French Seams

I mentioned on this post that I used French seams to finish off the pillowcase.  I am terrible at zig-zagging and really dislike doing it, however, just the name "French seam" was a bit intimidating.  Now I know it is a very easy technique and really polishes a project.  So, although I am sure there are a million out there already, here is a French seam tutorial of sorts.

To start things off, remember I used the "Hot Dog" method of assembling the border to the pillowcase.

Here is peak inside how that nicely encloses one of the raw edges.

Now on to the french seams.  Pin the wrong sides together along the side and bottom of the pillowcase.

Sew with a small seam allowance, approximately 1/8 inch.  Alternatively, you could do a 1/4 inch seam allowance, then trim to 1/8 inch, but I am all about short cuts.

Here is a look at the finished seam.

Now press the seam to one side.  However dull ironing may seem, it does make the finished product a lot nicer.  Besides, ironing always makes me think of my Gram, who loved to iron.

Now turn the pillowcase inside out and iron again.  Make sure that your seam is at the very edge.  Tip:  Wet your fingers to help "roll" that seam out.

Now, with right sides together, sew a 3/8 inch seam.

This is what the finished seam will look like.  See how the raw edge is enclosed in that little pocket?

Another view.

And here is the finished pillowcase!

One other note on making pillowcases...although the directions say you need 3/4 yard of your main fabric, you just never know how much the fabric will shrink when you prewash, and whether the cutter at the fabric store will cut it straight for you.  Get a yard to be sure.

One Pillowcase Done

This was supposed to be a quick and easy project, but it took me 1.5 hours to finish one pillowcase!  That did include all the time it took to set up my iron, sewing machine, press and cut the fabric, realize I cut one wrong, realize I didn't have enough fabric for another, and FINALLY sew.  The actual sewing only took 15 minutes, including more pressing, so that part was definitely quick and easy.  Aahh, I guess you never know where a sewing project may take you.  But, all of the frustration fades away when I think of the reason I'm doing this, the Craft Hope Project 9.  They've teamed up with  ConKerr Cancer, an organization that provides cheerful pillowcases to sick children.  Check out the website slideshow of all of the beautiful children holding and making fun pillowcases.  It really makes me feel blessed and humbled to have healthy children.

Anyway, on to the project, or at least some photos.

I purchased the "Wheels on Fire" and orange accent while visiting my sister, and once I got home realized I didn't have enough orange to make 2 intended pillowcases.  So, C and I went to Hobby Lobby to get more orange, and when I told her what it was for, she decided to pick out a couple of more fabrics--peace sign and dogs.  OK, stick with me, I'm going to stray from topic and share that C really, really wants a dog.  She has trouble being gentle with our cat (although it is improving a lot, she scratched her chin for a full five minutes today before squeezing her too hard).  C is great when we meet dogs in the park, though, and discusses nearly daily how she'll get a dog someday when she's more responsible and can scoop the poop.  Thanks to a Fancy Nancy book, C went through a phase in which I had to scatter "poop" (puzzle pieces) and C wore my kitchen gloves and used my tongs to scoop poop.  Then, recently, the poor thing was running around the park barefoot (don't judge me, I let my kids take off their shoes at the park) and she stepped in poop!  Ick!!!  She kept apologizing to ME, when I felt sooo bad for her!  Then we had a nice discussion about how that was an irresponsible dog owner, so I think C is totally prepared to do some scooping when the time comes.  

OK, back to the pillowcase.  I do not have a serger, so I used the ConKerr Cancer "Hot Dog" method, finished my pillowcase with French seams and love that there are no raw edges.  I was going to take photos along the way, but given my minor frustrations with fabric cutting, all I got was the finished product.

It was really hard to find a boy fabric that wasn't too childish.  I know that for most sewing people out there we think "oh, look at that cute fabric" (and obviously the fabric stores lean toward feminine fabric) but boys get sick, too, and really appreciate something to brighten their room.  

I hope I've spread the Craft Hope!

Crafting for a Cause

I stumbled upon this great blog called Craft Hope and am so excited to have signed up for Project 9--pillowcases!  How easy must this be?!  Anyway, I bought some teenage boy fabric because I think of my old college friend that had a younger brother that battled (and won!) childhood cancer.  Keep your eyes out for my finished project!

Crafting with C

I tend to keep random stuff because "I might use that later".  Well, it seems C has the same inclination, as she is constantly pulling things out of the recycling bin "to make into something new".  Today, we rescued a giant Tropicana box.

Peak inside...

C decorated the house with cut-outs from a magazine, scrap paper, and marker.  The kitchen is on the left, complete with her own illustration of fruits and vegetables (it was totally her idea to add those, gotta love that she's a healthy eater!).  There are three cats, a girls' room, and the boy's room.

The family later received clothes.  Left to right is the boy, the twins in matching dresses, Mommy and Daddy.  Not pictured is a baby, swaddled in paper towel.

I didn't catch a photo, but the family's first outing was to the grocery, via a ride in "Mac the Truck" (formerly a pepper grinder box).  They went shopping for more fruits and vegetables (ie snap beads), then took a spin in the salad spinner.  I just LOVE that girl's imagination!

Cape & Wand

I've been slowly sewing some things to add to C's dress up collection while creating birthday gifts for friends.  I've found that I'm more motivated to finish a project if I know it's a gift, and I can easily create a duplicate for C at the same time.

The latest project was a princess-worthy cape and coordinating wand.

