creative little daisy

Palletless Pallet Wall how to~

I usually like to share thrifty decorating solutions.

This was one occasion when we decided we'd rather spend

a little money and save a lot of time and effort.

The product I used for my wood plank wall

is v groove wood planks by

EverTrue,

sold in packs of 6 eight foot long planks.

The package says it will cover 14 sq feet.

Our wall is 11 feet wide by 8 feet tall

or 88 square feet, so we bought seven packs.

I also bought three small cans of wood stain,

a light shade, a dark shade and gray.

The light shade was golden oak.

Don't buy this unless you're going for the color of mustard. Blech!

That other can is one I already had.

I usually buy Minwax stain, but I decided to give the Rustoleum a try.

I liked it. Especially the gray.

I stained all of the boards, brushing the stain on, letting it sit a couple of minutes,

then wiped off the excess.

Some I just used the gray stain, some the dark. For some I dry brushed the dark over the gray

and others I stained dark then brushed the gray over.

I was just going for old looking and

wanted quite a bit of variation in colors.

I brought them into the room and laid them out,

according to color.

The foreman was present, to make sure the job was done right,

as usual.

Mitch did the first few rows, before he had to go to work and I finished it up.

He started by finding the studs to determine where we would nail,

but these guys are so light, you don't really have to hit a stud.

There was no formula to our cuts,

we just knew we wanted it to look random, no pattern.

When we got to the outlets, Mitch notched out around them.

He used a coping saw, but said a utility knife would probably work.

We attached them to the wall with an air powered stapler. (from Harbor Freight)

Again, being supervised every step of the way.

The boards are tongue and grove so they lock together.

I was able to put up several rows before actually securing

them to the wall,

That allowed me to be sure I was happy with the layout.

We started at the floor and luckily it worked out

that I was able to finish with a full sized board at the ceiling.

The only place we had to cut the width of the boards was just above and below the window.

Mitch made those cuts and used a box cutter. 

The back of the planks have channels or grooves you can follow for cutting.

You can see in the photo below, the piece above the window

is pretty thin and it broke before I got it installed.

I taped it together and kept installing,

Once it was all up we removed the tape

and patched it with wood putty.

It blended right in.

This is one time I'm so happy Mitch didn't want to go along

with my plan. Shhh, don't tell him I said that.

Remember, the room is unfinished.  Excuse the unpainted window trim.

Don't mind the saw on the floor and the ladder in the corner.

Or the bare light bulb hanging from the ceiling.

We can't seem to find the light fixtures we

purchased at IKEA.

It's a bit of a mess around here.

Finishing up this wall has given me

an extra little push to forge ahead.

It's nice to see my vision coming to life.

 

Sharing is fun! Check out these parties~

 

Interested in putting some piping on a pillow?

I have a little how-to over at Sew Mama Sew. Check it out!

The design for the machine embroidery pillow came from Meringue Designs. It is actually a combination of three different designs. The lady fern, technicolor vine, and poppies.

The white tucked pillow was really easy to do, I found the tutorial for the tucks here.

A pillow post

I'm contributing a tutorial for Pillow Month at Sew Mama Sew. Two tutorials, actually. The first will be published tomorrow and shows how to finish a pillow back with a zipper hidden behind a flap. 

{Sneakity Peakity}

I made three pillows in the process of trying to photograph each step. The method is very easy, getting good photos of the process was not as easy. On the positive side, I did get three new pillows for my couch and not a moment too soon. My pillows were looking so tired.

In the planning process of Pillow Month, I looked at a lot of pillows on the internet. I started a pillow board on pinterest to save some of my favorites. Some I felt like I could recreate, like this one from Dwell Studio available at Target. 

 

It's very pretty, but it's currently unavailable. No problem. Here's what I came up with.

And since I was already writing a tutorial, I happen to have some photos of the process.

If you've looked at more than a blog or two in the past few months, it's very likely you've seen a fabric rosette tutorial, or ten. I'm not going to add another to that long list, but I will show you a few steps along the way to go from rosette to rosette pillow.

