Pleats have been with us for centuries as a functional and/or decorative way to reduce the size of a piece of fabric. They are firmly ensconced in fashion sewing, but are also perfect in numerous home décor applications, like bed skirts, window treatments, and table linens. We’ve even incorporated them as unique embellishments on a petite purse and a decorator pillow. Their only drawback… they are rather “fussy” to create; your measuring, marking, and folding have to be very precise (read: very time consuming). But where challenges exist, the creative brains of the sewing world step in with a solution. Our friend, Claudia Buchanan of Home Sewing Depot sent us her Quick Pleater tools to test. Read on to see how we made quick work of both knife pleats and box pleats.
Ruffled Square Pillows in Crisp Seersucker
In the whirlwind of today's designer quilting cottons with their amazing coordinated collections of prints and solids, it's easy to forget about the classics of the fabric world. We used our imagination to apply some old-fashioned goodness in a new way, creating a set of pillow covers wrapped in the Southern charm of candy-colored seersucker. These square ruffled pillows, with their rick rack trim and button placket back closures, look best as a big, cushy, colorful pile. All that's missing is a straw boater, a bouquet of jonquils, and the honey glow of a lazy afternoon (ya'll can add that as soon as you're done making the pillows).
All Weather Door Draft Guard
These handy energy savers are great for both winter and summer. Right now, when ol' man winter is beating down our doors, they keep the heat in and the drafts out. In the summer, they're just as handy to help keep the cool air inside and the heat and humidity outside. They can also help reduce outside dust, noise, and odors. A Door Draft Guard would make a great housewarming (or "house-cooling" as the case may be) gift. But, remember, if your gift needs to be shipped, the filler can be quite heavy (we used dried beans). It would likely be better to just wrap up the outer covering. You could then include instructions in the gift box on how and with what to fill the tube.
Guitar Strap – The Unique Bag Accessory
The name is due to its similarity to the wide, ornate straps musicians have always used to hold their guitars. By changing how the ends attach, they are now also a fun way to update any bag that uses a removable strap. We created ours to show off the decorative stitch package on our Janome Skyline S7. We love pretty stitching, and are always on the lookout for reasons to use it. At a full 40” in length, this strap provides the perfect long, straight platform. To amp up the texture, we stitched with Aurifil 28wt 100% cotton thread in two solid colors and one variegated. The heavier weight of this thread really makes the stitches pop and it worked great in both the top and bobbin, flowing through without a hitch.
Unisex Belted Half Aprons: Dritz Webbing and Hardware
Aprons can be frilly and fun, almost as pretty as clothing. Or, they can be a utilitarian, get-down-to-business style that works well for women, men, even kids. This unisex half-apron pulls from the second category, featuring tough riveted canvas and a cool Dritz Slide Buckle to cinch it in place at waist or hip level. We love the combination of the bright Dritz Belting against a neutral washed canvas.
Fast Fridays: Travel Size Tissue Covers
Everyone needs a tissue now and then to dab away a tear, capture a sneeze or wipe up a mess. And in the colder weather, it’s always good to have tissues at-the-ready when you’re out and about. Pretty-up those handy tissues with our adorable tissue covers. The S4H Fast Fridays series is all about whipping up something wonderful in no time at all, and you can put together several covers in a single afternoon with just small squares of fabric. Do you hear your scrap basket calling?
WordPlay Messenger Bag
Got something to say? This bag lets you make a statement in style. It’s a messenger bag with a real message! We used Dritz® iron-on letters to create the FACT - FICTION phrase on our WordPlay Bag. Read on to see five other word pairings we thought were fun or brainstorm to come up with your own. Three muted colors of solid canvas work together with classic metal Dritz D-Rings, a swivel clip, and metal button studs to give our bag a hardworking, good looking feel… and that’s a FACT!
Congratulations to our SEVEN Latest Great Giveaway Winners
We recently concluded four Great Giveaways that resulted in seven Sew4Home visitors getting special prize packages over the holidays! This latest group of winners came from around the US as well as Canada. It’s always fun to see how far and wide the Sew4Home inspiration reaches. As always, thanks to everyone who entered! Plans for 2019 Great Giveaways are already in the works. Your lucky day may be coming up! In the meantime, read on to find out a little bit about of Seven Super Winners.
Cat’s Meow Appliqued Pillow
Set this pretty kitty on your sofa to keep watch over the rest of your pillows. The bold silhouette with its sweet dimensional bow is truly the Cat’s Meow. Our original design was created to show off the amazing appliqué capabilities of the Janome machines, which have amazingly precise stitch quality, from the top-of-the-line sewing and embroidery powerhouses to the entry level compacts. We’re an exclusive Janome studio at Sew4Home, and it’s one of the top reasons our finished samples turn out so beautifully. Your sewing machine is the tool at the center of the process; it better have your back! That means a machine you can rely on to do what it needs to do easily – without any unnecessary frustration on your part. When you’re confident in your machine’s performance, it frees you to concentrate on your creativity.
Vintage-Style Kid's Book Satchel
This jaunty little bag actually falls into the "satchel" category, which makes it seem even more vintage and unique. Satchels sound as if they should be carried through the English countryside by a group of clever school chums, possibly on their way to Hogwarts. We took the sophisticated styling of an adult carryall and scaled it down to kid-size. Feeling like kids have all the fun? Want your very own mini-satchel? Simply lengthen the strap and you're good to go.
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