Envelope Pillow Cover Tutorial

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I’ve had fabric and pillow forms hanging around my house waiting for me to be fabulous with them.  I had dreams of invisible zippers and piping.  But at this stage in my life (you know–6 kids including 2 toddlers and 4 jobs besides taking care of my home and family) fabulous just isn’t in my repertoire. I modified my expectations and got the job done in a few hours.

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This is about as easy as you can get for home decor sewing.  If you don’t feel like sewing you can buy these covers on etsy for around $15. I don’t sell them personally, but have seen the same prints I picked out floating around there.  The pillow forms have no zippers or piping to slow you down, but are still removable and washable and look fantastic thanks to a simple overlap on the back.

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I don’t miss the piping at all–and part of me thinks that piping would have given these an uppity feeling that I wasn’t going for at all. These are so easy that you could sew special covers for every season and switch them out on a whim.

I ordered my fabric from fabric.com with a coupon.  I love that they have great customer service and free shipping on orders over $35.  (They are not a sponsor..I’m just a happy customer.) If you have a piece of fabric that you want to fussy cut so a special part of the motif is centered on your pillow, order twice as much fabric.  (If your motif is very large like the one below.  If it is a small motif you can order less than that–but too much fabric has never been a problem for me :).)

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Pillow Cubes is a great place to save money on pillow forms. I recommend feather pillows, because they fluff up well and never get permanently flatten.

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The other 5 of the pillow forms were repurposed from pillows I had lying around. A few I bought at a garage sale for $.50 and just throw them inside whatever cover strikes my fancy.  I will say that I knew the owner of the sale and trusted her cleanliness.  I don’t think I would buy second hand pillows from just anyone.

Here are the basic sizes to cut your pieces:  Please note that these measurements make a cover  1/2 inch smaller than the corresponding pillow form.  This gives a nice full appearance to the finished item that makes it look more luxurious.  I use 1/4 inch seam allowances since I do this on my serger.  If you don’t have a serger, then stitch with a straight stitch and then zigzag over the raw edges to keep everything from raveling.  These measurements give a 4″ overlap in the back which is enough to keep the overstuffed pillow from gapping but not so much that the pillow form is hard to insert.  All measurements are in inches.

Start by Cutting 3 rectangles.  Match the measurements to the size of your pillow form.

10″ pillow form:  1 piece 10.5 x 10.5; 2 pieces 10.5 x 7.5

12″ pillow form: 1 piece 12.5 x 12.5; 2 pieces 12.5 x 8.5

14″ pillow form:  1 piece 14.5 x 14.5; 2 pieces 14.5 x 9.5

16″ pillow form: 1 piece 16.5 x 16.5; 2 pieces 16.5 x 10.5

18″ pillow form: 1 piece 18.5 x 18.5; 2 pieces 18.5 x 11.5

20″ pillow form:  1 piece 20.5 x 20.5; 2 pieces 20.5 x 12.5

22″ pillow form: 1 piece 22.5 x 22.5; 2 pieces 22.5 x 13.5

24″ pillow form: 1 piece 24.5 x 24.5; 2 pieces 24.5 x 14.5

Step 1:  On each of the two shorter pieces hem one long edge by pressing under 1/4 of a inch twice and top stitching next to the edge.  Time saving tip:  If you haven’t learned to eyeball a 1/4 inch hem, try sewing a line through a single thickness of fabric 1/4″ from the edge and pressing on the thread line.  After you turn the second time the thread line will be on the inside and completely hidden.

Step 2: Place the larger square face up on a table.  Lay the two smaller pieces face down on top of it.  Lining up the raw edges around the outside and letting the hemmed edges overlap in the middle.  Stitch or serge all the way around the outside of the piece.  If you are serging this, using your regular machine to reinforce the stitching at the overlap, since this area will receive the most stress.  And use fray check on the corners to keep the stitches from unravelling.  If you do not have a serger, stitch with a straight stitch and then zigzag over the raw edges to prevent fraying.