If you've never made a pillow, it's perhaps the easiest beginner sewing project. It takes no time to master and perfect for those with little patience. Those who want instant gratification, me included.  Go check out Sew Mama Sew for a tutorial on the basics. While you are there, check out the contest they have going on. There are some great prizes to be won!

OK, for the rosette pillow. I started with a 16" square of dark gray fabric. To get the spacing even, I folded the pillows into thirds, pressed, then repeated for the other way. Not rocket science, I just eyeballed it.

 

 Based on the spacing, I decided I wanted my rosettes to measure about 4". I cut some lightweight interfacing into 4" squares.  If you don't have interfacing, you could use a very light weight fabric. I didn't want to add much weight or bulk to my flowers, but wanted something strong enough to hold up to hot glue. 

Most of the tutorials I've seen are for a smallish flower and recommend using strips of fabric that are around 1" x 22".  Since I needed larger flowers I cut my strips 2" x the whole width of fabric or 44"

Fold in half, the long way and press. For the beginning of the rosette, fold one end in half again and begin rolling tightly- several rolls then twist and roll a couple of times.

Put a small glob of hot glue in the center of your interfacing square and place the rolled end of the fabric in the glue

 Then just keep twisting, wrapping and gluing until you are down to about 1/2 " of fabric. 

Cut the excess interfacing away from the flower and glue the fabric tail around to the back.

Repeat 8 more times. Yes, it's a little time consuming, but it's mindless work you can do while watching TV.

Arrange your rosettes on your pillow front.

Be sure to allow room for your pillow seams. Initially I wanted to use fabric glue, hot glue can be so heavy. Once the fabric glue dried, there were a few places not adhered completely so I just went around each one with a dab of hot glue here and there to make sure they were all secure.

Check out Sew Mama Sew tomorrow (Feb 4th) for that tutorial on how to finish the back with a hidden zipper.

Have you priced vintage blue canning jars lately? Wanna make your own really cheap?

I bought these probably five years ago at an antique/consignment store. I think I paid about 12 dollars for a set of four.  Now you can expect to pay at least that for just one.

Last night I was cruising around the internet and happened upon a link to a tutorial using mod podge and food coloring to make your own. Cool! In the original tutorial, she experimented with a few different methods and colors to get the look she was after. She had some problems with brush strokes showing up in the finished product.  I think she had the best luck using undiluted mod-podge, painting it on then stippling out the brush strokes with the end of her paint brush.  She used the jars as hanging garden lanterns, with tea light candles. Just lovely!

This afternoon I decided to play around with some mod-podge and food coloring myself. I'm thrilled with the results.  First I gathered up a few jars, some mod podge and blue and green food coloring.

Just pour some mod podge into one of your jars. I didn't measure, I just pored in about 1/4 cup.

Add a few drops of water to thin down just a bit. So it's the consistency of.... oh I don't know, slightly thinned mod podge. Then squirt in a few drops of food coloring- to your liking. I tried a few different combinations. I think I liked a 3:2 ratio 3 blue drops to two green. But you do what makes you happy. Stir it around to get a uniform distribution of color, then start swirling. Swirl around to cover the inside and pour the remainder into the next jar you want to color. Keep swirling and pouring to your hearts content or until you run out of jars or you need to mix more- which ever comes first.

You want to get as much of the mod podge mixture out of the jar as possible so you don't have a big glob of dried gunk in the bottom of your lovely jar.

This is how it will look wet.

I'm pretty sure I read somewhere about heat setting paint on glassware by baking it at a low temp, so I set my oven on the lowest setting it would allow, 150 degrees and popped them in.

I took this after they had cooked for about 20 minutes.

And for the finished product, drum roll please.....

Not too shabby, eh? They look very much like the real deal and since no brush was used, there are no brush strokes.  I don't imagine they are food safe. I wouldn't drink out of them or store food items, but they work great for showing off some pretty flowers.

You'll notice there's no water in the jars. I was impatient to take a picture, but I want to let them stay in the oven for a few hours to really set the mod podge. The label says once dries, it doesn't come off.

