'She used to say she could taste sleep and that it was as delicious as a BLT on fresh French bread.' I love that quote. It's from Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood by Rebecca Wells. I'm a good sleeper, and I firmly believe there's nothing better than nodding off on a new, freshly laundered pillowcase. Our pretty pair of pillowcases is a great beginner project. So fast and easy, you can start at noon and be napping by 3:00.

Babies need blankets. When my kids were small, I liked to think of my blanket collection as little baby drop cloths. Because, just like painters, babies are often in need of their own little piece of clean real estate, which they can then destroy as they choose. In my mind, a cute baby blanket is always the perfect gift. Our adorable design is super fast and easy to make, especially if you have a ruffler attachment.

We provide a pattern download that gives you the perfect wedge shape to create the pinwheel design of this pillow. You can easily cut two wedges from each 10" x 10" Layer Cake square, which means you'll use just six Layer Cake squares for this project. Or... spread your creativity around to friends and family, and make SEVEN pretty pillows from the 42 squares in a standard Layer Cake pack. I'd say that's quite enough for a grand scale pillow fight.

One of the best ways to add both height and drama to your bed linens is with pillow shams. They sit in front and cover up the more ordinary pillows. Just like in real life... the pretty ones are always in the front row! There are two traditional shapes, regular and Euro. A regular full size sham usually measures around 20" x 26", a regular king approximately 20" x 36", whereas the Euro sham is square, usually about 26" x 26". Our Fresh Linens Euro Shams feature an easy yet elegant patchwork center made from a Charm Pack, plus a lovely flange in a coordinating solid.

Love, love, love this double-faced, pre-quilted fabric from Joanna Figueroa's Whimsy collection for Moda Fabrics. There are two, reversible patterns to choose from. We selected the option with Whimsy Vintage Flash Cards in Milk on the front and Whimsy Dot in Milk on the back. Then we trimmed the whole thing with coordinating Whimsy Ric Rac Stitching in Multi. I used a fancy decorative stitch to attach my binding, which takes a little longer to stitch, but adds an extra-special touch. Since all you do for the center of the blanket is cut a square, and the binding is a faux-mitered technique, this blanket is SO easy, I even simplified the name to: EZ!

We've had quite a few requests for more quilts and have a number of them planned in the coming weeks. Today's uses Fig Tree's nostalgic Whimsy fabric collection by Joanna Figueroa for Moda in a handy pre-cut Charm Pack. Coordinating Whimsy yardage and Bella Solids make up the back, sashing and binding. Even if you've never quilted before, you'll find this to be a very simple design in a very manageable baby size. One tiny disclaimer: quilting is known to be addictive and an adorable baby quilt like this could easily be a 'gateway project.' We take no responsibility for turning you or a family member into a wild-eyed quilting maniac with boxes of scraps hidden all over the house.

Commemorate Dad's day with a set of cool plaid pillows, featuring appliqués that celebrate his family, his interests or simply his name. We used a very classic Cunningham red plaid from Pendleton for the back of each pillow, white cotton duck for the front, twisted cording, and black felted wool for our appliqués to create the look of vintage silhouettes. The only thing missing is an Irish Setter at his feet and leather patches on his jacket sleeves.

This comfy neckroll is the first of a trio of wonderful Whimsy projects. Joanna Figueroa's Whimsy collection, for Moda Fabrics, debuted in February of this year, so we've been admiring it now for several months. We fell in love with its soft, warm colors and the nostalgic prints, florals and stripes. I even love the names of the colors: buttercup, beach, chocolate and grass are just a few that make me want to lie on my back and look for the bunnies and dragons in the fluffy spring clouds. Joanna's simple line drawings of vintage wagons, milk jugs and chickens are perfect throw-backs to the old Dick and Jane early-reader books. 'See Liz sew. Sew, Liz, Sew!' Our roly-poly neckroll pillow features the Whimsy Wavy Ric Rac design. Neckrolls are great for youself and make a much-loved gift for anyone on your list who's had a hard day and needs a little nap.

The first time we saw Bari J. Ackerman's Art Journal fabric line, we thought perhaps we'd stumbled onto a collection of paintings masquerading as fabric. Beautiful. Plain and simple. Bari's designs have an exuberant use of color. Her florals make us feel like we've collapsed inside an impressionist's garden where everything is bold and lush and shot through with lilac, periwinkle, citron, rose... all the cool crayon colors!

They say sleeping on satin pillowcases helps keep wrinkles away. I say, "Sign me up for that one!" We thought these would make a perfect Mother's Day gift. They're quick to make, but look like the fancy cases that cost BIG bucks at the store. Mom will think you slaved away for days to create these just for her. She'll adore the luxurious feel of the satin charmeuse, and when you tell her that little tip about the wrinkles, I bet they become her favorite bedding faster than you can say "forty winks." And... no doubt you'll retain your title as Mom's Favorite!

We traditionally do all our own designs here at Sew4Home, but when Paula Prass, one of our favorite fabric designers, offered to let us post her beautiful Woodland Delight quilt pattern, we jumped at the chance. She's selected eight fabrics from within her collection and laid them out in a random patchwork design that is simply stunning. Brown, pink, orange and gray play out in mod flowers, graphic zig-zags, lacy blooms, and random pebble stones. It's a wonderful mixture of color and pattern that will bring a burst of color into any room. And .... it's FREE.