Step 3:  Turn right side out, use a corner tool or chopstick to make crisp corners. Then stuff with your pillow form and fluff.

Linking UP: Skip To My Lou

Summer Transformation Challenge and Checking In

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We are back from Reunion and I have some photos and video to post later from Heather’s baptism.  What a lovely, glorious day!  I’ve been busy catching up on laundry and housework since then.

I also joined Holly’s Summer Transformation Challenge (STC) over at Club FYM.  I love it over there and writing in my journal takes the place of some of why I write here.  So when I’m in a challenge with Fit Yummy Mummy, I tend to want to neglect my blog.  I’m going to try hard not to do that this time.  As part of that challenge I’m writing a meal plan for 1–that coincides with what my family is eating too.  Theirs has more carbs and calories since they are all skinny.  But we are all eating healthy.  Here’s my plan for this week:

You can click on the image to see it bigger if the print is hard to read. PI stands for Planned Indulgence.

Also new for me, I’ve started teaching a sewing class on Monday nights in my new office.  It’s great fun! And right now am working on sewing my fall jacket that I’ve had fabric and pattern for over a year and never made the time to make it. I’m using this from Fabric.com:

with this pattern:

 

Play mat disguised as a toy tote

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I saw this on pinterest:

We had a baby shower last weekend to attend and I stayed up late the night before making a fast version for the new mama.  I didn’t have time to do as much piecing and I rushed too much on the quilting, but with all it’s flaws, it’s still usable.

I love that you can tote all the toys in it, and then just spread it our for a clean place for baby to play.  Well done TickleandHide!  You can se their etsy shop here:  http://www.etsy.com/shop/TickleandHide?ref=seller_info

It felt good to be sewing again!  Even if just for a few hours.

Office Inspiration

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I’m so thankful to have the space above the garage for my office.  It’s a large room with a triangle ceiling and very little wall space.  This is a recipe for creativity when it comes to finding places to put things.

Here’s another triangle shaped room.  I love the way they built shelves around the windows with a seat across the front.  If I were to do this, I would open the bench along the front for baskets filled with supplies. (I’m not sure on the original source for this image, I got it from pinterest which got it from photobucket.)

This next room from Sew Many Ways is chock full of ideas.  Take her black bookcases filled with supplies for example. They are just plain cheap bookcases with crown molding added and repainted.  I encourage you to click the picture to read the whole post.  I espeically love her motto:  “The Happiest people don’t have the best of everything…they just make the best of everything they have.”  She’s a kindrid spirit (as Anne would say.)

Next is another inspiring sewing room with tips for displaying a fabric stash.

She even has a lower cost solution that I’m adding to my to do list.

Italian Eggplant Bake

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We spent the weekend farm sitting for Darren’s parents.  Two calves were born while we were there–so cute!

I’ll  admit that I came “this close” to throwing a tantrum while we were preparing to leave to go there.  I had a lot of things to do at home and I felt like I needed some time to be home without a crazy schedule.   Once we got there, the house was quiet and there were lots of places for the children to play outside.  Grant took two 4 hour naps on Saturday and let me work.  I can’t believe everything I accomlishedin just 12 hours!

I finalized the text on my latest ebook, read two hardcover books from cover to cover (Tribes:  We need you to lead us; and The Westing Game), finished my September menu, and wrote Heidi’s lesson plans for September and October. 

I also got to do my Fit Yummy Mummy interval workout on the gravel road, which I decided is just about as good as running on sand to add extra resistance and balance into a workout.  Plus the scenery was breathtaking!  I ran and ran and only saw 2 houses before it was time to turn around and head home.  Another benefit was that the country blocks are exactly 1 mile long, so I could judge my distance easier than at home.  I did 2 miles in a little over 15 minutes.

Ooh, I almost forgot, I also took Grant’s 4 month pictures.  He gets cuter every day (proud mom talking.)  I miss the newborn floppy, cuddly stage.  But there is no bad stage.  He’s getting very vocal about letting me know when he needs to potty.  Which is so helpful, since this distracted mom needs LOUD potty cues, lol.  And he laughs hilariously when I make pig snort noises–but only when he can see my face at the same time.  I also love seeing him get super excited when a toy comes his way.