Edited to add***

OK, I've searched and searched for info about water and mod podge. After reading the FAQ page on the Mod Podge website, I don't  think they will hold up to having water in them.  I wonder how a clear spray sealer might work??? I'll have to give it a try tomorrow. Or you could just use the same method, but use paint made for glass, maybe something like this or this.  Or just don't put water in them and they should hold up just fine.

I used a gloss finish mod podge, just because that's what I happened to have on hand.

I'm linking this up to Funky Junk's Saturday Night Special. Go there to see a load of pretty stuff and great ideas and plan to be there a while. Don't say you weren't warned.

Pillow Talk

Are you wondering if I'm going to sew something for Sew Something Month? I am. I did. How about some cute Christmas pillows- tutorial included. I'm so excited, this post can also be found at Life In Grace as part of Edie's 12 Days of Handmade Christmas.

Perhaps the easiest way to get your feet wet in the sewing waters is by making simple pillow or cushion  covers. Once you know the basic construction, you can get as fancy as you wish with embellishments and trim. You can update the look of a room quickly and inexpensively by simply adding some pretty throw pillows or recovering existing ones.

 

For this tutorial, I’m going to show you how I I saved at least $75.00 by making my own pillow covers instead of buying them from Pottery Barn and Ballard Designs.

I had everything I needed so I didn't spend a dime. If you don't have an embarrassing stash a few things lying around, like I do,  I think you can buy what you need for less than $15.00.

First gather your supplies,

 

You will need pillow forms to cover.  You can buy inserts fairly inexpensively at the fabric store, especially when you catch them on sale, or like I said above, you can just recover pillows you already have.  One of the pillows I'm covering today came from Walmart. I was there to buy a pillow form, but noticed that I could buy an 18 inch pillow  cheaper than a 16 inch pillow insert, so I went with that.

I am using a rotary cutter, but you can make your cuts with scissors. If you plan to do much sewing, I recommend getting one and a self healing cutting mat.  You will also need something to measure your fabric for cutting. I have a clear ruler and my cutting mat has markings, but a tape measure or yard stick would be sufficient.

You will also need a few pins, something to mark with is helpful ( I use a water soluble fabric marking pen), an iron  and of course a sewing machine. 

For the first pillow, I used a fabric called osnaburg, it looks very much like linen but is much cheaper. You can find it at JoAnn or Walmart for around $3/yd.  I pre-wash my fabric before sewing to get any shrinking out of the way. 

Measure the pillow or form you want to cover. Cut one piece for the front of the cover the exact dimensions.  My pillow is 16" square so I cut one piece of fabric that size. Normally when you sew, you cut the item larger, taking your seam size into consideration. For pillows I cut the fabric the same size so that the insert will fit snugly into the cover. Otherwise you end up with a saggy baggy pillow.

 For the covers I'm making today, I will be adding a little something to the fronts. I could have chosen a pretty fabric and skipped the embellishing part and gone on to the next step. Since I am embellishing, I will do that first. 

I want to recreate this Pottery Barn pillow, cause I think it's really cute, but I don't have $29 (plus shipping) to spend on a pillow- especially since I really like the set ($29 plus shipping times three- YIKES!)

 

 

To make the LOVE pillow, I took my 16" front piece and found the center  by folding it in half then in half again. I made the little pocket by cutting a pieces of the same fabric 6" x 8". I machine embroidered the word LOVE in the center, but you could just as easily paint the words on using regular craft paint- if you have a nice steady hand- which I do not.  You could stencil it on using regular stencils or the freezeer paper stencil method or use  iron on transfer paper and iron it onto your pocket.  Once you have your word on your pocket, turn under all four sides 1/2" and press.

