Tutorial: Toweling into Towels

Have you ever seen our collection of toweling and thought “so cute, but what would I do with it?”  Well, here’s one thing… you can make your own kitchen towels.

SUPPLIES:

• 2 yards of the toweling of your choice.  Check out our selection here.
• Coordinating thread
• Twill tape or trim of your choice
• Iron and ironing board
• Rotary cutter
• Rotary mat
• Ruler
• Sewing machine

STEPS:

1. Take your 2 yards of toweling and fold into equal thirds.  Press the folds.
2. Using your rotary cutter, cut just to the edge of the fold, creating 3 equal pieces of toweling.
3. Fold over the edge the same distance as the side seams and press.
   
4. Fold over again to enclose the raw edge.
   
5. Repeat on the other end.
6. Cut approximately 5-1/2″ of trim (you can alter depending on the size of the hook you want) and fold in half.
7. Slide the raw edges of the trim under the folded seam and pin into place.
   
8. Sew the seams down, staying close to the edge.  

And voila, you now have 3 new kitchen towels!

 

Happy Sewing!  ~Jill

The Perfect Little Summer Dress (and it’s super easy)

Recently, one of my adorable nieces celebrated her 4th birthday.  She truly believes she is a princess and insists on wearing dresses every day.  So, what is a better gift than a new dress.  I didn’t really follow a pattern, but by using tips and tricks that I learned using Angela Yosten’s Rags to Ruffles pattern.

My girls thought is would be fun to make her a matching dress for her doll as well. 

I found a tutorial for this pillowcase-style dress on the “Creating Kidstuff” blog.  Click here for the tutorial.

Happy Sewing!  ~Jill

A Honey Bun Pillowcase!

Good Monday Morning!  For the next 3 days we are offering 10% off of all of our fabrics.  I wanted to show you a pillowcase tutorial that you could quickly make up with some of the great fabrics that I know you will want to get.

Supplies

1 honey bun–I used Bungle Jungle

1.5 yds of main fabric–I used Christmas Red Dottie

Ric Rac–I used Medium Aqua

.5 yd of lightweight interfacing

Have you ever noticed that when I am using a honey bun or jelly roll that my pictures never have them rolled up?  It is because I can’t wait to open them up and see what is inside.  It is the little kid in me…it is like Christmas every time I get a new one…just can’t wait.

Choose 22 strips.  Lay them out and get the look you are going for.

Sew your strips together.  The easiest way to do this is sew 2 together at a time.  Then add them all together to form one piece.

Cut 2 strips that are 11″ wide x the width of the fabric that you have sewn together.

Now, sew the 2 strips together end to end.

Add your interfacing to the wrong side of the strips.  The only reason I did this, is so when the pillow case is washed, the seams won’t get all bunched up and weird.  You can completely skip this step if you like.

Cut your main body of fabric to 21″ x width of fabric.

I folded my sewn together strips of fabric in half and laid them down on the main body of the fabric, then trimmed the main body to the same size as the strips.  It is hard to give an exact measurement here because of how your strips come together.  Just make that both are the same size and you shouldn’t have any problems.

Choose another Honey Bun strip.  Press it in half along the entire length of the strip.

Sew a piece of the ric rac along the entire length of the strip.  I placed mine really close to the edge of the fold so when I sewed the case together you could see all of the ric rac.

Layer your 3 pieces together.  Make sure your fabrics are all unfolded.  Place all right sides of the fabric facing up.  You want to start with the stripped fabric…then the main body…then the strip that has the ric rac.

Line up all your edges. 

 I place 3 pins along the edge just to hold everything together.  Trust me it is a pain to sew it all together and the realize that you have missed places because the fabric has shifted.

Roll up your main piece of fabric.

Now, fold up your stripped fabric and pin the edges together.  You want to make sure that the main fabric is not in the way.  When you roll it up leave yourself about 2 inches of room so you can pin the edges together. 

*On a side note.  See that really awesome pincushion?  That is a Grabbit Magnetic Pin Cushion.  If you don’t have one…GET ONE.  I love how powerful the magnet is on this.  With a little one around, I don’t have to worry about my pins falling off and her finding them with her little foot.

Sew along your edge using a 1/4″ seam.

Grab your main fabric and start pulling it out of the end of the tube you just made. Don’t forget the pins that you put in to secure your layers.  I did…it hurt…learn from my mistakes…lol.