I learned enough from my reads to figure out that I wish I had some computer programming courses under my belt.  Darren and I talked about sending our 9 year old son to classes so he can create Android Apps for our businesses and earn the money for his college degrees.  That boy is Smart!  He beat Darren 6 times at Stratego this weekend which is something since his daddy is a brain himself. 

Part of the fun of being on the farm is arriving without a menu plan and cooking with what we can scrounge up from the garden and create.  Bonnie had a pile of beautiful eggplants, okra, and fresh blueberries.  What a treat.  Here’s the recipe for the Italian Eggplant Bake we had for the main dish.  It was the first time any of us had tasted eggplant and we loved it!

2 eggplant (approx 1 lb each)

cooking spray

garlic powder and salt

2 lbs ground beef (you can use 1 lb or even better that yummy Turkey Italian sausage from Aldi)

1 jar spaghetti sauce

1 lb mozarella cheese, shredded

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Slice the eggplant 1/2 inch thick and place on a greased cookie sheet.  Spray with cooking spray and sprinkle liberally with garlic powder and salt (to taste)  Bake for 10 minutes, then flip and spritz and sprinkle the other side.  Bake for 10 minutes more. Reduce temperature to 375 degrees.

Meanwhile, brown the hamburger or turkey sausage (also liberally sprinkled with garlic powder and salt) and drain and rinse the fat.  Stir the spaghetti sauce and hamburger together.  Place a small amount of sauce in the bottom of a greased 9 x 13 dish.  Cover the bottom of the dish with eggplant slices.  Top with half the sauce mixture and half the cheese.  Repeat the layers once.  Bake for 30 minutes or until the cheese is bubbly and golden brown.

Serve like lasagna–Yum!  And very low carb.

(Note:  This is how we made the dish with what was available, but I thought a little parmesean cheese in the layers would have been fantastic.)

Christmas Gift Tutorials 3

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It’s not too late to whip up these lovely things for the holidays.

1.  Petal Pillow:  http://www.cluckclucksew.com/2008/09/petal-pillow-tutorial.html

2:  Gathered Cluth:  http://noodleheads.blogspot.com/2010/04/gathered-clutch-tutorial.html

3.  Ruffly Headband:  http://heart-of-light.blogspot.com/2009/06/ruffly-headband-tutorial.html  

4.  Knitted ear warmer:  http://imtopsyturvy.com/index.php/knit-ear-warmer-with-crochet-flower/

A ruffled apron

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Here’s another quick wedding gift idea for embellishing a purchased apron.   

I dug through my scraps and cut 3 7.5″ wide strips twice the width of the apron.  I hemmed the strips on 4 sides and gathered the top edge.

 

I top stitched the ruffles in place, so that the ends overlapped 1″.  This hid the gathering line on the lower ruffles.

To finish the look, I roll hemmed a 1 1/2 inch wide ruffle and stitched it across the top.

To complete the gift set, I purchased matching dish towels and cut them in half, hemming the cut edgest for a quick set of every day napkins.

Wrapping is half the fun.  I tied the napkins together with homemade bakers twine (cotton worsted yarn zigzagged over with red thread.  A pintuck foot really helps here.)

Easy Cord Covers

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Cord covers give a finishing touch to lighting.  It hides the industrial feeling and makes everything soft. 

They aren’t hard to make with a basic sewing machine and some ribbon.  I used Organza ribbon because it was cheap (10 yard for $2.)  I found the wider the ribbon, the easier it is to do.

Start by cutting 2 lengths of ribbon twice the length of your cord.  Then sew them together along one side with an 1/8 inch seam allowance.

Wrap the ribbon around the cord and push the cord against the first seam.  Stitch the other side of the ribbon with a 1/8 inch seam allowance, encasing the cord inside.  Be careful not to sew into the cord and make sure your lamp is unplugged :).

If you get tired of the look, you can take the stitches out or just cut off the cord cover to remove it.