Wrap up your Valentine in this incredibly snugly rag quilt with its special ‘secret admirer heart' appliquéd onto the bottom row. 'What's a Rag Quilt?' I was hoping you'd ask! A rag quilt is sewn together so the seams show on the outside. After washing and drying, the seams gently fray or 'rag,' producing a soft and cuddly look and feel. Ours is made from ten different kinds of Woolies Flannel in a collection of patterns and tones we thought were very ‘guy-like' and so qualified as an official boyfriend/hubby/dad/son/uncle/grandpa Valentine's Day project. Truth be told ... all the gals we showed it to we're ready to snap it up and take a little nap so I think it's a perfect 'everybody' project.

The holidays are all about traditions, so here's a fun idea for a new one to start this year. Whip up a special pair of Christmas pillowcases for each of the kids on Santa's list at your house. This project is super fast and easy, and it uses just 1½ yards of main fabric and ½ yard of contrasting trim fabric. It will be a special day each year when the holiday pillowcases make their appearance on all the beds in the house. Your kids will also love helping to pick out their own special fabrics.

The beautiful, billowy bed curtains we associate with elegance and style, actually have a rather ordinary and functional history. In those drafty old European castles of old, the lord and his family slept in the great hall along with all their servants, because this hall was one of the few areas of the castle where the fires were kept stoked for warmth and light. The noble family's sleeping area was separated from the rest of the riffraff by curtains. Originally, the curtains were hung from the ceiling, but as the bed evolved, a frame was added to support a canopy from which the curtains hung.

Well ... there's nobility involved in that story, which qualifies as 'princessy', which makes them perfect for our teen room makeover. They also add a strong vertical element to counteract the many horizontal surfaces in the room.

Do you have family and friends staying at your home for the holidays? Yes! Do you have time and money to make all new holiday bed linens for your guest room? No! Then just change up the pillowcases. It's a super fast, easy and inexpensive way to add a little holiday cheer. Our instructions show you how to make two standard size pillowcases (for standard 20" x 26" pillows) using just 1½ yards of main fabric and ½ yard of contrasting trim fabric.

Pillow shams are a pretty way to keep things tidy up top. Bigger than a toss pillow, they not only contain a regular size bed pillow inside, they're large enough to cover up other pillows in regular pillowcases underneath. Our four-patch shams mirror the design of the Pretty Prints Please Butterfly Duvet. But of course, you can create your own design to match your room, someone's favorite colors, or even to celebrate a favorite hobby or animal or school: patchwork ponies or volleyballs or team mascots.

The biggest item in most bedrooms is the bed, therefore, it ranks as star-of-the-show in our teen room makeover. Plus, as anyone who knows a teen understands (or anyone who remembers being a teen); many, many hours are spent in said bed. In fact, I think most of the day would be spent there given Mom's permission and a nearby bag of Doritos® for sustenance. Our patchwork duvet is made from a dozen different fabric cuts, but they're cleverly sized into just three simple panels.

Once upon a time there was a beautiful baby with golden curls. Admirers came from far and wide with gifts of soft, cozy blankets; each visitor trying to out-do the one who came before. The beautiful baby smiled and laughed and shook her golden curls. She loved all the blankets, declaring each one to be, 'Just Right!' We offer you the Goldilocks of receiving blanket options: Easy Baby Bear Decorative Stitch Blanket, Harder Mama Bear Ric Rac Blanket, and Hardest Papa Bear Bound Edge Blanket.

Having a small bed in the nursery is a luxury during the months when your baby doesn't sleep through the night. For our Stylish Baby Nursery, the Sunny Horizons duvet uses bold stripes of several Andalucia fabrics to make a colorful covering with simple ties finishing off the bottom. When you collapse on it in exhaustion, you'll feel so much better knowing it's such a beautiful match to all the other items in the nursery.

If you want to ease into trying your hand at quilting, this project is for you. It introduces the technique of joining together small strips to create a single large piece. We originally designed this tutorial as a little crib quilt, but decided we liked it better as a dresser cloth for our changing table. So, we omitted the batting and quilting through all the layers. So, the purists out there are hurling quilt pins at me, because without out those things it's not really quilting. I know, I know ... it'll be our little secret.

With most sewing projects, you spend a lot of time hiding seams and finishing all the raw edges. Well toss that worry out the window for this one! A rag quilt is sewn together so the seams show on the outside. After washing and drying, the seams gently fray or 'rag,'producing a very soft and cuddly feel. If you can sew a straight line, you can make this quilt. And, you can easily put it together in a single day.

A dust ruffle catches the eye and brings top-to-bottom cohesion to your nursery décor. It's as functional as it is decorative - especially when it hangs all the way to the floor. It does really help keep dust from beneath the crib, but it also allows for secret storage space. My daughter's crib came with a rolling storage trundle, and the dust ruffle keeps it stylishly hidden from view. Dust ruffles look especially cute with a softly gathered edge.

A new duvet is a single-project solution that can create a big change in your bedroom decor. One side of our duvet is a solid color, which complements the pretty print on the other side. With a quick flip of the bedding, you have two completely different looks. Find out how easy it is to sew your own duvet cover, then head to the fabric store to play with some complementary colors and prints. I found my fabric while shopping in the Garment District in New York City. The fabric isn't traditional home dec fabric - it has a slight stretch as well as a sateen finish. I thought it looked quite luxurious for bedding, and it's wonderfully soft. The lesson learned from that trip is this: Don't limit your shopping to the home decor section - sometimes the greatest ideas strike you while browsing in the 'wrong' place!

Some simple lines of fanciful decorative stitching alternating with thin satin ribbon is an easy way to embellish a purchased sheet set. We added an extra elegant detail by scalloping all the edges.

Add rows and rows of fun decorative stitching and bright novelty ribbon to store-bought sheets and you have custom bed linens that are simple yet sassy. We chose a nautical theme in bright blues and greens – a perfect contrast to the pale yellow of the sheets. Why count sheep when your little sailor can nod off counting tiny sail boats?!