Sewing the Straight and Narrow

Pre and Post- sewing solutions

Full disclosure here: I am by no means an excellent seamstress. Yeah, I've done some really nice projects, like footie pajamas and aprons but most of the time I start guessing the correct way to do things and I'm sure I end up breaking several unspoken sewing commandments.

 I always tell my fiancé that sewing is like driving- just press the pedal and steer straight. Well, to tell the truth if a sewing machine were a car I'd be pulled over doing field sobriety tests just pulling out of the driveway.

Thats right- I don't sew a straight line all that well  And most of the time, you wouldn't notice. I barely even noticed myself. Usually I'm sewing pajamas or other simple projects like aprons for my nieces with wide seam allowances with nothing in the project that amplifies my impairedness. So when I chose to make an optical illusion quilt (from this book), I learned just how drunken I seemed at the helm of my machine.

The quilt I chose requires sewing several long strips together, then cutting those blocks into strips and sewing them together another way. Some of these strips are nice and wide and quite forgiving to small errors. However, some of the strips are as small as 3/4". With 1/4" seams on both sides. Even taking too big of a breath while sewing can show on these areas of the blocks. 

The book has really good descriptions on how to cut very straight strips (another thing I didn't realize I did unsuccessfully).  It's a little tedious, but certainly plays into getting straight seams.

For sewing a straight seam, the author suggests using mole tape to guide your seams, placing it 1/4 inch from the seam.  However, I didn't want to go looking for mole tape (although it's probably easy to find at a pharmacy).  I was also afraid of it making my machine sticky or marking it, as well as the inconvenience of removing it and putting it on again if I changed projects (looks like I finally accepted the fact that my projects take me uh, just a little longer than planned, and maybe other things would get thrown in there in the meantime).

Needle moved over- you can see it doesn't line up with the red center mark anymore

My fiancé's mom suggested I use masking tape at the 1/4 inch mark, since it wouldn't mark my machine and I wouldn't need to remove it.  I tried this, but still didn't seem to get a very straight seam, since I couldn't really see the edge of the tape all the time.

Another suggestion from my fiancé's mom was to move the needle.  Sure enough, with a piece of graph paper I was able to determine that I needed to move my needle over 2.5 to the right to get a 1/4 inch seam along the edge of the plate.  For a little extra speed, I use my finger to help guide the seams.

Hopefully I'll have a completed project before we need a blanket again...

What tricks do you use to ensure straight, narrow seams?

Easy DIY Elmo Apron

My niece loves Elmo.  I try to make them aprons every year for Christmas (yes, this post has been in the queue for quite some time).  I didn't like any of the licensed fabric (okay, so maybe I didn't like the price of the licensed fabric...) and wanted something really fun for her.  So I decided to make my own Elmo template.

Photo from my sister-in-law

You will need:
Red apron
Small pieces of orange, white, and black fabric (thanks to our school mascot for being a tiger, I had scraps of all of these)
Some iron-on backing, whichever you prefer




1. Start with a print out of Elmo- I did a Google image search for Elmo and used the search tools to find a line drawing of just his face.  I copied the image to a publisher document and stretched it to fit an 8 1/2 x 11" piece of paper.  It's okay if the sides of his face are cut off.  You only need his eyes and mouth on one piece.





2. Cut out the pieces of Elmo's face. Fuse your backing to the pieces of black, white and orange fabric, ensuring you have enough space for each of the pieces on their appropriate color fabric.  You really don't need much.

3. Trace the pieces onto the backing.  Note: I did not flip the pieces when I did this- it didn't make a difference for Elmo, but might make a difference in other characters.  Remember you are tracing to the BACK of your material, so if you decide to do letters or something else with this same technique you will need to flip your paper over before tracing (or if you're tech savvy, flip it  on the computer before you print it).

4. Line up your pieces.  I used the white cutout to make sure the eye and nose pieces were centered.

5. Iron on according to your fusing material's instructions.

That's it!  I thought about stitching along the edges, but the fusing material held pretty well.  Another option would be to use puffy paint to outline it, but I thought it looked just fine without any extra work.  So easy and my niece was soooo excited about the apron!

DIY Footie Pajamas

So I finally finished another project off of my list.  My super secret belated Christmas/birthday (okay, now belated birthday gift too) was a pair of pajamas for a friend. (And, if you're anything like me and it takes forever to finish a project in the limited free time you have, you're already late if you want to make a pair of these for Christmas.)

These new pajamas are not just any pajamas.  These pajamas are a one-of-a-kind pair of footie pajamas.

Excitedly awaiting cool nights to wear these awesome jammies.

For well over a year, I've known that my fiance's friend has wanted footie pajamas.  So on Black Friday, I found some material (the puppy paw print made sense at 4 am) and found my patterns.  There was no pattern for footie pajamas, but my mom discovered a one-piece pajama pattern, and my sister-in-law who is into costuming was buying a pattern for fabric shoes.  Perfect combination.