  

Keep pulling until you have turned the entire tube inside out.

This is what you should have.

Press your pillowcase with wrong sides together.

Using a scant 1/4″ seam sew along the 2 open edges.  Once you have done this, turn your case inside out.  Press again.

Now you want to sew down the edges that you had sewn in the previous step. Use a 1/2″ seam.  This gives you a French seam and you have no open seams on your pillowcase.  Turn it right side out again and press.  WooHoo!  You just made a pillowcase.

  

Here it is completed.  Now, my question for you, would you like to see a tutorial of how I made the adorable little pillow in front?

I had told you on Friday that I would show you all of the things that I was able to make with the honey bun.  Here they are…

So, what do you think?  Personally, the little bag with the flower is my favorite!  I think I will have to make ups some more of that one.

Now, head over to Home a la mode…check out all of our fabrics…and get to sewing.  Remember, if you use my Discount Code it will give you an extra 5% off your order.  That means you can get 15% off of your fabric.  That sounds like a pretty good deal to me!

Quilt Tutorial and Giveaway!!!

Good Morning everyone!  I hope you have had a great weekend.  We had some crazy storms come through last night.   Thankfully, everyone is OK.  

I want to share a tutorial today using a jelly roll and one of my favorite Say It With Words Panels.  This is the second quilt that I have made with the What Cancer Cannot Do Panel.  I love these.  While I was making this one, my Mom called to ask me to pray for a couple of her friends that had just been diagnosed with cancer.  I told her what I was doing and said that maybe she should make one for her friends.  I think these are so inspirational!  Now on to the tutorial…

Supplies

1–Jelly Roll–I used Salt Air

1–What Cancer Cannot Do Panel

1.5 yds of Kyoto Batting

1.5 yds of Backing Fabric–I used Salt Air Tiny Bubbles–Mist

Start by cutting your panel.  

Open up your jelly roll and select 12 strips.  I like to lay them out and try different combinations.  This is the final layout I decided on.

Line your first jelly roll strip up with the short edge of the first saying that you want to sew…use a 1/4″ seam and sew down the edge.

Repeat for the other side.

Press your seams towards the jelly roll strip.

Trim the strip.

Here is what it should look like.

Next, sew the jelly roll strip to the top and bottom of the saying.  Trim the edges so that it is all even.

You have completed your first block.

Repeat the steps for the remaining 11 saying blocks.

Now, you want to lay out strips to make columns and rows.

Take the first strip that runs vertical and sew your blocks to it.  Leave some space between the blocks as you sew them…

When you have sewn them all… cut the jelly strip apart lining up all your edges.  This will create your first “column” on your block.

Repeat for your 2nd “column”.

Repeat again for your 3rd “column”.

Again, repeat for your 4th “column”.  Can you see it starting to come together now?

Start assembling your rows now.  Line your first jelly roll strip with the top edge of the first row. Sew and press your seam.

Add your 2nd strip between the first and second row

Repeat these steps until you have added all your strips between each row and after the 4th row.  Trim up your edges.

Now, it is time to create the header for the quilt.  Add another jelly strip to the top of your quilt top.  

Take the part of the panel that has the title.  Cut a jelly roll strip in half and sew it to both side of the words.

Sew this strip to the strip that you just added to your quilt top.  Add another strip to the top of the title piece.    Trim all of your edges so they are squared up.

You have now completed the quilt top.  I love showing pictures of the quilt tops with the sun shining through them.  They remind me of stained glass.

Now it is time to make your quilt.  Layer your backing fabric first, then your batting, then your quilt top.  I like to trim my batting an inch to 2 inches bigger than my quilt top…and then my backing fabric a couple of inches bigger than that.  Trust me, there is nothing more frustrating than being in the middle of quilting and realizing your layers have shifted and they don’t fit together anymore.

I have a confession…I HATE TO PIN QUILTS!  There, now that it is out there for the whole world to see…hehe…I will share my secret weapon.  Quilt Basting Spray!  This stuff is soo awesome.  Just spray it between layers…smooth them together and voila…you have “pinned” your quilt.

I spray my quilt one half at a time.  Always remember to only apply the spray to your batting.  I fold my quilt top and batting back so that I can spray the batting.  Then lay the batting back down on the backing fabric…smooth it…

Spray the top of the batting…then smooth the quilt top down on top of that.  Repeat these steps for the other half of your quilt.

