Quilted Cushion Cover

I got lots of sewing done this week! It will take a few blog posts to get through it all. 

:)

Here's my first completed project. I was sorting out some fabric and found an old project I started years ago.

All the quilting had been done, it just needed to be sewn together.

To do the quilting, you need one piece of fabric for the front, a piece of wadding the same size and then some backing. Pin together and then sew. Then repeat for the other side of the cushion.

I sewed it right sides together, leaving a gap and then turned it the right way out. Then, I stuffed it with wadding scraps and sewed the hole up.

It's an easy way to brighten up your room!

:)

I'm still here!

Hi!

I thought I'd just check in and say I am still here!

I had a busy summer but I am back now.

My busy summer included a bit of this:

A gallop along the beach is always fun.

:)

There's a  giveaway coming soon (as soon as I can get organised!).

I will also have some projects to show you (when I finish them!).

There might possibly also be a cake decorating tutorial, too, I just have to make the cake first!

At the moment I have a lot of work, so my only crafting opportunity is Saturdays.

I am hoping to finish something, anything (!) this Saturday, so watch this space!

Right now, I'm working on:

A cute little bag

An ever cuter potholder

An embroidered canvas

A winter snow scene painting

A poppy watercolour

In my head, I have:

A vintage quilt

A duvet cover

Oven gloves

A skirt made from some shorts

A summer dress or two

Refashioning my bridesmaids dress

I haven't quite run out of ideas, yet!

Anyway, I thought I'd just pop in to say hi and make sure that you didn't think I had abandoned my little blog.

:)

See you soon!

Pink Grocery Bag Holder!

Hi again!

Here's another tutorial for you!

Repurposed: Boudoir Cushion to Grocery Bag Tutorial

(Why are they called boudoir cushions? Sounds a bit posh for me!)

First, find yourself a boudoir cushion. They are about half the height of normal cushions and slightly wider.

Then, cut the zipper off the bottom.

Now, turn it on its side and stitch along the edge, leaving enough room to put in the elastic/ribbon.

One end of this tube is already open, but one needs to be cut open as in the photo below. Don't take much fabric off.

Repeat these steps for the other end.

To insert the elastic, I put a large safety pin at one end and feed it through; don't let the other end go all the way through!

When you have fed the elastic all the way round, take the safety pin out and put a normal pin in its place.

Sew the ends of elastic together and cut off the excess.

I like to push the elastic round so that you can't see the join.

Now, just repeat this for the ribbon and then hang up your functional beauty or give it to a friend!

I think it's safe to say that I like making grocery bag holders. This is my fourth. Three I will give to family members and the other one is in our kitchen. I blogged about another one here, a few months back. It is patch-worked and almost as tall as me. In case you were wondering, it makes a good punch bag!

:)

Hi again! And how I install a zipper...

Hi! Have you missed me? I've been gone ages, I know!

My life has been really busy and my health is not so good but I'm going to try and get a blog post in here and there! At the moment, I won't be able to do as many tutorials, but I'll still show you what I've been making, ok?

Here's my way of installing a zipper to a cute bag like this.

I always start with fabric that is longer than my zipper. I find this to be less fiddly!

Pin one side of the zipper down as shown below. Make sure it is the inside of the zipper you pin down!

Stitch it like this. Yes, I don't even use a zipper foot; I haven't worked out how to yet!

When you get to the zipper bit, lift up your sewing foot and open the zipper.

Then continue sewing!

You may want to zig-zag the edges, too, just to make it extra secure.

Now, pin the other side down and repeat the above.

Now you should have something that looks like this from the inside.

Pin the zipper down  and sew it again.

When you have done this, you will have a pretty stitch line showing on the outside. This row of stitching stops the zipper popping up every time you open the bag.

Next, sort your sides out by pinning them and sewing them up.

When you are doing this, make sure you stitch from the bottom of the bag to the top.

You should end up with a side that looks like the photo below.

Repeat for the other side.

Now, you have a beautiful zippered bag!