Tag Archives: tutorials

Wonderful Things Blog Tour: Diaper Pouch

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Hello dear friends! I am so excited to be part of the Wonderful Things blog tour, showcasing Bonnie Christine, of Going Home to Roost, beautiful line for Art Gallery Fabrics. I loooooove the colors and the airy feel of this line so much. When I started thinking of ideas for my blog post, I kept thinking about how one of the most wonderful things in my life is my family. I have 2 young boys (ages 6 and 2) that keep me on my toes all day long and make life so much fun. I knew that I wanted to make a diaper pouch for my purse that I am proud to carry around as my post for the blog tour. Here’s a not-so-fun-fact from my past life: I used to carry around our diapers and wipes in a ziploc bag.  So much of the baby industry is just that, baby, and I never could find a diaper pouch I was happy with. I am very pleased with how my pouches turned out. They feel sophisticated and I doubt anyone looking into my purse would expect there to be 3 diapers, a Huggies wipes container, a tube of diaper cream, and a changing mat in my beautiful pouch. I have written up a tutorial for anyone else who might want a sophisticated diaper pouch in their purse, too.

Here’s what you’ll need to make 2 pouches:

4 Fat Quarters

1 yard of Pellon SF 101 fusible interfacing

(2) 12″ zippers

From this you’ll cut FOR EACH POUCH:

(2) 9″ x 12″ lining panels

(2) 8-3/4″ x 11-3/4″ SF 101

(2) 5-1/2″ x 12″ main outer

(2) 4″ x 12″ accent outer

(1) 2-1/2″ x 4″ for zipper tabs (these are optional, but a surprisingly easy way to up the sophistication level)

(1) 12″ zipper

Construction:

Begin by making the outer panel by sewing together (1) 5-1/2″ x 12″ main outer and (1) 4″ x 12″ accent outer. Repeat for the second side. Follow the manufacturer instructions and fuse the SF 101 to the wrong side of each panel.

Next, it’s time to make the zipper tabs. Grab your 2-1/2″ x 4″ zipper tab fabric and press it in half lengthwise, with the wrong sides together. (This is “hot dog style” if that feels a little more familiar to you. 🙂 Next, fold in each side to the newly pressed center line.

Cut this in half and make 2 pieces that are still folded and ~2″. Next up, you’ll need to trim your zipper down to be 11″ long. Make sure you don’t cut off the actual zipper pull and don’t use your fabric scissors. Ask me how I know about both of these things……. Place one end of the zipper all the way into the fold of the zipper tab and attach it to the zipper. (I must have switched pouches as I was making this bag…. Sorry for the change in fabric).

Trim the excess off of the zipper tab.

Repeat for side 2.

Now it’s time to install the zipper onto your panels. If you haven’t installed a zipper before, please don’t be afraid. It is only a matter of taking one extra step and basting it in place that helps the process SO much. As you install the zipper, here’s how the zipper sandwich should be:

Outside panel right side UP

Zipper right side DOWN (the zipper pull will be touching the outside panel)

Lining right side DOWN

I usually leave the lining off until I have basted the outside panel and zipper together with a stitch length of 4 on my Juki. Center the zipper on the panel (you could make a mark if that is helpful to line up centers) and baste. Once it’s been basted, add the lining right side DOWN. Flip the lining over so it looks like this:

Then carefully press the outer panel away from the zipper (don’t worry about the lining being pressed just yet). Topstitch just the outer panel and the zipper. It should look like the photo below. Your next zipper sandwich will be as follows:

Lining right side UP

Unit 1 Right side UP (Just like in the photo)

The other outside panel face DOWN

Follow a similar procedure as you did with side 1 of the zipper and baste the bottom layer (this time it’s the lining) and the zipper, then attach the outer panel face down. Press the outer panel away from the zipper, topstitch as you did before, and you should have a unit that looks like this:

Next we will open the zipper at least half way, then pin the outside panels right side together and the lining right side together. Make sure to have a 3-4″ opening on the bottom of the lining so you can flip the bag right side out. I don’t know why, but I didn’t take any photos of this step. Sew it together with a 3/8″ seam and make sure you do NOT sew over the zipper tabs.

Before you flip it right side out, we need to box the corners. Grab a corner in your hands and gently flail the fabric out to make it look like the photo below. You want your seams to nest. Measure 2″ down from the corner and draw a line. This is your sewing line. Sew and then trim off the excess, leaving behind about 1/2″ of seam allowance.

Repeat this process for each of the 4 corners. Flip it right side out and stitch the opening closed.

You should be left with a beautiful bag! This has become my new go-to for baby showers and gifts as it is something I really appreciate having in my purse and I hope other moms will as well!

Be sure to check out the other bloggers on the blog tour and their Wonderful Things projects that they’ve been sharing for the past few weeks. In case you missed it, Ashley Cowan posted yesterday and be sure to check out Elise Baek tomorrow!

A big thanks to Bonnie for trusting me to make something beautiful with her gorgeous fabrics.

