Gift Idea: Constellation Table Runner

I realize I haven't posted anything in over two months!  Mostly, I am aware of this because my mom has been reminding me every other day.  So:
This one's for you, Mom!
But really, this was literally for her.  I gave my mom this table runner for Mothers' Day.  She loves the stars.  I often think she wishes I would have been an astrophysicist instead of a biophysicist.

Gifts for Travellers: Pinning Map

You may or may not know, but the traditional first anniversary gift is paper.  WAAAAY, back when, the hubby and I had just completed our first trip out of the country and I wanted to give him something to commemorate our trip.  So I decided to give him a map that we could put more and more pins in as we had more and more trips. 

Contoured Memory Foam Pillowcase

  The rooster and I both love our contoured memory foam pillows but I was tired of using ill-fitting standard pillowcases if I wanted to match my decor.  I couldn't find any tutorials for a contoured pillowcase, and this won't be much of one, but it will be an outline of an approach you can take, should you wish to make one for yourself.


There were really only two things I wanted from my pillow case: It had to be asymmetric so that there was more material on the curvy side than on the flat side (so that the case would actually fit!) and it had to have an envelope opening because I am sick of pillowcases sliding off.  If I didn't have the envelope opening, it would have been a lot easier to make.

Gift Idea: Super Cheesy Card

I know it's a bit late for you for Valentine's Day (unless you are like me, in which case, this will work well for a last minute idea), but I always have a hard time buying cards to go with gifts.  It feels a bit weird to me to pay upwards of $4 for someone to kinda sorta say how I feel for me.  So I usually just ignore it and a shove a gift at someone, mumbling "This is from me, I hope you like it."  Except when it comes to St. Valentine's Day. 

When the rooster and I started dating, for some reason, though it is quite out of character for both of us, we decided to have a sickeningly sweet first Valentine's together (perhaps because we weren't actually together - we were dating long distance).  So I made him a little booklet with an illustrated poem. 

Though my rhyming skills have fallen off over the years, and it seems they get uglier and uglier as the years go by, the tradition of me making him a little illustrated booklet in lieu of a card has stuck.  They are not very pretty to look at - that's kind of part of the tradition - but they are heartfelt and they always have a theme. 

Forgiving Sew Projects: Ruffled Round Throw Pillow

I have seen a few similar tutorials online about ruffling but not much dealing with the "knife-edge" type pillow (as opposed to one that is more disk shaped).  Here, using leftover fabric from my duvet cover, I make a simple, round, ruffled, throw pillow.  The ruffling is what makes it so forgiving of messed up measurements, crooked sewing, and other gaffs.

We start with two strips of fabric of equal length and width (I am going to rip off the hemmed edge on the piece shown here).  The dimensions of the strips depend on the dimensions of the pillow. I would recommend doubling the circumference for the length and having the radius plus 2 inches for the width.  Making the strip shorter means you will have fewer/shallower ruffles.  Making the strips narrower means you will have to have a larger center piece.

Forgiving Sewing Projects: Duvet Cover

I've been meaning to make a new cover for my feather comforter for some time now.  Since the cover is fairly large, and since it will be filled with something fluffy, this is a project that is very forgiving of stitching (and even cutting) that isn't straight.

We have a queen sized bed and I wanted to make some matching pillowcases and throw pillows, so I bought a king flat sheet and a coordinating king sheet set to use for fabric (bought after the new year, when linens are on sale, this cost me less than $25).  I think this was plenty for us but if you have a king bed you might need to buy another flat sheet or some fabric.
Before you ever get started, make sure to pre-wash and dry your fabric so that it has already shrunk as much as it is going to.  Iron the fabric so that you make accurate measurements and cuts.

To make the duvet cover, you are really just sewing large rectangle that has an opening in one end.  Measure your comforter width and length and measure, mark, and cut your two flat sheets so that you allow for a seam allowance and, if you choose to do this part, the french seam/sham flange edge.  I generally do a 1/2" seam allowance and I did about a 1" flange so I added 3" to my comforter dimensions.  I would not recommend making the duvet cover oversized for the comforter because I think you tend to get more lumping that way.

Behold the Power of the White Mat