How to Sew with Piping {Tutorial}

 
I am in the middle of a much-needed makeover for my two younger girls' room as I posted about here. It is starting to come along, but I have hit a couple of bumps in the road. First, is my white quilts. I ordered two that are technically suppose to go inside a duvet cover, but hoped that they would work by themselves. Not so much. They're definitely going to need a duvet cover, but I'm planning to make a permanent cover for each one out of sheets, kind of like this duvet cover I made, only this one will be fitted to the comforter and completely sewn up. It's pretty much necessary in my girls' room. The second bump in the road to completion is that I have come to a painting project involving spray paint. Me & spray paint don't really jive. Think drippy and clumpy. I'm really trying to hold off as long as possible {or until my hubby is here to guide me on it}. I'm just a tad bit nervous about ruining a piece of furniture. No big deal, right? Yikes.

Today I did make some progress on a couple of sewing projects for the room and I am feeling good about it. So, I thought I'd throw in a tutorial on how to sew with piping. This is one of those things that looks absolutely fabulous on a pillow or what-have-you, but can be a little intimidating when you first start out. However, if you take it slow, you'll be just fine. Enjoy! And if you have any questions, feel free to comment.

This tutorial for piping is shown by sewing piping onto a pillow cover. So, we'll start from the beginning. If you need a pillow cover tutorial, check here. Take your two pieces of fabric for the pillow cover - Front and Back. Place right sides together and lay on a table top.

Now, take your piping and start placing it in between the top and bottom pieces, carefully pinning all the way around the fabric. You want the straight edge of the piping to line up with the straight edge of the fabric pieces. The rolled edge will be on the inside.

Pin carefully, approximately every inch or so to hold it in place. I like to leave the corners unpinned so that I can move it around exactly like I want it. Feel free to pin yours.

Leave an opening of approximately 7-8 inches, depending on how big your pillow is, so that you can stuff your pillow form inside before sewing it up. We'll deal with the opening in a minute.

Now, change your presser foot to the zipper foot. This gives you the ability to sew closer to the edge of the piping giving you a more professional look. The regular presser foot will leave a gap.

Start at one end of the opening and begin sewing all the way around until you have only 7-8 inches left. Backstitch at both the beginning and ending.

Now, turn your fabric rightside out. Be sure to push the corners out. Put your pillow form inside and fluff it up to fit your pillow cover.

Once you are ready to sew the opening closed, line up the piping to see how much you need to trim off. You are going to line it up so that you have about a one inch overlap.

Next, using your seam ripper, open up the fabric on the piping that will overlap about an inch down.

Cut the cording {not the fabric covering the cording} so that you can now line up the two ends and overlap the fabric piece on top of the other end.  {See pic.}

Now, fold each side piece down on both sides of the opening to line up with the already sewn part of the pillow cover. Line your piping up inside the two folded over sides and pin close together.

Still using your zipper foot, start sewing the closure. Go very slowly, removing pins as you go, to keep everything in place. Cut all loose threads.

You're done! If you want to embellish your pillow, do it before you sew the two pieces together. Unless you're like me and you decide to hot glue your design onto the pillow. I wouldn't recommend it for pillows that will be laid on or jumped on. The pillows I made are just for looks.....now if I can convince my girls of that.....

Thanks for stopping by! Stay tuned for more shared girls' room tips and tricks, and of course, the After pic.

Bunny Silhouette Pillow Cover {Tutorial}

This is a two for the price of one kind of tutorial! I love throw pillows because they can change the look of the room in just a matter of minutes and usually for just a few dollars {if you make your own!}. This post will show you how to make a pillow cover with a velcro closure AND how to personalize it. I love the idea of using throw pillows for seasonal decoration, but I really wanted to be able to use the down pillow insert for more than just a few weeks during the year. With the velcro closure on this pillow cover, I can use this pillow insert all year and just change the covers with the season. It's a win-win situation!!
I made this pillow cover out of ... dropcloth! I told you to stay tuned for more dropcloth projects, right?? Here's how...

Now, you can leave it like that or you can personalize it. I chose to do a bunny silhouette in honor of Spring and Easter.

I love how this turned out! And I love even more that I can take the cover off and store it until next year and still use my pillow insert for another DIY pillow in the future! I'll definitely be making more. To see more of my dropcloth projects, click here.

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DIY Mistletoe Pillow {Tutorial}

Throw pillows are a great way to bring the holiday cheer into your home without overdoing it {unless, of course, you like to overdo it}. I love changing out throw pillows for the holidays and seasons. It's the easiest way to brighten up the room and add a little different element to the room. I have a neutral couch so it's the perfect backdrop. My Christmas Countdown Advent Calendar Pillow is my favorite, but this Mistletoe Pillow is a close second! I made this for a friend who is getting married around Christmas and loved it so much I'm making one for myself, too. Everyone needs a little mistletoe!