I bet I just lost half of you didn't I? When I said press? Pressing gets such a bad wrap, no one wants to fool with ironing. It takes too much time. I don't like to iron any more than the next guy. In fact, I think that may be what turned me off to sewing when I was young. My granny tried to teach me to sew and once she got all preachy about pressing after every step and showing me the propper way to press an item, I started hearing Charlie Brown's teacher "wa wa waaa waaaa...."  If I have to do all that, I'm not messing with it! Well, fast forward to today, and I'm probably a bigger preacher on the merits of pressing as you sew than my granny every thought of being. It really doesn't take much time, and it not only makes the sewing easier, it makes what you sew look so, so, much better. Have you ever seen a handmade item and just it just screamed "homemade!" I bet it was because it wasn't pressed.  So please, please, if you are going to take the time to make something, take just a tiny bit more time to press. OK, off my soapbox and back to the tut. 

Find the center of the pocket and place it on the center of the pillow front. To keep this extra secure for stitching I used a little bit of stitch witchery (fusible web) under the sides and bottom. Once it's nice and secure, I used a quilting stitch on my machine and red thread to give it a hand stitched look ( not necessary, you could use a regular straight stitch, just increase the stitch length). You could also hand stitch it if you like.

 

This pillow cover will have an envelop closure  so I cut two pieces for the back. I don't have an exact formula for cutting the back pieces, I just want them to be large enough to allow for about a four inch overlap. I also allow extra to hem the outer edges (the pieces that overlap)  That sounds confusing, but it will make sense. For this pillow I cut one piece 16" x 12 and one 16"  X 14". 

On one short side of each back piece,  turn under about a 3/4" hem,  press, and turn it under again.  Yes, again with the pressing. Sorry.

 

Sew a straight stitch close to the edge of the fold on each back piece.

 

Now lay your front piece right side facing up on your work surface. Lay each back piece on top with right sides facing down, lining up the outer edges of the back pieces with the outer egdes of the front pieces. You will be overlapping the back pieces. This creates your envelop back.

Pin in several places to hold everything in place for sewing. Be sure to pin the edges of the back pieces so they stay put while you sew everything together.

 

Now sew around all four sides, I used a 3/8" inch allowance because it looked like enough for the fabric I was using. 

Clip your threads, turn your cover right side out, stuff your pillow in and admire your work.  Take a picture of your lovely new pillow so you can share it with all your friends! 

I also made the JOY pillow (didn't get to PEACE yet, maybe today) and this gift box pillow like one Ballard has for- are you ready for this? $75.00!!!. I used the same construction method, you just embelish the front piece any way you like first. 

Want to know how I made the Ballard's pillow? OK I'll tell you. It was really easy and didn't take very long at all. 

You will need a printed fabric, burlap, ribbon or double fold bias tape, freezer paper and steam-a-seam lite.

Cut your first piece to fit your pillow. Mine was 18" this time. I happened to have a piece of green fabric almost exactly like the print on the Ballard's pillow.

Next, cut a piece of steam-a-seam 9" x 9" and fuse it to the back of a piece of burlap. Do (this before cutting the burlap to size, that way you have less fraying) Cut the burlap 9" x 9", remove the paper backing and fuse to the center of the printed fabric.

 

Go around all four sides of the burlap with a zig-zag stitch in dark brown or black thread. 

With the stitch witchery, (or any fusible tape- or you could use a glue stick) secure a piece of red ribbon or bias tape down the center of the burlap box, turning under the raw edges.

 

To make the gift tag, cut a piece of freezer paper 8.5" x 11" (the size of printer paper) and iron the shiny side to a piece of light weight cotton fabric. Cut the fabric 8.5 x 11 after adhering the freezer paper. Now you should have a piece of fabric that will run through your printer. I had to fiddle with mine a bit, but it worked nicely. I am not guaranteeing this will work in your printer. I simply googled free printable sheet music, found and image I liked and printed it on the freezer paper backed fabric. After printing the image onto the fabric, remove the freezer paper. Next fuse a piece of steam-a-seam to the back and cut it out in the shape of a gift tag.  Remove the paper backing and iron it in place on the burlap box.  Stitch around the edges with a zig-zag stitch.  (sorry for the blurry photos)

 

Construct the pillow following the instructions above, then tie a bow from your ribbon and attach it to the front. I used fabric glue, but you could hand stitch it in place.