So I'll walk you through the process describing the alterations I made to the method.

I began with McCall's pattern M6251 (jumpsuit) and Butterick pattern 5233 (footies).

I cut out the pieces for Jumpsuit E from the M6251 pattern.  I cut all the pieces as directed, but cut the neck binding (piece 13) from the same binding material as the sleeve bands (this was done from a personal preference to have this instead of using the same fabric).  You do not need the leg band (piece 15) as you will be attaching the footies.

For the footies, cut the pieces for footies E (you do not need the fringe piece- piece 11 or binding).  On the back piece (piece 9), I did not cut the notch in the back, but rather cut straight up from the bottom piece since I would be sewing the whole thing together instead of having an open-backed tie shoe.

Follow the jumpsuit directions from 1-10.  I skipped step 11 because I  thought it looked nicer without the neck binding folded over since I used the rib binding.  So I just tucked the edges in and tacked them to the collar to give it a finished look.

Continue with steps 12-15.

Move on to the footies.  Follow steps 35-38.

With right sides together, pull the footie over the outside of the leg, lining up the center of the top of the foot with the notch on the front of the leg.  Sew this together.

Pull the leg so that the whole thing is inside out.  Sew the sole to the bottom, following steps 45-46.

After I was finished I put my feet in to make sure they would work (I wasn't sure what shoe size he was but was convinced it was bigger than mine).  I was a little nervous because the feet weren't really big on me, but the fabric had some stretch to it and it worked just fine.

Other words of advice: be careful not to stretch your ribbing too much as it doesn't recover well and will be permanently stretched (another option would be to cut a little smaller to allow for some stretching).

The only other thing I'd consider doing differently is putting something a little more slip resistant on the soles of the feet (my sister told me they make iron on stuff for this? Amazing idea!).


Perhaps the next pair should have a hood on them too.  Or an old-fashioned flap in the hind end, just for giggles.

Kids' Book Nook: Making a Pillow for a Bookcase Bench

Earlier I talked about my niece's first birthday and my need to provide somewhat practical gifts- something they won't outgrow quickly- as well as the need for it to be somewhat creative and very personalized.

When my sister-in-law mentioned that they'd like a bookshelf for my niece's room, I began searching the internet for just the right one.  I wanted to make it personal in some way.  They had adorable princess bookshelves and really beautiful maple bookshelves.  Then my creative/practical sides (a dichotomy that surfaces in me quite often) started to voice their opinions.  What if she hates the color pink?  What will she think of this bookcase in five years?  In ten?  If I do anything to personalize this beautiful bookcase I may end up ruining it.  She's a climber- is she going to try to climb to the top shelf?


And then it hit me (okay, maybe browsing at Target helped)- what about a bookcase that's meant to be climbed on?  I liked the one at Target, but I was also attracted to the other cube furniture there that could be used vertically or horizontally, thinking it would be nice to give her something that could be turned upright when she got older and inevitably acquired too much stuff (it happens to everyone, right?).  I began looking for bench bookcases, and it looked like Bed Bath & Beyond had something reasonable, but reviews discussed it needing no tools for assembly, and I became concerned about how sturdy something held together by some two-way tape and a few wooden pegs could be.  I wanted to buy a longer one, but Target only had these in stock, so I bought two (and assembled them myself!).

Then I set off to make the cushion. (I made two)  (More split back pillow and standard pillow case ideas here)

For two ~11 x 23 cushions I used:
1 yard patterned fabric
1/2 yard muslin (I bought the very wide, high quality muslin)
2/3 yard batting

Cut the fabric
For each pillow
Cut two pieces of the muslin 1 1/2 inches longer each way than you want the pillow to be (for mine that was 12 1/2 x 24 1/2 inches)

Cut one piece of the patterned fabric (the front) 1 inch longer than you want the pillow to be (12 x 24 inches)
Cut the back pieces of the pillow- each side will need a half inch seam allowance to hem the seam.  You will also want another inch or two to overlap, so my pieces ended up being 12 x 13 and 12 x 14.
Cut two pieces of the batting to the size you want the pillow to be (11 x 23)

You can cut these on your rotary board if you hold the ruler down tight to the board.

Sew
Fold under and press 3/8 of an inch on one of the shorter sides on each piece of muslin.

With the folds on the outside (your pillow inside out), pin and sew the three remaining sides together with 1/2 inch seam allowance.  Trim the corners and turn the pillow casing right side in.  Put in both thicknesses of batting.

Pin and sew the folded sides together with 1/8 inch seam allowance.

Tack the pillow to keep the batting from sliding while in use.  This can be done by machine or by hand.

I liked the tacking done by hand better because it wasn't as tight.

Back pillow- machine; front pillow- by hand

For the pillowcase
To make the finished edges of your overlapping pieces, fold under 1/4 inch on a shorter edge of each piece of fabric.  Fold under again and press.

Sew along the inner edge of this hem, about a 1/4 inch seam.

