Home Decor Series - Wednesday in the Workroom - Zippered, Corded Pillow

Home Decor Series:

Wednesday in the Workroom

Make a Zippered, Corded Pillow Like a Pro!

In the Wednesday in the Workroom portion of the Home Decor Series, I'm going to teach you how to sew like a pro! If you can sew a straight line and follow directions, then you can make these:

You can do it. I know you can.

We're going to make one pillow with two different looks. I do this often for my clients because you can get two looks for the price of one.

At the end of this post you'll know how to make fabric cording, insert a zipper, add tassels, apply a trim, and make a pillow. That word "zipper" sounds intimidating, huh?, Don't worry, I'm going to make it pain free for you.

Let's gather some supplies.

Decide on the size pillow you want to make. I've decided on 18" for this project, so I only needed 1/2 yard per fabric.

I used 1 fabric for the front, 1 fabric for the back, 1 fabric for the cording, 2 tassels, a zipper, and 2 1/4 yards of cotton cord per pillow.

ADDING TRIM

We're going to add trim to one side of the pillow, so before we sew anything together, let's get that out of the way.

First, lay out your fabric against a straight edge. Mark the lines on your pillow where your trim will go, and then add a tiny bead of glue on that line. Note "tiny".

After the glue dries, sew the trim down on each edge.

When you're finished with that, your fabric should look like this. (I did two pillows)

CORDING

Ok, now set those aside and let's make some cording. A little tip about making fabric cording - you do not have to be exact with your cuts because you can trim it in the end. For teaching purposes here, I did measure it though.

Lay your fabric out face down. Take a straight edge and mark your first line. You'll want to have some degree of bias, but if your fabric is fairly flexible, a true bias is not necessary. In this picture, you'll see my bias is very leinient. My cord is 3/8" of an inch, and I'm cutting my fabric at 3".

After you've marked your lines, you're going to stagger them and sew them together. The reason for staggering the lines is so that you can create one continous strip.

This keeps you from having to sew several pieces together.

Once you've sewn your seam, press it out, and then cut along the lines.

CORDING TRICK:

Now, put your regular sewing foot (not your cording foot) on your machine, set your stitch width at about 4-5, and sew the fabric around the cord. Do NOT try to sew it too tight against the cord. I'll explain why in a bit, but for now, just sew loosely. Notice my needle placement against the cord.

After you've done that, cut the excess fabric off about 1/4" from the stitch line. Leave a little empty cord.

For those of you with a serger, just wrap the fabric around the cord and zip it through to trim off the excess.

Your finished cord should look like this. (I ran mine through the serger which is why my edge looks different from what you'll be making.)

CONSTRUCTING THE PILLOW:

Now you're ready to begin sewing all of the parts together.

Because this is a reversible pillow, you need to decide which side you'll be using the most, and we'll call that the front.

First, let's sew the cord to the front.

This is a good tip for beginners. There is no need to pin the pillow together and try to sew the cord into the seam. The way I'm showing you will make sure that your cord is tight and professional looking. No need to pin your cord down too much. Every few inches will be fine.

Be sure NOT to pull your cord too tight when sewing it on.

When you sew it to the front side, I'm going to have you sew it at a stitch length of 5, and do NOT ride too close to the cord. You simply want to get the cord attached right now. We'll tighten it up once we put the layers together. Doing it this way will keep you from having to try to cover your first stitch when you're finishing the pillow. Start in the center of the bottom, and leave about 2" of the cord unattached at the beginning.

When you get to the corners, put a few little nicks in the cord with your scissors so that you can round the corners perfectly.  (A lot of people just put one snip in the corner and turn the fabric, but that creates puckering in the cord.) You'll be surprised how perfect your corner is going to look by doing it this way.

Here's the easy way to join the cord at the end.

It's easier to show you the pictures than to describe it, so if you look closely, you'll get it.

Stop about an inch and a half short of where you began.

Tuck the beginning of the cord into the end of the cord, and cut the white cord so that it joins the other.

You'll need to take out a few stitches at the end so that you can wrap your fabric around the first part you sewed on.

Hold it down really tight and then sew it all down until it's all attached.

INSERTING THE ZIPPER:

Now, remember that zipper I told you you were going to insert? It goes on this side. Because of that, you'll need to tighten the cord down on this side right now. Put your zipper foot on the machine now. You'll use it to finish the pillow out. To get it tight, sew to the inside of the first stitch line on the cord. Get it as close to the foot as you can. Notice my needle placement.