 

 

 

 

Tooth Fairy Pillow Tutorial

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My oldest has been on the verge of losing his first tooth for about a month. It’s pretty bittersweet to me, but a great excuse to make a little something special that will make the Tooth Fairy’s life a little bit easier. I scoured the internet for what I thought would be an easy-to-find tooth fairy pillow, but all I could find were tutorials for making pillows shaped like teeth and other less than appealing things for my taste and my family. Here’s what I came up with. It’s a fast pillow that comes together easily and finishes at around 7″ square. The perfect size to tuck next to stuffed animals on your child’s bed, and yet big enough for the Tooth Fairy to still get in and take care of her business!

Here’s what you’ll need:

(2) 8″ x 8″ main pillow fabric (I used the skull & crossbones as picked by my son 🙂

(1) 4-1/2″ x 4-1/2″ main pillow fabric

(1) 4-1/2″ x 4-1/2″ contrasting fabric (red here)

A Tooth for applique, or your child’s initial (I always use heat ‘n’ bond lite and follow the manufacturer directions when making fusible applique. It is always a good idea to topstitch around once it’s been fused to your fabric, which I forgot to do. Face palm.)

your favorite stuffing

Outside pocket:

This method will use french seams. If you are familiar with them, this should be super familiar and easy. If you are not familiar with making a french seam, never fret! They are very easy, but they feel a little counterintuitive. Follow the instructions and you will end up with your raw edges perfectly hidden inside your french seams.

Begin by pressing 1/4″ of the top of each 4-1/2″ square. Fold it over and press under again so the raw edge will be completely contained in the seam. Sew a scant 1/4″ seam.

Make these 2 pocket panels into a small sandwich, with the right side facing DOWN on both pieces. It feels counterintuitive, but I promise it will work out. Sew a 1/4″ seam around the sides and bottom, leaving the top open.

Take your pocket and trim 1/8″ from the seam you just made on both sides and the bottom. Flip this inside out and gently poke out the corners. The wrong side of both pieces should be facing down, as seen in the photo below.

Pin this pocket to one of your main pillow 8″ x 8″ squares roughly in the center.

Ever so carefully sew across the top of JUST the main pillow 4-1/2″ square, securing the top only to the 8″ x 8″ pillow.

THEN, and only then, sew around both sides and bottom of the outer pocket, using a 1/4″ seam. You should catch all of your raw edges and complete your french seams! TA DA!!

Next, pin your 2 main pillow 8″ x 8″ squares together, right sides together, making certain to leave a 3-4″ hole in the bottom of your pillow. Sew it together, flip it right side out, and gently poke out your corners. Stuff with your favorite stuffing and hand stitch the opening closed.

 

You’re all ready for the Tooth Fairy to visit now! My son is very excited to have his first visit tonight and I have a feeling the Tooth Fairy is going to appreciate this pillow a lot! 😉

 

Star Sashing Tutorial

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Star Sashing

I have known for months and months that this is how I wanted to finish my Simple Star blocks from a swap in which I was participating. Adding those 9 cute, little stars in my sashing totally MADE this quilt for me. It took it from a cute, simple top to an adorable, fun top. I apologize for a lack of photos. It was raining all morning long so I couldn’t get any decent photos. I felt a need to get this top ready as I’m looking at my schedule for the next few months and panicking a bit.

Before you begin, you’ll need to draw out a very rough, simple diagram of your quilt so you can count out how many pieces of sashing you’ll need. I needed 24.

Cut your sashing 2-1/2″ x the length of your quilt blocks. Mine here were 12-1/2″ so my sashing was cut at 2-1/2″ x 12-1/2″.

For the star pieces, cut your squares at 1-1/2″ x 1-1/2″ for the star points and 2-1/2″ x 2-1/2″ for the star center.

Star Sashing 1

If you look at my finished quilt, you’ll notice that some of the sashing pieces end up with star points on just one side while others end up with star points on two sides. Count up how many need just one side and how many need them on two sides. I ended up needing 12 of each type. Do some simple math to figure out how many 1-1/2″ squares you’ll need.

12 single sided x 2 star points = 24 squares

12 double sided x 4 star points = 48 squares.

I ended up needing (72) 1-1/2″ x 1-1/2″ squares for my star points. Draw a line down the center diagonally, then attach one square at a time to each piece of sashing, trim, press, and repeat with the second square. Repeat this process for the sashing pieces requiring two sides. You are now ready to layout your quilt and sash it. Add in the 2-1/2″ x 2-1/2″ squares in the centers of the sashing pieces and assemble your top.

I love, love, love how this turned out and I know I’ll be using this method again soon. I have also seen a friendship star sashing, which you can easily find on Missouri Star Quilt Company’s blog.

Star Sashing 2

So now I’m interested to know, are you pro sashing or is it just one more step you dread before finishing your quilt? I can wholeheartedly tell you that I do NOT like sashing or borders. I find the process to be painful, but having such a fun outcome as these cute stars has made that extra work seem worth the effort!