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Monday, February 14, 2011

Monogrammed Pillow {My first sewing adventure}

I DID IT! I DID IT!

I sewed something all by myself... meaning without my mom's help! Woohoo! Before you get too excited, I made a pillow. If you sew, you are going to laugh (if you aren't already) because it is so simple but this was a big deal for me as I am just learning how to sew and I have never sew something on my own. You have to start somewhere right? So I am excited!



One of my sorority little sisters, Jessica, is getting married and I was invited to her shower which happened to be themed a Monogram Shower! I knew as part of her gift I wanted to make her a throw pillow with their married couple monogram on it. So off I went to get some thin muslin, thick muslin, and pillow stuffing. I planned to make the pillow insert too instead of buying a pillow form... thrifty I know!

I used the thick muslin for the outside pillow and thin for the insert. After cutting 2  13x13 squares (for my 12x12 pillow finished pillow) of each type of muslin, I used my Silhouette machine to create a stencil of their monogram. Then I freezer paper stencilled it onto one of the thick muslin squares and used dark brown paint. Here is how I freezer paper stencil.

just began painting
painting complete!
Meet Bertha, my Bernina! (Yes I like to name things... like our cars, the portable heater, etc.) Next I pinned the "right sides" together. I did this same thing for the pillow insert... basically this whole process was like making 2 pillow covers. Since I'm a newbie, I pin A LOT.

Bertha


Next I sewed around with a straight stitch and left an opening on one side as you can see above where there are no pins. I did a 1/2 in seam.


Then I cut the corners of the seam allowance and I turned the pillows inside out (so the right side would be on the outside). For the inside pillow I needed to use the opening to stuff it and then hand stitch it closed. For the outside cover I needed to use that opening to stuff the inside pillow in and then I hand stitched that closed as well. I have to admit that the hand stitching was by far my least favorite part. I think next time I will do pillows with overlapping back fabric so there is no hand stitching (and also you can swap out pillow covers easily that way).


All in all I think it turned out really nice! And I really enjoyed sewing on my machine. I rethreaded it and everything and didn't mess anything up :) Just in case yall are wondering... for a married couple monogram it goes: wife's first initial, big married last name initial, husband's first initial.


I see many years of wonderful sewing for Bertha and I!

Me and the Bride To Be at the shower:



Linking up to these parties:

14 comments :

  1. This is a wonderfully done tutorial! And such a thoughtful gift! You did a mastrful job, and I am inspired to make a monogram pillow!
    YOur blog is just as adorable as you are!
    What a delightful visit.
    Yvonne

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  2. Aww how cute! Wish I could've been there. See you soon!!

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  3. YAY YOU!!! I think the first thing I sewed was a makeup bag. Yeah a little too adventurous. then I did a baby blanket. But it's the sense of accomplishment that kept me sewing. You did an awesome job!

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  4. Congratulations on your first solo sewing adventure!

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  5. Great job on your first independent sewing job! It turned out wonderful! I'm sure your friend loved it!

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  6. I love it, it's super job! Congrats on your 1st alone sewing project. I don't know how to sew at all, so I totally envy the beginning skills you have! :)

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  7. Well done! You did great with your first sewing project. Like your monogrammed pillow, simple and chic.

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  8. You are on your sewing way :) It turned out cute! Love the freezer paper technique. I'd love to try this! Great tute! xo Michelle

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  9. How exciting for your first pillow!! Way to go it looks awesome! Thanks so much for linking this up too! I will be featuring your first pillow!!
    Thanks
    Tasha

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  10. Beautifully done! I've been wanting to make some pillows from muslin and using the freezer paper method, so you've definitely inspired me to give it a go!

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  11. Super cute! Nice job :) How long did it take for the paint to dry properly? Did you have any issue with it running? I think I'd like to try this.

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    1. I let the paint dry for about an hour just to be safe. Make sure that the freezer paper is ironed on well and it shouldn't run. You can look at the tutorial I did on that which explains which side of the paper to use, etc.

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