 

Ok ladies, pull out that zipper.

Follow my pictures closely to see how to insert the zipper properly. You'll sew it to the front side of your fabric first, right on top of the cord.

On your back fabric, go ahead and iron the edge over about a half inch and set it aside. Pin only the ends of the zipper, like this:

On the side you turned over, be sure to sew it about 1/8" from the edge. This will be the lip that overlaps your zipper to hide it.

On the cording side, sew it about the same length from the edge. This will give you a tight fit on the closure.

Sew both sides of the zipper down. Stop about 1 1/2" short of the ends.

SEW THE PILLOW TOGETHER:

It's time to sew it together. Grab your tassels.

Before you sew the sides together, you need to sew the tassels down in the corners. Clip a couple of stitches where you sewed down the cord to the top corners.

Push the tassel cord UNDER the fabric cord and sew over it.

Don't sew over the zipper.

Now zip the zipper and flip the pillow so that you have the face of each fabric together. Pin the corners down, and put a pin the corners of the sides without the zipper.

You'll sew the corners on the zipper side first. This will set your fabrics straight and give you a guide to go by when sewing the rest of the pillow together. Start sewing about 2" down from the edge that wraps around to the zipper side.

Now, remember when I had you fold the edge of your back fabric over a half inch? You'll use that as your guide for your stitch line.

Follow these couple of pictures closely.

See where you turn the corner? As you turn it, you'll run right into the fold line. Stitch directly in that fold line. This will make your seam even with the zipper you sewed in.

Then, be sure as you sew that the zipper is on the outside of your foot. You can tell by feel.

Finish it off like this:

This locks your zipper into place, Just wait till you see how perfect this will look on the finished side.

When you sew the other end, do the same. You'll need to flip the pillow over and sew it from the other side.

As long as you're sewing in that crease line, your zipper will be perfect.

Let's flip that corner right now and take a peek.

Notice how the zipper just goes away in to the corner?

Notice how smooth that cord is on the turn?

These are little tricks you learn with experience, so I just put you ahead of the beginner's game.

Ok, flip it back over and finish sewing the pillow together.

IMPORTANT: UNZIP your pillow right now. You've got the corners sewn down on that side, so now it's safe to open it.

Alright, remember a few steps back when you were sewing on the cording loosely? Here's where you'll  tighten it up, and where you'll thank me for not having you sew it tight the first go around.

Start sewing where you left off sewing the zipper on. Try to get the needle as close as you can to the cord. Do NOT pull your fabric too tight. Your machine has feed dogs on it for a reason. It pulls the fabric through at the rate the machine was designed to pull it. If you tug at it too much, you'll bend your needle.

When you're done, clip the corners like this:

This is the exciting part. Turn your pillow right side out and see what you've created! Pop a pillow insert in it and put it somewhere that you can see it everyday. Congratulate yourself. I bet it's beautiful!

Two looks in one pillow....

I added a few fabric covered buttons to mine to jazz them up a bit.

Now you've had your fisrt VERY THOROUGH sewing lesson with Polly. I hope I've taught you something you can put to use right away.

Please help me out so that I can plan future sewing instruction post by letting me know what you think.

Is this too much information in one post? Do you like being able to read/print out the full instruction all at once?

Would you prefer to have each session broken down into parts?

Let me know and I'll tailor future posts accordingly.

I don't want to scare you away with such thorough instructions, but I also don't want to leave you feeling like you have to wait to finish a project. I'll let the readers decide.

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Several weeks back I posted this as a guest post on another blog. I want to share with you an email I received afterwards.

This goes to show that, YES, you can do it even if you're a beginner.

This reader took the elements of what I taught in this tutorial and took it to the extreme for her very first real project.

Read her letter:

POLLY!!! You won't believe what I did? I mean, you don't even know me. But let me tell you, I'm so excited. I saw your pillow thingy on Donna's site.  I got so inspired. I am Miss Enthusiasm when there's something to be enthusiastic about, of course. I was going to make a pillow, with cord. I've made pillows before. Just your basic kinda pillow - complete with hot glue to close the sweety up. Nothing too fancy. I'm not a seamstress. I'm the "owner of a sewing machine". Not a sewer.

