Pretty pieced pillows

Fancy throw pillows can cost an arm and a leg, but you can grab a few beautiful fabrics and make your own for a fraction of the cost. You choose the fabric combos and shapes and sizes. Piece together fabrics for variety and visual interest. You can make several pillows in just a day, and change the look of your whole room.

Doing buttonholes manually on the machine (no special foot)

For a long time, I hated doing buttonholes and I hated doing zippers. So I had a bit of a problem when it came to making closures on garments. The thing is, I’m not really ready to go for an all-Velcro wardrobe or elastic waistbands, but in 50 years? Who knows. When I first got my machine and began sewing, I was tackling a lot of new techniques all at once, and the buttonhole was a bit intimidating. I was actually pretty bad at them until recently. I am embarrassed to admit this, but after I broke my automatic buttonhole…

Make an ironing board cover

If you have an extra-wide ironing board like I do, you know it’s hard to find new covers for it. And when you do, they are usually just plain muslin. This could be the easiest sewing project you ever do, and it works for any size of ironing board. All you need is your old cover to use as a pattern. Best of all, you get to pick the fabric! I chose a ticking fabric that reminded me of the old days. Like the pillows my grandma would have had. This one is a light wheat color.

Jacket lining and interlining

Last week, I did a post on a funky green jacket. This week, we’re going to look at the inside of the jacket. What you see from the inside is the lining. What you don’t see is the interlining, or the batting I added for extra warmth. The jacket pattern (McCalls 5060) included lining but not interlining, and so I wanted to discuss how to add that, and also what the difference is between interlining and lining. It’s very easy! This week, I also have a post on making your own covered buttons, related to this jacket.

A bright-green jacket

When I first saw this fabric, I immediately thought that I would like to make a jacket from it. I’m not sure where the idea came from, and I know it’s sort of a bold fabric for a long jacket, but I really liked the idea. I’m really pleased with the results, even if my husband did point out that it, well, “really stands out.” With men, you’re just not really sure what that means. I think it will make a perfect spring jacket, but I don’t mind wearing it even now. It was a time-consuming project, that’s for sure,…

How to make a wine bottle gift bag

Or, how I fought the piping, and the piping won. You know when you have those sewing days when you know you should just give up and try again later? Well, this post didn’t go exactly as planned. I initially planned to use the piping from the piping tutorial I did last weekend. But, you know, sometimes things just don’t work out. I broke three needles and knocked over my box of carefully organized quilting blocks, so they all got mixed up. That knocked out my power strip and turned off my lights and sewing machine. I knocked my thread/scrap…