvages. Sew together along the ends to create one really long piece of fabric! Press seams open.

Seam Allowance:

1. On the two ends (so, the 14” ends of mine), fold in WST about 3/4” and press. Then fold over again and press. Sew close to the edge. 

2. On the bottom of the ruffle (get ready…this takes a while), fold in WST 2” and press…the entire length of the ruffle. Open it back up and fold under so raw edge just touches the crease you just made and press. I use a pressing ruler to make this easier. Sew close to the edge. I used my edge stitching foot.

Mark Foundation and Ruffle:

Next you’ll be making registration points on the foundation and ruffle so you can line up the ruffle so it ruffles evenly. On the foundation these will be about every 27 1/2” as shown below.



Take your ruffle and fold it in half end-to-end. On the wrong side, mark that middle point. Then fold it in half again and on the wrong side, mark those two middle points (on the folds). And fold it one more time and mark. Again, don’t worry if it isn’t perfect!

You should have SEVEN marks. These seven marks correspond with the seven marks on the foundation.


















Make Ruffle:

Using the directions from my article on making ruffles, zig zag your heart out along the raw edge (top) of the ruffle. This takes forever. If you run out of embroidery floss, try to stop at one of your marks, leave a tail, and add more.

Sew Together:

Clear the space to the left of your machine and put on your walking foot. Using a 1/2” seam allowance, with RST, sew the ruffle to the foundation. 

OK..it’s a lot to ruffle, so here’s what worked for me: find your first mark on your ruffle and pin it to the first mark on your foundation. At that mark, using the tip of a seam ripper (or something like that), pull the embroidery floss (creating a loop) and start ruffling – trying to even out the ruffle. Just make sure that other end of the embroidery floss is secure! Sew (1/2” seam) and ruffle. Once again, it probably won’t be perfect. Mine is far from a consistent 1/2” seam and not evenly ruffled!

Slowly work your way around the foundation, starting, stopping, and pulling at your registration points. When you reach a corner, stop at about 1/2” in from the end, lift your presser foot, and pivot, adjusting the ruffle as needed. Then start sewing again until you have reached the end.

Pull the embroidery floss out. Now go back and zig zag around the entire raw edge. Make sure you have enough bobbin thread! And make sure that you don’t catch the foundation in the zig zag. I did that and had to rip out and re-zig-zag! 

VIOLA!! Done! Grab a friend, move that mattress, and put your dust ruffle on!

Patchwork Watchband: Free Pattern!

I must confess that I am a certified watch-wearer. Always. I always wear a watch. I’m time-obsessed and I’m picky: it needs to be big and it needs to include the date. So it’s no surprise that I finally made a fun and funky watchband for my old (really old) watch. I stopped wearing it about 14 years ago when I purchased a new watch with a stainless steel band. I never much cared for the black band but I loved the size and the glow-in-the-dark face. I guess readability is important with bifocals!

This band is made by sewing scraps together. The watch is secured by piece of fabric that is woven through the watch pins and sewn in place. Once on your wrist, the end of the band loops through a ring, folds back on itself, and snaps in place!

Sew Bad: 13 Sewing Habits That You Need to Break

 
It’s 2013. And in honor of unlucky number 13, I’ve decided to start the year with my 13 bad sewing habits that you need to break. Now.