So. What did I do with all my enthusiasm and sewing knowledge? I made a slip cover!!! What?????!!!!!!!!!! I did! I did! I can't believe it. I can't believe my hands and heart sewed this wonderful pretty!!! And today, Lord willing, I am sewing a cover for the sweet otto(woman) that came with her. A find from CL! And then a pillow cover for a smallish pillow (WITH A CORD!!!!!!!!!!) to sit on my newly slipcovered chair!!!!
I had a meeting to go to last night. When I got home, I went into my studio to stand and stare at my slipcovered chair. Then my husband told me that he loved it so much while I was at my meeting he went downstairs for something and found himself looking at the chair and feeling so proud of me!
I know this was a long story. But if you knew how many piles of fabric and inserts and cords and well, no zippers, but stuff I have waiting to be made, sewn, created. You'd shout something or scratch your head. What was I waiting for? The teacher!!!
Thank you! Bottom of my heart thanks! I cannot wait to learn more!

Btw, I have a tiny blog and I know how long and arduous these posts can be. I truly appreciate you setting all these photos and instructions and taking the time for the "sewer wannabes" out here!!


~Kolein

Have a look at how she transferred what she learned to her own project.

Pop on over to Kolein's blog to see the slipcover she created! And read through it while you're there -she's a funny gal that'll keep your in stitches (no pun intended).

Home Decor Series: "What do I Really Need in my Workroom?" Part 1B

In our last class we covered what to look for in a sewing machine. If you missed that class, click on the link to read it.

"What do I Really Need in My Workroom?"

Part 1 B: What kind of machines do I need based on what I what I want to sew?

Now that you know what to look for in a sewing machine, you need to know what other machines you might possibly need based on the kind of work you want to do.

Ask yourself the following:

- What kind of sewing do I want to do? Clothes mending? Custom bedding? Simple hemmed curtains? Custom made drapery? Small craft projects?

- Will I be satisfied with homemade quality, or do I want professional custom quality for my home? (and there is a difference my friends)

- Do I want to sew for others?

- Do I want to sew for income?

If your desire is to simply make easy things for your own home, then you will be fine with a basic sewing machine. Most sewing machines come with several options for feet that will perform all of the basic functions you will use in your home sewing.

However, if you truly want to learn to sew professionally (which is what I'll be teaching in this series), and perhaps even make things for others, or start a sewing business with your new skills, then there are other machines you will want to add to your collection that will enhance the efficiency of your work.

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First up is the serger. For beginners, a standard serger will suffice. This is one machine that takes a bit of time to learn. I find that so many people are afraid of the serger simply because it uses multiple spools of thread and it has a blade that cuts your fabric. It looks kind of intimidating at first glance, but I promise you, I'll teach you to remove that fear pretty quick.

For those who know what a serger is, but are unaware of it's functions, you'd probably be surprised to know that it does more than just finish off the edges of your fabric. You can make easy ruffles, contstruct a complete garment, and even make all sorts of fun decorative edging. There are so many things you're going to discover in this Sewing Instruction Series. You're sure to be a pro in no time flat.

      

We'll cover this machine in more detail in future posts, but for now, I just wanted to show you what one is. We'll cover all of the functions of the serger, the parts, how they work together, and the maintenance.

Here is the most basic and useful stitch that is performed on a serger. If you're doing homemade sewing, you can simply use a zigzag stitch on the edge of your fabric. But, if you're planning to do more professional constructing, you'll want to purchase a machine that gives you a more polished finish.

The top stitch is a 4 thread overlock. The one on the bottom is a 3 thread overlock. See what I mean? Such a nicer finish!

You can expect to invest between $200 - $800 for a starter serger.

The next machine you might want to consider is a Tabletop Hemmer. Most sewing machines come standard with a blindstitch foot attachment which is designed to make hidden hem stitches. Again, for the home sewer, this is a good option. If your goal is to do professional garment tailoring for others, or drapery making as a business, you will thank your lucky stars you invested in this particular machine. Regardless of your goals with your sewing, if you will be doing a lot of hemming, please think about purchasing one.

Here's what it looks like:

And here's what it does:

   

Unlike the serger, the Tabletop Hemmer has only one function, and this is it.          

We will also go into much more depth about this machine in future posts.
                                                          

You can expect to invest   $500 - 900 for one of these. (Remember, if you're a beginner, go to a dealer to get this so that you have follow up troubleshooting available to you.)

The final class of this installment, "What do I Really Need in my Workroom?", Part 1C, is the next class.

In that segment, I will show you pictures of all of the supplies you will need for your sewing projects.

Coming up this week!

