Well, I figured since Steve so thoughtfully gave me a sewing/embroidery machine for Christmas this past year I might as well put it to some use. So last night I taught myself how to use it. I had never used a sewing machine before, and the only time I had ever seen one used was on TV or in pictures. So I had alot to learn. For my first project, I decided to make some pillows for the furniture we are getting for our screened in porch (a love seat and 2 chairs). Here is how I began.
I cut out 2 pieces of fabric 13×13. 2 of the pillows I was going to use for this project are 12×12 and I wanted to leave a little room for the seam.
Next, I hand stitched the 2 pieces of fabric together at one end so that the correct sides of the fabric were facing each other. The wide loose stitch is called “basting” and it’s used for when you just want to hold fabric together temporarily. Once you’ve machine stitched, you can remove the basting stitches.
This is what the fabric looks like when I opened it up.
Then I pressed the seam open. This is where the zipper is going to be.
For the record…the fabric is cream and blue, not green. My camera just decided that it wanted to pick out the slight green hue in the fabric and make that color the dominant one.
Next I basted a zipper onto the open seam.
Then I used the machine to sew the zipper firmly in place.
Now I’m not sure why I stopped taking pictures at this point. Maybe I was distracted by Lazarus’s arm clawing at me from under the door, or maybe I was just so focused on my work that I just simply forgot. Either way, this is how I finished. Once the zipper was securely in place, I pinned the rest of the fabric edges together and machine stitched all the way around the pillow case. Then I turned the fabric right side out and inserted my pillow.
Tada!!!!! The first thing I ever made with a sewing machine. I was really proud of myself!
I repeated that process 3 more times, with 2 of the pillows being 12×12, and the other two 14×14. Now I’ll have some nice home-made pillows to accessorize our covered patio! Next I’ll be making some white linen curtains for the same space. Stay tuned!!!!
Whoo hoo!!! Well done, daughter!!! You rock! They are lovely!
Thanks Mom! Working on the curtains today.
Those look great! I have a sewing machine but have yet to use it, though I seriously would love to learn how to make a few things. Some clothes, some curtains, some pillows like these would be wonderful!
Thank you! Try out your sewing machine! It’s alot of fun, and you can make things that you wouldn’t be able to buy at the store.
Those look great! I love the fabric you used. So classic but fresh at the same time. I really need to make pillows for our bed. Just have to find time!
Thank you so much! I needed some color in my life. My honey has this thing for tans and browns, and our whole house seems to be covered in those colors, so I was happy to mix it up a little with the aqua blue pattern. 🙂
Thanks so much for visiting my blog today! Always fun to meet other bloggers. I’m very impressed that you are teaching yourself to use a sewing machine. I tried sewing with a machine when I was a teenager, and it made me a nervous wreck 🙂 Now if any stitching gets done in my house, it’s by hand 🙂 All the best to you!
Thank you for your comment! Nice meeting you too! I’m still getting the hang of it. Sewing in a straight line is somewhat of a struggle. 🙂
What can’t you do, girl? Those are beautiful! Love you.
Thanks Aunt Sally! Love you too!
Good job! Sewing will save you a lot of money over the years, plus pride and satisfaction of doing it yourself! Keep it up!
Yes I’m excited to learn to sew a bunch of different things. Thanks for visiting my site!