Now, using your quilting foot…quilt your layers together.

When your have finished all of your quilting…run a zigzag stitch around the outer edge of quilt top.  This will bind all of your layers together and make it 10 times easier to add your binding.  Make a binding using scraps and leftover jelly roll strips.

I will be back tomorrow to show you my completed quilt.

Now…on to the giveaway…we wanted you to have the chance to win one of our 

Say It With Words Panels!

To Enter:  Check out the different panels we have and tell us which one you would like to win.  You might also let me know what you think of the tutorial.  I love your feedback!!!

I will announce the winner tomorrow morning!!!  

Good Luck to Everyone!

Easy Box Pleat Bed Skirt Tutorial

Have you ever been making up your bed, look down, and see your bed skirt is like 60 degrees off from where it should be?  I do it all the time…it drives me nuts.  Well, I have an awesome solution for you!  Karen came to me and said she had a client who needed a simple bed skirt.  She gave me a fitted sheet and told me to get to work now!…noooo…She is really really sweet.  She said finish it when you can.  Anyway, I was pretty much intimidated by this project.  I have never done this big of a project before….sooooo…I put it off.  After a couple of weeks of that fitted sheet peeking out at me from my stash shelves, I couldn’t stand it any longer.  Time to get it done.  I fussed and yelled and maybe a bad word slipped out here and there.  I just couldn’t figure out how to do it…so, I called my fairy sewing godmother, Karen.  She said…just sew the bed skirt fabric onto the sheet.  DO NOT cut the sheet.  That way when it is put on the box springs it won’t move around.  WELL DUH!!!  Hehe, this is why she is so awesome.  Anyway, after all of that I would like to show all of you how easy this project really is…..

Start with a fitted sheet and the fabric you want to use as your bed skirt.  I used Bella Solids Natural.

Put the sheet on your bed.  Determine the length that you want your skirt to be.  Our’s needed to have a 14″ drop. You will also need to determine how much fabric you need to go around the the perimeter of your mattress. Be sure to add 8″ for each pleat that you want to put in the skirt.

Next cut your fabric for the skirt.  With a 14″ drop that would mean I cut my fabric 30″ wide.  This allowed for the fabric to be doubled and have a one half inch seam allowance.  You will probably have to piece your fabric so it is long enough to go around the perimeter.  

You want to sew a long tube.  In doing this, when you have the finished product you won’t have any open seams.  I usually don’t pin when I sew.  I chose to go ahead and pin the two edges, right sides together about every foot.  It was a long piece of fabric and I didn’t want it “walking” on me and causing problems later.

Here it is all sewn together. 

Press your seam…this picture is kind of foggy because my iron decided to apply some extra steam as I was taking the pic.

Start pinning the skirt onto the fitted sheet.  I wanted to put a pleat in the middle of each side and also on the corners.  I just measured and placed a mark at the halfway point and made my pleat there.  You also may want to pin the bottom of the pleat.  I found I had to go back and re-pin because I had pulled the bottom of the fabric too tight and it wouldn’t let the pleat lay correctly.

This step is optional.  This is where I had to stop and play hide from the monsters with my little one.  She couldn’t resist messing with me because I was on the floor down on her level.  HEHE, trust me though, this step is definitely worth it!

 Now you want to pin, pin, pin it does take a little time, but it is completely worth it!

Now, top stitch your fabric to your sheet.  I went with 2 rows to add a little extra umph to the seam.  Don’t you hate it when the skirt starts ripping from that yucky white material that they usually come on?  I DO!

Now you have a super cute, super easy bed skirt!!!  I love it!  I am seriously considering making    many more of these.

Let me know if you have any questions!

Simple 1-2-3 Patchwork Quilt Tutorial

I want to share a very simple quilt that actually packs a wallop presentation wise.  This is the 1-2-3 patchwork quilt.  Very easy! Very Simple!  If you are just starting in quilting…you will love making this quilt.


Supplies


3/4 yd. of 3 coordinating fabrics  I used Airborne, Faded Blue Dottie, and cream chenille
2 yds batting 
2 yds backing fabric (I backed this quilt with the cream chenille)
fabric for binding.  I just used scraps left over from my squares.

Cut your fabrics into 6″ squares.  Figure ahead of time how many you need for how big of a quilt you want.  We wanted a baby quilt so we went with 7 x 9 grid.  This means I would need 63 squares.  Divide that by the number of fabrics you have (3) and that will give you how many squares of each fabric you will need…in this case (21).