To make this simple pillow:

• Cut two pieces of fabric to the desired size.
• Take a piece of dark green felt and cut out the leaves for your mistletoe. There's not a set number to cut out, just play around with the design until you like it.
• Cut out a few small circles of white felt for the mistletoe berries.
• Now, arrange your mistletoe wreath on one piece of fabric. When you get it just right, hot glue the leaves and berries down. *Tip: Don't glue the entire leaf down - only partially glue it so that it has a 3D effect to it.*
• Cut a strip of ribbon long enough to go from the top of the wreath to the top edge of fabric.
• With stitch witchery, iron the ribbon onto the fabric.
• Now, make a bow from the same type of ribbon and hand sew it onto the wreath as pictured.
• With right sides together, sew around the whole pillow with a 1/2" seam allowance. Leave about a 6 inch space open to allow for stuffing the pillow.
• Stuff pillow with polyfill or a pillow form.
• Sew the opening closed.
• You're done!

To see tutorials & techniques I've used on other throw pillows, click here. The possibilities are endless! Throw pillows are so much fun and quick and easy to make. Why not try this one? Or make your own design!

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Chevron Throw Pillows {How-To}

I've already begun decorating for Christmas around here and as I looked around my living room after the tree was up, it looked rather unbalanced. Our tree is in front of a window and directly beside our fireplace. I love how the tree looks next to a decorated mantel, but that left the rest of the room kind of plain. So, I decided it was high time to make some new pillows for the couch to match the tree skirt and try to pull the look together. If you have been wanting new throw pillows, this is a very simple and quick DIY project that anyone can do. If you can sew a straight line, you can make a pillow.

Lay your fabric right sides together. Then, place your pillow on top to measure sides (if you don't already know the measurements). I left about 1/2 inch all around to get an accurate fit for my pillow.

Try to line up your sides as close as possible. It should be pretty close.

Pin three sides of the pillow and about 2 inches in from each corner on the unpinned side. Sew with a 5/8 inch seam allowance. Be sure not to sew the opening where you will put the pillow form in.

Turn pillowcase right side out, pushing corners all the way out. Insert pillow form or polyfill and pin the opening closed. You will sew close to the edge to make the least visible as possible.

Voila! You're done. Super easy and a fun addition to my Christmas decor.

I made two of these chevron pillows and I love them! They are Merry & Bright! You can find out how to make the Monogram Pillow using this method here.

 

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DIY Christmas Countdown Advent Pillow {Tutorial}

This is my favorite Christmas countdown item in the house! We have an advent calendar type thing we got from Target a long time ago. It's wooden with little doors to put treats in for each day as we count down to Christmas, but ever since I saw this pillow my sister made a couple years ago, it's been my favorite!
I made one a couple years ago as a gift for someone but never did get around to making my own. I finally made mine this year and can't wait to use it! It's already on my couch, but the wreath will just have to be stuck on "1" for a couple more weeks.

Each day, you just tie the wreath to the new date. My girls are excited to use this! Wish I hadn't waited so long to make one for myself. I love it!

You can find my sister's detailed tutorial here. I did not add ribbon between the rows, but I did add red cording around the edge of mine. I have a lot of neutral going on in my living room, especially on my couch so my pillow needed an extra pop of color to frame it out and help it stand out.

Do you have an advent calendar? Why not make an advent calendar pillow, too?

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Painted Flag Pillow {Tutorial}

I have seen so many cute flag pillows lately and I love this one from Pottery Barn. They have a few different kinds at the outlet nearby, but with a price tag of $39.50, I knew I could make my own. So, I did. It's not exactly the same, but it's my version and I love it! I'm very happy with the results. The total cost was less than $5.

 To make a basic pillow cover with velcro closure, click here.

 After the paint dries, stuff the pillowcase with polyfill or a pillow form and sew closed. Very simple!

I am loving this pillow! It fits perfectly in my chair and is just what I was hoping for. This was a fun, simple project. Anyone can do this!

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Sewing Up Some Creativity this Summer...

With all the activities the end of the school year brings, I start finding myself needing a little inspiration to create things. And about this time of year, I like to get started on my summer bucket list.

I've been searching the web for some ideas for sewing up some summer creativity and thought I'd share them with you in case you're needing a little creative pick-me-up, too.

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What do you do with your earbuds when they are not in use? I sometimes keep mine in a ziplock baggie, but most of the time, I find them bunched up in a wod. And who wants to take time to untangle that mess? This little earbud case would be a great project to make with your kids if they have their own set of earbuds in a wod. And I love that it's attached to a key ring. Click the link for a step by step in pictures. *This is the only link I could find to this project - it does not state who the true owner of this pic is.*

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I'm getting ready to re-do my girls' rooms {finally!} and although two of my daughters share a room, they have very different likes and personalities. So, I'm trying to make their room look nice and simple and uniform while adding their own flair to each side of the room. A little tricky, but so fun. This pillow would be something my 8 year old would love. She's a cat lover and it would be so easy to make a pillow similar to this for her bed in colors that follow the theme of their room. If you like this pillow, you can buy the kit for it here. Check out the link for lots of neat kits for creativity.

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With all the fun outdoor summer activities coming up, we always need our first aid kit nearby! We have a big one in our car, but it's a very good idea to have one in your purse or backpack or diaper bag or whatever if you're out and not near your car. We love hiking, canoeing, etc and usually have a first aid kit handy, but I think I could use one for my own bag on other occasions. This one looks like an easy one to make yourself and you can tweak it to carry the items you want. Go check it out! And while you're at it see all the other fun things Positively Splendid has on their website! You'll love it.

Where do you get your inspiration? What will you be working on this summer?