Home Decor Series -What Do I Really Need in My Workroom? Part 1A

Welcome to the first installment of the 'Sewing Instruction' portion of the Make Mine Beautiful Home Decor Series.

This series is designed to help you learn to sew like a pro, regardless of your current skill level. To do that, we need to start with the basics.

Our first class,(a 3 part series)

 'What Do I Really Need in My Workroom?', will cover the following:

1A. What to look for when buying a sewing machine

1B. What machines you need based on the kind of sewing you want to do

1C. What you really need on hand in your sewing room

Let's get right to it.

How Do I Know What Kind of Machine I Should Buy?

Let's assume you know nothing about sewing machines, yet you've found yourself magically transported smack dab in the middle of a sewing machine store where the sales lady is asking you if you need help. Well, sure, you need help, but since you don't know how to sew, you have no idea what questions to ask her, or yourself. Or maybe you do sew and you have a sewing machine but is just doesn't do what you want it to do and you're in search of a new one. How do you know which one to buy?

First of all, you'll want to answer the following questions.

1. What kind of sewing do I want to do?

Do you simply want to be able to mend clothes, sew on buttons, or hem a pair of pants? Do you want to be able to make a basic pair of curtains? Or do you want to be able to mend your clothes, make your curtains, recover a few chairs, and make embellished pillows and bed coverings? Do you want to be able to add decorative stitches to your creations? Sew in piping and trims?

2. What is your current skill level and your future desire?

Are you a beginner who only sews straight lines? Are you afraid of zippers and buttonholes? Do you fear a blindstitch? Do you even know what a blindstitch is? Is simple sewing all you ever want to do, or do you see yourself being able to make a complete bed set with complementary draperies.....if you only knew how?

3. Are you serious about your investment in a sewing machine?

Are the only sewing machines you've ever seen in the aisles of Walmart? Do you consider 'a high end machine' to be the most expensive one that Walmart carries? Do you know that Singer is not the only brand of sewing machine? Have you ever ventured into a real sewing center?

4. How much are you willing to learn that you don't already know?

Learning to sew takes time. Sure, we all want to be able to sit down at a machine and whip out a pair of draperies -blindstitched, not top stitched! - and add a few decorative stitches along the border, but are you willing to commit some of your time to learn how to do it properly? Are you willing to take a class or two to learn the functions of your machine? Are you willing to read the manual that comes with your machine before you use the machine?

                                     

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What particulars should I be looking for in a machine?

There are basically two types of machines, mechanical and computerized. (Note: These notes only apply to home machines, not institutional or industrial machines.)

Mechanical machines are usually much cheaper. With a mechanical machine, you'll control most of your functions by hand. You will have a selection of various stitch styles, albeit limited. Buttonholes are made manually. The motor in a mechanical machine is not as powerful or consistent as the electronic motors in computerized machines. These machines are not designed to handle heavy, daily sewing very well. (The sales people will tell you they are, but after 16 years of doing this, trust me, they aren't [unless it's industrial].)

                                

Computerized machines are a bit more costly, but justifiably so. Computerized machines have touch pad control panels, and often, an LED screen. Computerized machines use a computer chip to control most of the functions. There are more stitch capabilities on this type of machine. Many computerized models have automatic buttonhole functions as well as memory settings for your favorite stitches. The electronic motors in computerized machines give them much more power than a typical mechanical machine, and they are designed to withstand daily sewing.

                                       

Now that you know a few of the differences in mechanical and computerized machines, you need to know which functions to look for in either.

Which Functions are Important when Buying a Sewing Machine?

Ok, here's where we get down to serious business. You want a machine that will be able to grow with you as you learn, which means you'll need to look for features that you want to have in the future as you develop your skills.

Choose a machine that can accomodate your learning.

Don't sacrifice quality for price. (You'll be thankful you heeded this advice once you start polishing your skills.)

Limited features equal limited creativity. You may have grand creations in your mind, but if your machine can't live up to your potential, your creations will suffer for it.

Ask the following:

-Does the machine come from a reputable company?

-Are the sales people knowledgeable?

-Will there be someone to help you if and when you have questions or need help?

-Can the salesperson show you basic techniques?

-Do they offer financing? (If they do, and you chose that option, buy everything you need at once.)

-Is there a warranty with the machine? Who sends in the warranty information?

-Is there on-site service where you purchased your machine? If not, do they have a repair person under contract? Do they have a print out of his fees?

-Do they offer a class to teach you the basics of your machine?

-Do they have creative classes you can take as you hone your skills?