Pin these pieces to the front piece, right sides together and overlapping the back pieces.  Sew all four edges with 1/4 inch seam allowance.  Trim the corners and turn right side out.

Put the pillow in the pillow case and place on bookcase.  Tada!  A bench!

And she finally climbed up on it earlier this week.

'Tis the Season- for Bargains!

Its the weekend before Thanksgiving, and while I'm trying to figure out when summer even ended, my family is gearing up for the holidays.  The lit candy canes are already lining the driveway and my mother has begun ferreting away mysterious packages that have arrived.  And we have begun to prepare for Black Friday.

My sister is a serious bargain hunter, which means Black Friday to her is better than Christmas or her birthday.  At the beginning of November she begins scouting out sketchy copies of ads posted online.  Once the ads show up with the paper, it's serious planning time.  She makes lists of what she needs from each store, clips coupons and devises a schedule.  For my sister I think it's more about the experience and the savings rather than having to get that perfect gift.  For me, there isn't really anything that inspires me to wait in line all night, hoping the crowds won't get too crazy, or to hope that there is enough in the store.

Until we started going to JoAnn's.  How can you ignore flannel at $1.50 per yard?  Black Friday at JoAnn's is unlike any other store the morning after Thanksgiving.

My sister and I started going to JoAnn's five years ago.  Fearing long lines, we arrived two hours early.  We ended up waiting in the car for an hour before anyone else arrived, and even then it was the employees.  The line begins to form about an hour before the store starts, and we've made friends with other regulars who we've stood next to in line for the past few years, discussing what we're shopping for, swapping craft ideas and sharing knowledge.  We go every year for flannel for my grandmother who makes baby blankets to donate.  Another woman gets fabric to make Christmas gifts for her family.  Someone is always there for the Cri-cut deal.  The line remains orderly, and we help people scope out where trees, the Cri-cuts and other various deals are, and people calculate how many people ahead of them want the same item to determine their odds of getting the deals.

Once the doors open, everyone gathers buggies and begins shopping.  I've never seen anyone snatch anything from another or snag something from someone's cart, rather they ask others if they could have the bolt once another got their piece of fabric cut.

Yes, the line to cut fabric is long.  And it is even longer as several people (like ourselves) have carts (yes, more than one) overflowing with bolts of fabric to get cut.  The best solution is to shop with more than one person: one waits while others shop, bringing fabric to the cart and making decisions as you wait.

In the end, buying about a hundred yards of flannel at JoAnn's does take us about four hours, but the savings of more than $5 per yard is more than worth it.  And of course we always walk out with some other wonderful deals on fleece and scrapbooking supplies.

We've already started making our Black Friday list.  Where do you shop and what are you planning on buying this year on Black Friday?

A Stitch In Time

This past weekend was our county fair, and Saturday I had lots of free time to go around to the arts and crafts exhibits (which I'm sure my boyfriend was glad to get out of this year, as I was equally glad to not be drug on to the next exhibit before I was done gawking at admiring the intricate and beautiful work submitted).

The sheer amount of entries and the quality of the work is absolutely amazing.  To know that there is this much talent in our community is just amazing.  And the work is inspiring, because most of the pictures submitted are by amateurs, and most of the quilts, baked goods, and other crafts are done just as hobbies.

As I strolled through the quilts, I came across the most moving and interesting quilt I've seen yet.  (I apologize that I didn't snap a photo of the quilters' names, so if you recognize the work and know the quilter, by all means please let me know so I can give credit).  These woman really put a new spin on the t-shirt quilts that have been hitting the scene.

The story about the quilt was printed next to it (again I didn't happen to snap a picture so I don't have all the details)- the quilt was made from shirts and the inspirations left by a gentleman who lost his battle to cancer, but not without touching many lives.  A group of women put together this quilt for his son, incorporating t-shirts, button-up shirts, the collars to shirts, and the pockets to shirts.  The quilt was truly inspired by this man's spirit, but the one thing that drew me to the work was the quilting- the women stitched quotes from this gentleman, and (what initially made me notice the quilt and read the story) hands.

These women stitched the hands of people whose lives this man had touched, and sewed the cuffs of his shirts at the wrist.

At the end of the fair I was left inspired by two amazing ideas: fried cookie dough (the best of both worlds- warm, gooey chocolate chips and soft, doughy goodness) and the stitching on this quilt.  I became obsessed with this idea, and after talking about it for the past two days, I came up with another idea, one I'm planning on doing with my sister-in-law for my nieces.  We are going to trace the girls' hands every year (or maybe even using some of the rough tracings they'll make of their own hands in a few years), as well as saving some of their shirts to make a quilt showing them as they've grown.

Unfortunately, we're going to have to wait about 16 years to see the results, but maybe someone out there has copies of traced hands from their own children and would like to do this with them (which I'd love to see).

Another meaningful keepsake would be to stitch several children's/grandchildren's hands, one way to avoid waiting 18 years to make a beautiful quilt.

What are the most meaningful keepsakes have you made or received?