Next lay your squares out in a 7 x 9 grid.  Put them out in a 1-2-3 pattern.  Follow that simple pattern and it will lay out very quickly.

Now you want to sew each row together.  I start by doing the vertical seam first.  Once I have done that, then i sew each row together horizontally.

I love how the chenille adds some texture to the quilt top!

Layer your quilt top, batting and backing fabric together and pin.  Now you are ready to quilt your pieces together.

I went with a basic diamond pattern.  This is the first round of quilting.  It  didn’t quite look right, so I decided to add more lines…

I like this MUCH better…don’t you?

Make your binding.  You want to cut strips of fabric that are 2.25″ wide.  Make one long strip that will go all the way around the perimeter of your quilt.  Remember to allow for corners.  Once you have your strip, fold it in half and press.  

  
You are now ready to attach your binding.  Always, Always, Always finish your binding by hand stitching it down.  You will get a much more professional finish in the end.

My quilt finished off at 39′”x 49″.  The perfect size for a little one to crawl around on.  You can make this any size your want.  My hubs is actually trying to talk me into making one for our king size bed.  I told him it would take a lot of bribery on his part.  Let’s see if he comes through.  


If you have any questions, please feel free to ask.  Stop by Home a la mode and check out our great fabrics for your next patchwork quilt.

Curling Iron Cover–Tutorial

Hey everyone!  It is 4 a.m.  I can’t sleep…know why…my step-daughter is graduating from high school tonight.  Wow, where has the time gone?  We were talking yesterday about all the preparations for graduation, her graduation party, her last day of school…let’s just say, we ended up in a very tearful hug full of happy and sad tears…Jeez…I am actually tearing up right now thinking of it.  I just want to say, I am the LUCKIEST step-mom in the whole world.  My “kids” are the BEST!


Ok, enough of that and 3 tissues later…because I can’t sleep I have decided to show y’all a tutorial this morning.  My version of the curling iron/flat iron cover.  I love this bag.  You can slide your irons in it as soon as you are done…while they are hot…without having to wait for them to cool down.  How cool is that?  You can do this because you will be using InsulBright Material for the inner “batting”. 

I used fabric from Home a la mode…you can find the Tangerine Dottie Fabric here, the Ric Rac here, and I used one strip of fabric from our Scrap bags.

To start with:  you will need 1-3 coordinating fabrics.   InsulBright Material. Fastener, I chose to use a velcro tab, you can use whatever you like.  Any type of extra trims you like.

Cut from Fabric

2–18.5″ x 6.5″ rectangles–if using 2 fabrics cut one from each.

2–14.5″ x 6.5″ rectangles–if using 2 fabrics cut one from each

2–13.5″ x 6.5″ rectangles–if using 2 fabrics cut one from each

From the fabric that you want to “trim” the bag with, cut a 2.25″ inch strip to make a binding strip.  You will fold this piece in half and press. 


Cut from  InsulBright


1–18″ x 6″ rectangle


1–14″ x 6″ rectangle


1–13″ x 6″ rectangle–I chose to use regular batting for this piece.  It is up to you what you use.

Next you will need to make a “sandwich” with your fabric and  InsulBright/Batting.

Begin quilting.  I chose to go with a straight line stitching.  I found the center of my fabric, sewed down that line…then just lined up the edge of my walking foot with the center line and used that as they width of my rows.

Repeat this for all 3 rectangles.

Next you want to put “trim” on the tops of the 14.5″ x 6.5″ and 13.5″x 6.5″ rectangles.  Take your trim piece place your raw edge across the top of the rectangle on the 6.5 ” in edge and sew using a quarter inch foot.  Fold the trim piece over the top of the rectangle then secure it to the back by sewing down the edge as close as you can.

Layer all three rectangles together and sew them together.

Now you want to take your trim piece and attach it to your layered rectangle just like you would quilt binding. 

I usually finish binding by hand.  I wanted to try using my machine this time.  I really like how it turned out.

Now you can add your fastener.

Now just finish up with whatever trims you would like to add.  There are so many ways you could “dress” this up or you can just leave it plain and simple.  I also wanted to show you a case cover that I made my sister.

I hope this has been helpful.  If you have any questions, please feel free to ask.  I would also love to see any that you make!!!