-Does the company have a helpful and informative website?Does it have videos and/or tutorials? Do they offer webinars that teach new features? (Bernina, hands down, has the best customer friendly website EVER, and they offer webinars you can take part in to learn new techinques.)

Note: When you purchase a machine from a big box dealer such as Walmart, or a fabric store, keep in mind that you are on your own once you get the machine home. The sales people in these kind of stores are not trained to know the machines, and rarely ever know any more than what is written on the box. I would strongly suggest that you purchase a machine from a reputable dealer so that you have the benefit or their expertise to help you. If you're an experienced seamstress who knows the ins and outs of a machine and can troubleshoot your own problems, then feel free to buy a machine anywhere you like.

ANOTHER NOTE: Just an FYI: Some of the Hancock Fabrics stores have a BERNINA Sewing Center located inside, and some Joann Fabric stores have VIKING Centers inside. In these cases, those stores within the fabric store are independently owned, and do offer the same benefits as a sewing machine dealer. These independently owned stores do NOT sell the machines that are offered by Hancock and Joanns, they only rent space inside their stores in which to sell their own machines, and they are staffed with employees separate from the fabric store.  Make sense? In other words, don't purchase a machine from Hancock or Joann because it's cheaper and then carry it to the dealer in the store to get help with it. Won't happen.

Look for the following:

-What kind of stitch package does it have? (Are there more than basic utility stitches? The more you learn, the more you will want from your machine. Buying RIGHT the first time is something you'll never regret.)

                                

-Does it have programmable stitches? (This is a great feature once you learn your machine. It will allow you to repeat the same stitches over and over without resetting the machine each time you do a like project.)

-What feet come with the machine? and what feet options are available? (At minimum you'll want the following: basic sewing foot [often called a reverse pattern foot], a zipper foot, a buttonhole foot, a button sew-on foot, and a blindstitch foot. See if the store has a handout of the feet options that are available for purchase in the future. When you learn to do more, you'll need more feet. )

-Are there memory function settings? (Wouldn't you love to be able to recreate the same size buttonhole, perfectly, time and time again? Most machines that have memory functions also have a basic alphabet. Imagine being able to program your kids names into the memory one time and be able to recall it every time you want to stitch it out.)

                                 

-Does it have adjustable stitch length and width settings?

(You'll also want to ask what the maximum stitch width is. The standard options are 5mm, 7mm, and 9mm. I would not get any less than a 7mm. When sewing straight lines, it doesn't matter. However, when you start using your decorative stitches, they'll look much prettier with a larger stitch width. Ask the salesperson to stitch out a sample for you using the same stitch on the different machines  and you'll see what I mean. What the point in adding a row of decorative flowers if you can't even tell what they are when you stitch them out?)

-Can you alter the stitches? (For instance, lengthen a decorative stitch, or tighten the stitches in a buttonhole.)

-Is there an automatic needle threader? (If you have trouble threading needles, you'll need this.)

                                 

-Are there various needle positions? (And by various, I mean more than 3. 7-11 is optimal.Trust me, you'll pat yourself on the back for making you sure you get a machine with this feature as soon as you start sewing zippers.)

-Can you lower the feed dogs? (You'll need this feature if you ever want to do free motion stitch work.)

-Is there a needle stop up AND down feature? (This will help when you need to be able to repostion your hands or your fabric without losing your place.)

-How much are extra bobbins? (You'll want plenty, so the cost can run up. If they're too pricey, check ebay.)

-Is there an extention table available? (Being able to put a lot of your fabric weight up on a table will help your sewing go smoother and give you more control over your project.)

                                 

Studying this information will arm you with the basics you need to know be able to purchase a great machine for yourself.  The salesperson will be uber impressed!

If all you ever want to do is sew a straight line and make basic projects, then a simple mechanical machine will do the trick. However, if you know that you will want to continue to make larger projects on a more regular basis, you'll want to invest in one with an electronic motor with some computerized features.

Stay tuned for parts 1B & 1C on Sunday.

I'll leave you with a bit of inspiration. This 'lace' is made solely with a combination of decorative stitches. This is a fairly easy process once you get the hang of lining up your stitches, and you can do it on any machine that has decorative stitch options.

In the industry, this is refered to as a 'stitch recipe'.  

I hope you feel this information has been beneficial and you walk away feeling more informed and confident about purchasing or upgrading your machine.

What sewing related questions do you want answered? Go ahead and ask them in the comments and I'll answer them in the next installment on Sunday