 

Stand back and admire your pillow and brag to your husband that you saved $75.00!

A little bonus tip~If you are limited on space where ever your sewing area is, you can make a little portable pressing board instead of putting up a big ironing board. I made one yesterday with a scrap of wood, it wasn't plywood, just some sort of paneling stuff Mitch had that measured 16" x 24". I covered it with 2 layers of cotton quilt batting and a layer of fleece interfacing then a layer of cotton fabric. I stapled it all to the back and now I have a surface for pressing I can keep right next to my cutting area, saving me steps to the ironing board and clearing up some floor space in my sewing room.

I'm linking this post to the I Can Make That party at Just a Girl.

DIY version of a bias tape maker

I have one of those cool bias tape makers. I'm sure you've seen them and the impressive results they produce. I bet many of you even have experienced such results. Not me. I've been a little embarrassed to say, I couldn't do it. I couldn't get mine to work. Then it happened. The proverbial light bulb went off and it became shamefully obvious why. You see, I have the 1/2 inch bias tape maker.

I expected to get bias tape that measured 1/2 inch when finished.
Pictured above is actually double fold bias tape. The neat little tool makes single fold tape. Now I knew it wouldn't come out of the tool looking like this. I knew it would be a strip with both sides folded in to the center, my problem was making the distinction between the terminology.  It may have been wise to read those directions instead of throwing them away. I had been cutting my strips the width needed for 1/2 inch double fold tape. I know, not very smart. Once I had my moment of enlightenment, I cut a strip around 1 inch wide (maybe slightly less) and whatdayaknow, the tool works beautifully! 
All that semi-coherent babble isn't intended to be a tutorial, since I'm sure you all understood how to correctly use a bias tape maker, or at the very least would be wise enough to read the directions first. No, the tutorial is for a less fancy, but nearly as effective DIY version of the bias tape maker, and you can easily adjust it to make any size bias tape you like.

All you need is an ironing board, a hot iron, a measuring tape or ruler, and a long needle. A strip of fabric would be nice too. It doesn't have to be cut on the bias unless you will be going around curves.

First determine the width you'd like your bias tape to be (single fold) . For this demonstration my strips are cut about 1.75" and I want the opening under the pin to be 1". This will give me 1" single fold bias tape or 1/2 inch double fold.  I am using little sewing gauge to determine the placement of my needle. Bring the needle up through the ironing board cover, go over 1" and push it back through the cover. The needle will run perpendicular to the ironing board.

Cut one end of your fabric strip to a point and run it under the needle wrong side up.

I am left-handed, so this probably looks very backward to you right-handed folks. Now you know how we lefties feel most of the time. I am pulling the fabric through with my left hand, going right to left. Do whatever feels comfortable to you. When you first start the fabric through, you will probably need to work it a little to be sure it is folding symmetrically.

As you pull the fabric through, press the fold in place. Be careful not to burn your little fingers. That's all there is to it.  Happy bias tape making, my friends!

Let me know how it works for you.

 

Cabinet Painting 101:

 

Since several of you are interested, here is a quick run-down of how cabinets are painted at Casa de Daisy. This is by no means advice from a professional, just what works for me.

Materials:

A good cleaner/ degreaser

Scotch Brite Pad and/or fine grit sandpaper

Painters tape

Edge painting tool or a paint brush to get in corners and edges

A foam roller made for painting smooth surfaces. Buy several covers, you'll need a new one for each coat.

Primer- I used Kilz

Paint- look at the can to determine how much you will need. I started with a quart and had to go back several times. If you are doing a small area like a bathroom, a quart should be plenty, for a kitchen, you may want to go ahead and get a gallon. I used semi-gloss oil based paint because I like the finish it gives. It is a big pain to work with. It takes forever to dry and is a mess to clean up, but it dries to a very hard durable finish and shows less brush strokes than latex.  I think it's well worth the extra work involved. It's stinky though, so be sure your area is well ventilated.

