Sew Deadly (33 page)
Authors: Elizabeth Lynn Casey
To avoid seam imprints on the right side of the fabric, place a strip of brown paper bag between the seam allowance and the garment before pressing.
Anticipate how many bobbins you’ll need for a project and wind them in advance. This will eliminate the annoyance of having to stop midseam to rethread your machine.
Keep sharp tools to the right side of your sewing machine so you do not snag the fabric.
Stack your pattern pieces in order of use, after they have been cut out.
Do not put a hot light directly over your sewing machine as it can cause the grease and oil to dry out and freeze up the machine.
Put all the notions, thread, trims, and pre-wound bobbins in a storage baggie for each project so you do not have to stop and search for them.
Have a sewing tip you’d like to share with readers?
Stop by my website,
www.elizabethlynncasey.com
and let me know.
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Sewing Pattern
Interested in making a pillow similar to Tori’s?
An Envelope Flap Pillow
Experience:
Some sewing experience needed.
Materials:
14” pillow form or 12 ounce bag of fiberfill
¾ yard of 45” fabric
Thread
Sewing machine with zipper foot
Sharp scissors
Chalk or marking pencil
Yardstick
Straight pins
Premade piping
Paper
Decorative button or other embellishment, optional
Directions:
Cut two panels of fabric measuring 15” x 15” each.
Create a pattern for the envelope flap by cutting a 16” x 8” paper rectangle. Find and mark the center point of one long side. Then draw straight lines from that center point to each corner on the opposite side of the rectangle. Cut off the excess paper.
Use your paper pattern to cut two triangles of fabric. Pin triangles with right sides together. Sew (½“ seam allowance) along the two bottom (shorter) sides of the triangle. Clip the corner. Turn right sides out. Press.
Baste the flap to the top of one of the fabric panels—right side to right side—and machine stitch into place.
Baste piping to right side of the other panel of fabric. Using a zipper foot, machine stitch into place.
With right sides of fabric together, pin front and back panels, sew around all sides, leaving a large opening at the bottom for inserting the pillow form. Clip corners. Turn right sides out. Press.
If desired, hand-sew a decorative button or other embellishment to the pointed corner of the envelope flap, sewing through the pillow front if you would prefer the flap to remain stationary.
Insert pillow form or stuff with fiberfill and then hand-stitch the opening in the pillow closed.