Make It Myself Monday: Decorative Pillow

I did it!  I made a pillow for my little girl for Christmas!  I was quite proud of myself...even though this would be considered preschool education amongst sewing scholars.  But us newbies gotta start somewhere, right?

I changed my reference tutorial, and utilized the tutorial and style from Angela at Cottage Magpie as my how-to guide.  It was well written, had lots of pictures (which us pre-school level novices really like!) and the tutorial worked well for me...thanks Angela!

So here is my how-to guide, based on the guide referenced above, but with pictures from my own experience...

We had a small 14" pillow form around the house that I had gotten from IKEA about 2 years ago for about $2.  We don't really use it for anything...in fact it has been in the closet with the blankets for months.  So I decided this would be my pillow insert.  As indicated in last week's post, the fabric was leftover from the bulletin board project.  The only thing I purchased to complete this project was the trim...and I even got that for 50% off.

This was literally one of the first times I've actually used a measuring tape in conjunction with my sewing projects since junior high Home Ec.  Granted, my only sewing projects since then have been Halloween costumes for kids and a bed canopy...all of which are very forgiving!


I cut one square shape from the material, measuring it one inch larger than the pillow form (so 15" square).  Then I cut two rectangular shapes from the material, each measuring 10x15.

As you can see, the material was pretty wrinkled from being stored for so many months.  So I fired up the iron and ironed each piece.  This is another step for sewing that I haven't done since Junior High home ec too!  Glad I did though - it makes the finished project that much more put together.

After the pieces were ironed, I got my sewing area set up.  My sewing area is at the end of our dining room table, which means I can't just leave it set up from day to day.  Here shows my very basic entry-level model sewing machine (which works really well for me), and my computer nearby - I referenced that tutorial ever 2 minutes it seemed!  :)

Cottage Magpie recommended to use a glass to round the edges of the pillow on the wrong side of the fabric.  This was to reduce bulk inside the pillowcase and to make sewing easier overall.

 

I started out sewing by doing a zig-zag stitch on all sides of each piece (except the straight overlap edges of the rectangular pieces).  This was fun - the first time I've ever done a zig-zag stitch that I remember.  This step was done to reduce the chance of fraying with the material.

 

Once the zig-zag stitch was done, I took each of the rectangular pieces and folded over the overlapping edges two times by about 1/8 of an inch each time.  I used the side of my chalk pencil to smooth down the fabric so it would stay in place.  I then sewed each of these folds with a straight stitch to give it a smooth finish.

Then it was time to pin on the trim.  I pinned it on the right side of the square piece of material, with the part of the trim that I wanted to show on the pillow pointing inwards, and the sewing band pointing outside.  It was recommended to pin this often, so I did, about every third pom pom!

Next I pinned the two rectangular pieces to the square piece, right side of fabric facing the right side of the square...wrong side facing out.  As I pinned these pieces, I removed the pins holding the trim to the square, allowing my new pins to go through all 3 pieces.  This way no pins would be lost or hidden within the pillow case...which could potentially cause significant damage to the sewing machine.

 

Once it was all pinned together, time for the final sewing step!  I worked about 2 inches at a time, sewing all the fabric and trim together in a straight stitch, removing 2-3 needles at a time as I worked along.  I ran into a snag when my bobbin ran out of thread...so after a quick pitstop to reload it, I was back in the saddle!  This step went by quickly.  When it was down, I turned the pillow right side out, holding my breath as I did, afraid I may have unwittingly stitched crooked or something like that.

BUT...hallelujah!  It was all even and the trim was perfect.  YAY!  I Made it Myself...a decorative pillow, which will be given to my daughter as one of her Christmas gifts.  Here's the final project:

Front

Backside

I was happy with the turnout of my first real Made It Myself Monday.  This from Chocolate on My Cranium is what I've got lined up for next week...creating to be a stocking stuffer for each of the three kiddos.  So far I've got the fabric for each one cut out and pressed...here's a sneak peek:

PS - Don't forget to leave a comment and a link back to your own made-it-myself creations.  I'd love to see them and be inspired!

Make It Myself Monday: Bulletin Board

NOTE:  Cyber Monday!  Giveaway for Mailbox Bliss Custom Design Digital Card ends TONIGHT at 11:00 pm CST.  Click HERE to enter!

I'm going to kick off 'Make It Myself Monday' with a tutorial (and confessional!) on a project I did with/for my daughter Lu Lu Berry last May.  She had been asking for a bulletin board for her to put up all her 'stuff' on, and I couldn't bring myself to nail up a standard drab brown bulletin board in her room.

So we made it fun and went to a store together to pick out a fabric we loved and that matched her room...and then we got ribbons and buttons and hot glue gun sticks and...well...you get the idea.  We went the frugal/conservationist route and used a frame that we already had, but weren't using around the house.  I think the glass had already broken out of it, which made it all the better of a choice! 

To customize the cork board size, I found cork tiles at Michael's Craft Store and was able to cut and hot glue gun them to size on the particle board that fit into the frame, so it would be a perfect fit.  That worked well, but I didn't think in advance about how the method that I used to hot glue gun the cork tiles on would affect my ability to neatly wrap the fabric around the particle board.  To get the fabric to fit tight on the cork in the front, I had to pull the fabric in awkward directions, cut it in strange ways to get it to fit into the frame (I also hadn't planned for those little metal clips that go into the frame to make it hold tight) and so I hot glue gunned the heck out of it to make it stay.

Thankfully the only one seeing the back of the frame is the wall...and now all of you!!!

After the fabric was properly affixed, I created a criss-cross pattern across the fabric with the ribbon.  Again, I didn't plan this out entirely, nor did I use rulers or chalk lines to make sure it all work.  I just guessed and eyeballed it (which is why if you look closely you'll see a few lines that are a teensy bit crooked.  Once the ribbon was on (hot glued, of course), I hot glued a button in each of the spots the ribbon crossed and made an 'x'.  

In the end the bulletin board turned out GREAT, and has served a wonderful function for Lu Lu Berry.  She switches out the pictures and mementos on it every other week it seems...it is like a visual diary for her...and so far all that hot glue gun work on the back has held up well!

 
Now for my NEXT "Make It Myself Monday", I would like to use the extra fabric from making the bulletin board to make a pillow for Lu Lu Berry's bed that matches the bulletin board.

I'd like to do a pillow like THIS ONE at Tiny Decor blog.  I've selected that one because it is simple and doesn't look too intimidating to me!  Plus, my tendency (as you discovered with the bulletin board) is to often forge ahead with a craft idea without planning it out.  Then I find myself without the right supplies (or enough of them), or with an unexpected 'snag' (like forgetting to leave room for frame clips on the bulletin board project!).  Tiny Decor gives a pretty simple but understandable tutorial...I'm excited to give it a try!

I will take pictures and will recap the entire project on the 7th (assuming I finish it by then!).
Shhh...if you know her, don't tell Lu Lu Berry...this is going to be one of her Christmas presents!


NOW...I would LOVE IT if you are a blogger and a crafty pants (or wannabe crafty pants) and want to join in with my "Make It Myself Monday" posts.  Within a few weeks we'll get a MckLinky going for it, but for now, if you write a "Make It Myself Monday" post, leave a comment with a link to your blog - I'd like to highlight it!