Oil based paint doesn't clean up with soap and water. You'll need something like mineral spirits or acetone to clean your brushes. To clean the paint off your hands, pour a little cooking oil in your palm and rub hands together like you're washing them. Once the paint is loosened up, you can wash with soap and water.

If you use oil based paint allow at least three or four days for this project. You have to let the paint dry 24 hours between coats and it will take more than one coat.

Now for the fun stuff.

• Remove doors and drawers and the hardware. Depending on the type of hinges you have, you may want to remove those too. My hinges don't show, so I left them on the doors.
• Clean, clean, then clean some more. Especially important in a kitchen. I used TSP. It's available at Lowes and WalMart. Just mix it in some water, put on some rubber gloves and wipe everything down. After cleaning with the TSP you will need to go back with a clean sponge to remove any residue.
• If your cabinets have a heavy coat of varnish you may want to sand with a fine grit sandpaper to remove the shine and make a rougher surface for the paint to stick to. I didn't have much shine to worry about so I just scuffed everything up with a scotch brite pad. Wipe everything off again to remove any dust.
• If you have a very steady hand and can paint the cabinets without getting paint on the walls and counter tops you can skip taping. If you're like me, get out the painters tape and carefully tape the areas around the cabinets you would like to protect from paint. Extra time spent taping will be well worth it in the end.

• Once everything is taped you can start priming. I use Kilz. It comes in a low odor formula, but somehow I ended up with the stinky stuff. It is really strong, so open some windows and turn on a fan.
• Primer dries pretty fast so by the time you are finished with the last cabinet, the first one will likely be dry and ready for the first coat of paint.
• If you've never painted with oil paint, be warned that even though it dries slowly, it gets tacky fast. You don't want to go back over it with your brush or roller more than necessary. Try to get a nice smooth coat on and keep moving.
• My cabinets needed one coat of primer and two coats of paint. Don't be tempted to lay on a super heavy coat to save time, it will never dry.
• For the doors and drawers, I was fortunate enough to have access to a paint gun- (the kind cars are painted with) and a paint gun operator (Mitch).  He sprayed the doors and drawer fronts for me. It still took two coats of paint and had to dry 24 hours between coats and in the end, the cabinets painted with a roller looked as smooth as the sprayed doors. I don't think it saved that much time in the long run, so don't feel like you can't get the same results because you don't have access to a paint sprayer.
• I removed my tape between paint coats, just out of fear I would pull paint off with the tape if I waited too long.
• Once you are satisfied with the coverage, you'll want to let it dry at least 24 hours before replacing the doors and drawers so you don't mess up all your hard work. Also in the first week or so after painting try to be very careful, the paint will be soft to begin with, but trust me, once it has time to fully cure, the finish will be quite durable. 

Happy painting!!

Here are some more cabinet painting tips I found online.

Don't fear the zipper

Zippers seem to be the boogyman of sewing. The monster under the bed that puts fear in the hearts of sew-ers. And like the boogyman zippers need not scare you, the fear is only imagined.

For a long time I avoided anything that required putting a zipper in. I'd check the back of the pattern to see if a zipper was required, if so, that pattern went back in the drawer. One day I decided to give it a try, just to see if it was as bad as I had been led to believe. It wasn't. Oh, I'm sure it wouldn't have won any awards but attempting that first one proved that I could do it.

Putting a zippered pocket into a purse is a good way to wet your feet, so to speak where zippers are concerned. Zippered pouches is another.

This is the method I use for putting a zippered pocket in a purse. The pocket is put in one side of your purse lining before assembling it.

Materials:

Zipper: I'm using a 7" zipper

Fabric for pocket: A rectangle that is about 9" wide. The length is determined by how deep you want your pocket. This one is about 12" long and my finished pocket will be about 5 1/2" deep.

Ruler and Pen

Zipper foot: I think this is key to putting zippers in. If you don't have one, I recommend getting one.

Step 1:

Fold the rectangle in half the long way to determine the center line.