Quilter’s Coasters

Have y’all seen our Say it With Words fabric panels?  I have been playing around with them for a couple of months now.  They really are a lot fun and you can make just about anything with them.  I wanted to show the most recent project I did using our Things Quilter’s Really Think IV panel

I also used the Sassy Jelly Roll and for the backing I used 54″ Dottie Fabric in celery.  In the picture above you can see where I had already cut the fabric panel apart into the individual sayings.

I used a basic log cabin pattern with strips from the jelly roll to surround each saying.

I couldn’t decide if i wanted to use them as a quilt or cut them up individually.  I am soooo in love the Sassy fabrics….love, love, love them…aren’t these colors gorgeous.

I decided to cut them up into individual squares.  With this panel you get 24 different sayings. 

I finished them all of by adding a grommet to the corner of each.

These would make great little gifts for all of your quilter friends.  There are so many ideas that you could try with these panels.  You could make a quilt.  Break them up and make a wall hanging.  I think these will be cute broken up into groups of 4 and given as coasters.

I am having so much fun with these panels.  Look forward to see many more in the the coming days.

I hope you are all having a GREAT day!

Let’s Go Sew!
Kristin

Super Cute Burp Rag Tutorial

I am always looking for a cute gift ideas to make for babies.  The thing I love most about this one is that whether it is the first baby or the fifth, Burp Rags are ALWAYS needed 🙂  This is my first attempt at a tutorial, so please let me know what you think.

Supplies:

• Cloth Diapers
• Fabric – I used fat quarters, but this can be done with large scraps you have lying around
• Tape Measure
• Ruler
• Rotary Mat
• Rotary Blade
• Thread
• Pins
• Sewing Machine

Steps:

•  Iron your diaper so that it is nice and flat.
• You will need to measure the length and width of the inner padded area of the diaper.

• Take your measurements and add 1″.
• Cut your piece of fabric to your measurements.  My diaper measured 5″ x 19-1/2″ so I cut my fabric 6″ x 21-1/2″.  TIP: Don’t assume all diapers are created equal.  My experience has shown that they can be off by at least 1/2″ from each other.
• Press a 1/2″ seam all around the edges of your fabric.  I like to turn the corners in to make prettier edges.

• Pin the fabric onto the diaper as shown in the picture.

• Now comes the time for sewing!  Choose any stitch that you would like – I prefer to use my zig zag stitch.  You will want to stitch as close to the edge of the fabric as possible.  TIP:  I like to use white thread in my bobbin so it doesn’t show on the under side of the diaper.
• Once you stitch around all 3 sides, you are done!!!  Repeat as many times as your heart desires 🙂

Stay tuned for an upcoming tutorial on a coordinating Diaper Pouch – a must-have for the on-the-go Mom.  It carries a few diapers and wipes in a cute little case.

Don’t forget to check our website for the perfect fabric to use on these adorable burp cloths!

~Jill

Charm Pack Coasters

Hey there!  Well, I have decided to try my hand at offering you a simple tutorial. 

These little cutie coasters are made using 8 pieces of fabric from a charm pack.  Choose 8 squares (if you don’t have a charm pack just cut 5″ x 5″ squares from your choice of fabric) Cut 4 pieces of batting that are 5 1/4″ square Layer your pieces in this order: 2 pieces of your fabric right sides facing together then a piece of batting.  Sew your layers together using a 1/4″ seam.  * I used my walking foot just took keep things from slipping.  Make sure you leave a 2″ opening on one side so you can turn your square right side out. Cut your four corners on an angle..this will help you have a crisper corner. Turn your square right side out. Once you have turned your square you will see that your corners are kind of rounded.  I am not a big fan of that.  I like nice crisp corners so i used the wonderful tool known as the Classic Crystal Point Turner. See how much prettier the corners are now?…I love this tool!  I really am not sure how my life existed without it.  I use it everytime I am turning items.  LOVE LOVE LOVE it.  (ok that was my little woohoo for the day :o) ) Now once you have turned everything you will have a small opening.  Press press press.  Make sure that your opening sides are lined up.  This might take a some negotiations with your iron but you can make it happen. Now you are are ready to sew around your edge to close the opening.  I like to sew as close as possible to the edge so I can make sure to catch all the fabric.  Now is also the time to do any kind of quilting you like.  I like to vary my quilting.  Now you are all done.  You can just throw them on your coffee table or tie a ribbon around them and give them as a great Thank You gift. Let’s Go Sew! Kristin