C chose the fabrics.  I was happy she went with butterflies because I think this cape will better suit different dress-up personalities rather than one particular fairy.  The wand is a felt butterfly with ribbon antennae and more ribbons to help cast magic spells.  Hubby was kind enough to cut a dowel rod to size, but I ended up using a bamboo chopstick as it was easier to push through the very tiny seam.  Theoretically, I probably should have hand sewn around the stick some more, but I'm pretty sure there was enough hot glue involved to keep everything firmly in place.

The cape and wand pictured actually went to the birthday girl yesterday, and I must say she looked quite cute in it!  Poor C, I did manage to put together a star-shaped wand for her during my hot-glue episode, but her cape is unfinished since I ran out of pink thread.  I promise I'll get to it soon!

Want to see an old project?

Do you want to know what it is?  It's a little organizer that hangs on the back of the driver's seat so that C can keep her car things contained.  It wasn't too hard to make, but if I did it again, I think I'd add some elastic to the top pockets as they tend to sag when loaded up.   When we road trip, I stock the pockets with paper, scissors, crayons, books, stickers, and headphones for the DVD player.  Currently, it contains some pinecones, old tissues, a stray pencil and stale crackers.  Oh, the fun things 3-year olds collect!

It had to be made

Last week, as I was reading bedtime stories to my little man an idea suddenly popped in my head. "Wouldn't it be nice to make my new niece a little black and white book that can be propped beside her or hung in the car?" I have an obsession with black, white and red things for infants. My kids loved the little pictures I hung on the changing table or from the mobile. C helped me make little decorations for S to look at in the car. I kept urging my sister to register for black and white toys. Get the point? Well, the idea came to me on Tuesday night and by Wednesday I had it completed. I tried to find some ideas online but ended up doing it on the fly, and am pleasantly surprised with the results.

A little surprise is inside, too...the middle section sounds crinkly! The question is, what exactly do you call these little "visual" things?

I'm not sure how my new niece felt about the book, but I must share that she is a lovely little babe, and my sister is a natural.  The entire family is just beautiful!

New Headband

Anyone who has had a baby can probably relate to the amazing amount of post-partum hair loss and subsequent regrowth of baby hairs. That combined with my lack of beauty routine means I wear my hair back nearly every day. I have a selection of scarves and headbands that I can use, but lost my very favorite, so decided to try to make some. Here's the first version!

I used Heather Bailey's free "Hooray for Headbands(TM) pattern and it fits great.  Thanks to my amazingly-talented sewing friend "R" who recommended this wonderful pattern.  Hopefully I can make a few more headbands before my upcoming trip to meet my new niece!

(PS Please pardon the view of the messy play room and sewing area.  Now you know how I really live!)

The Shirt Dress -- Done!!!

I never envisioned myself as sewing, and never thought I'd start a blog, but how can this blog not inspire you? Dana (I say it as if we are long-time friends, but I think 90% of the online sewing world knows who I'm talking about) is really talented and very generous to feature so many tutorials. Since she has both a girl and a boy, I can always count on her blog for new projects. In fact, I found MADE and Made By Rae because of their collaborative Celebrate the Boy month. Woo Hoo! Boy sewing projects!!! But, on to this GIRL project...

I started with this



And ended with this


Thanks to The Shirt Dress tutorial. I didn't do the sleeves because I didn't have enough fabric (started with a short-sleeve shirt). I'm not sure if I'll add the belt because I'm lazy. I mean, it only took me three months to get this one completed! Besides, my daughter loves it just as it is ("I'm wearing Daddy's shirt!"). Maybe for the next one, though, as I've never seen C so excited to get dressed, so I'll definitely be making more. As well as some little shorts she can wear under dresses, because it's hard to be modest while playing at the park.

Ribbon Blankets

One of the very first sewing projects I completed was a ribbon (ie "taggie") blanket for my son using this tutorial (minus the personalization). I was very new to sewing and used some clearance fine-wale corduroy backed with fleece. The ribbon came from scraps I already had, supplemented by ribbon from a $2 grab bag at Hobby Lobby. It's not the most aesthetically pleasing blanket, but he loved to play with the little ribbons while riding in the car. Last winter, we took it to one of his pediatrician appointments then lunch at Daddy's office. When I was loading the kids in the car, I realized the blanket was gone. I was near tears, thinking we dropped it somewhere in the hospital. I retraced our steps, left my name at the security office, and hoped for the best. I know he didn't miss it, and I could easily make another, cuter version, but I was so attached to that little blankie. I convinced myself that another child found it and took it home to love it, which made me feel a bit better. Well, weeks later, we visited my husband at work again, and as I was loading up the kids to leave, someone chased us down in the parking lot. The blanket had been found! When the receptionist saw me with two kiddos she suspected the long lost belonged to us. Hurray! The blanket is now safe and sound in my son's crib.


A stack of new blankets


Personalized for the newest baby

Ribbon blankets make great baby gifts and I've made several versions. This is definitely my favorite fabric combination and suits both boys and girls. A few of these have been personalized with the first initial of baby's name. I used navy blue knit, pinned it to the flannel, and stitched closely to the edge (no interfacing or anything). To add the ribbons, I tape them to the flannel, facing toward the center of the fabric, then straight stitch in place, being sure to backstitch again over each ribbon, then forward again. I backed it with a really luxurious red fabric, turned it right side out, then top stitched. In the end, each ribbon is stitched five times, making it super-safe for baby to play away.