Step 2:

About 1/2" below the center line draw a rectangular box that is 1/2" x  7 1/2"

Step 3:

Pin the pocket onto your purse lining piece.

Position it so that the rectangle is where you want the pocket to be. Mine is about 2 1/2" from the top edge and centered on the lining piece.

Step 4:

Stitch along the marked lines

Step 5:

Cut a slit in the center of the rectangle through the pocket and the lining stopping about 1/4" from the ends and cut at an angle to the corners.

Step 6:

Push the pocket fabric through the slit you just cut to the back of the lining and press flat

Step 7:

Center the zipper right side up in the opening and pin securely in place. (you could also use fusible tape to secure the zipper before stitching)  Be sure the pocket fabric remains open flat and away from the opening.

Step 8:

Stitch along the edge of fabric, close to the zipper tape all the way around the zipper.

Step 9:

Bring the sides of the pocket together and stitch along the sides and bottom

There you have it, a zippered pocket in your lining.

This weeks gratitude list is about the senses,

Sight: The orange streaks in the early morning sky, the quiet gracefulness of bare leafless trees against a gray sky, these beautiful prints (more art for the living room)

Sound: The words "I love you", Casey playing guitar, Alyssa singing, Maggie purring

Smell: My morning coffee, Mitch's fresh from the shower skin, clean laundry

Touch: Toby's soft fur, hugs, soft warm flannel PJs

Taste: Chocolate chip cookies dipped in milk, chips and salsa, breakfast for dinner

Craft Apron Tutorial

This tutorial is based on my interpretation of the pattern found in Machine Made Patchworks. I highly recommend the book, it is full of great projects. I did not follow the pattern exactly and have no idea what the instructions say, as they are written in Japanese. The apron featured in the book has the patchwork sewn onto a base with the edges left raw, not sewn in strips.

Materials:

• Canvas or other medium-heavy weight fabric for apron body- I used canvas from a painters drop cloth
• Muslin or sheeting for apron and pocket lining
• Variety of printed fabric for patchwork- I used 8 different prints but you can use more or less
• Solid fabric for ties
• Batting for quilting the pocket- I used cotton quilt batting
• A cutting mat, rotary cutter and ruler are extremely helpful but not necessary

Cutting Dimensions:

• Cut one each canvas and lining fabric 12.5 inches by 30 inches, this will be the body of the apron
• Cut one lining fabric 6 inches by 30 inches for the pocket lining
• Cut 2 from the fabric for ties 35 inches by 2.5 inches
• Decide how you want your patchwork pocket to look and cut strips of several different prints in various sizes. This will make the pocket. For the design above I cut 7 strips 6 inches by 3 inches (see either end in picture of finished apron above), four strips four inches wide by three inches tall ( bottom center), one strip approximately 12.5 inches long (red piece top center).
• I use a 1/4" seam allowance for sewing

Step One Lay out your patchwork, overlapping the pieces by 1/4 " until you have it approx 30" x 6"

Once you are happy with the layout sew your strips together. If you want to use the layout I've used, start by sewing the 3" x 6" strips together. (sections 1 & 2)  Next sew the 4" x 3" pieces together (section 3). Once each section is sewn together press your seams. Sew sections 3 & 4 together, trim as needed for sizing, press. This will be the center section, sew sections 1 & 2 to either end. Phew... do I have you completely confused? I think I am.

Once you have that all pieced together cut your cotton batting slightly larger than the patchwork and place the patchwork on top of the batting. I use a temporary basting spray to hold it securely for quilting and I also pin it in several places.

Machine quilt straight lines approx 1" apart across the patchwork. I use a quilting guide on my walking foot, but you can mark the lines with a water soluble pen.

Trim the excess batting and patchwork to fit your lining piece 6" x 30"

Place lining on top of patchwork right sides together and sew across top only. Turn to right side and press.

Place the apron piece (canvas) right side up on your work surface, place the pocket right side up lining it up with the apron bottom, on top of that place the apron lining.

Secure with pins and sew around all four sides, leaving a small (approx 4" section at top for turning right side out). Trim seam allowances turn and press.

Almost finished.

Mark the divisions for your pockets. There will be five pockets. The finished width of the apron is about 29 inches making the pockets approx 5 3/4". I say approx because I stitch the pocket section over one of the existing quilting lines, so they will likely not all be the exact same size. Sew down the division lines, making sure to secure the top of the pocket by backstitching several times.

Now all you have to do is make and attach the straps and you're finished.

Fold the short ends of the straps in approx. 1/2" and press.

Fold in half the long way, press

Open and fold each side in to center, press

Fold again to hide raw edges, press... yes there's lots of pressing. Like my pink iron, by the way?

Repeat with other strap. Sew down the open side and you're onto the final step.

Pin in place about 1" in from the end and 1/4" down from the top of the apron. Repeat with other strap. Sew straps in place and sew across top of apron to secure opening that was left for turning.

That's all folks!

Wear and enjoy.

If you would like to make an apron brilliantly designed especially for a seamstress by a seamstress, check this one out.

Belt Tutorial

Another day, another belt. Here's a little rundown of how I make a belt. I'm sure there's a better, faster, easier way, but this is the method I use.

Determine the size your belt should be (measure around the outside of your pants where the belt loops are) Add to this about 8.5 inches.

I have 1.5" d-rings so my finished belt width will be about 1.5". I cut the fabric strips 3" wide by various lengths or if you want a more uniform look you can cut them all the same length. Cut enough to make up the finished belt size. (remember to take the seam allowance into consideration) I just cut a pile of strips and keep sewing them end to end (right sides together)  until I come up with the length I need.

Once the strips are all sewn together press your seams.

Now cut a strip of fairly stiff fusible interfacing (I use decor-bond by pellon) 1.5 inches by the length of the belt.

This will be fused to the back of the length of strips. Fuse the interfacing so that it is centered (top to bottom) on the length of strips.

Press the raw edges in toward the center 3/4" on each side. (to give you a width of 1.5")

Cut a piece of grosgrain ribbon 9.5" shorter than the strips. Pin in place to the back of the length of strips. (or use a fusible tape to secure for stitching)

Place ribbon 7" in from one end

About 2.5" in from other end

On the end with ribbon 7" from end fold down 1/2" to hide raw edge and then fold the fabric back onto the ribbon.

Stitch down both long sides close to the edge.

On oposite end fold back 1/2" and fold again 1" through d-rings. Stitch in place and you are finished.

You could also skip the interfacing and back the belt with cotton webbing instead of ribbon. I happened to have interfacing and ribbon so I used what I had. All the measurements are approximate. The important thing is to allow enough extra length to attach the d-rings on one end and to fold back enough on the other end so that when the belt is on you see fabric on the part that folds back. (does that make sense?) It is really easier than this bunch of writing makes it sound. Just give it a try. If you make one send me a picture. Next I think I'll try a quilted one.

Making this belt was quick an easy and without any snafus. Later I worked on a wristlet. I have some pearls of wisdom to share about that experience as well:

• When cutting down a zipper to make it shorter, the instructions tell you to sew over the teeth at the point you want to shorten the zipper. Even though you will be enclosing the end in a seam, don't skip this step. It is a necessary step and doesn't take very long. In fact it takes a tiny fraction of the time it will take you to take apart the outer bag and lining pieces you have just attached nicely to the zipper before you carelessly open the zipper and slide the pull right off the teeth and onto the floor. Those guys don't go back on. So now instead of taking a couple of minutes to stitch across that zipper end, you have to spend 30 or so minutes to take everything apart and start over. AARRGGGGGGG!!!!
• If it is called a wristlet, you should actually make a wrist strap and put that strap on the wristlet before it is completely sewn up. Otherwise, it's just a zippered pouch.
• If you want to cut a length of fabric 4 inches wide and are using your 4 inch wide ruler and rotary cutter to cut this fabric. Make sure your ruler is actually a 4" wide ruler and not 3 inches. Otherwise you will have a 3" wide length of fabric. Go figure!