Weekend Sewing Project - Checkbook Cover

It's raining at my house which makes for a gloomy Sunday afternoon.  I have 2 things I want to do...sew and read.  I thought I would do a little sewing first, because chances are if I start reading I will end up dozing off.  I have been needing a new checkbook cover and since spring is on the way I decided to make something bright and colorful.  I love making checkbook covers because they are quick and easy and can be changed out with the seasons or, color coordinate one with your purse!  Here are the easy steps.  I hope I've made them clear but if you have any questions please email me at sweetteaandpearlsblog@gmail.com.  Have fun sewing!

First of all cut a pattern that measures 7 1/2" wide by 14 1/2" long.

Cut 2 pieces of fabric from your pattern.  They can be alike or different.  One will be your face fabric and the other will be the lining of your checkbook.

With right sides together pin the 2 pieces of fabric around all edges marking with your pins the area you will leave open to turn the fabric once it's sewn.

Using a 1/4" seam allowance sew around all sides of your fabric remembering to leave an opening to turn the fabric.  Backstitch at beginning and ending of sewing to secure your stitches.  Trim corners being careful not to get too close to stitching.

Turn fabric inside out making sure corners are sharp and pulled out.  Roll fabric between your fingers to get stitching line up and press all sides.  What I mean by this is it shouldn't look like a ditch when it's pressed.  Measure 3 1/4" from the end on each end of cover and mark with a pin.  This will be your fold line.

Make sure the right side of your cover is down and the lining side is up.  If you are using the same fabric for both it really won't matter.  Fold the bottom part of the cover up at the pin markings.  Remember I said this would be your fold line.  Pin fabric in place. Do the same thing for the top folding it down on the fold line and pin fabric in place.

Remove the pins that were used to mark your fold lines but leave the pins holding your fabric in place.

Stitch a 1/4" seam allowance around all sides of the cover.  Remove pins.

Insert that nasty old plastic thing they give you at the bank.  They are good for something...they give your checkbook cover stabiity.....

But now doesn't this look so much better?!  You can make one for winter, spring, summer, fall, 4th of July, Christmas, Halloween....and it's so easy!!

Hope you all have fun with this little sewing project...sorry I didn't get it posted earlier in the weekend...I was busy spring cleaning.  Hoping you all have a wonderful week......until later......                       
                                                                           ~Becky

Weekend Sewing Project: Making Napkins With Mitered Corners

Now the first thing you're probably going to say is, "Why make napkins when you can buy them at a reasonable price?"  Well, I asked myself that same question but, as with most things, I get ready to buy something and end up saying to myself, "I can make this."  Not to mention I have several old tablecloths with a few stains and worn places that I just can't part with so why not cut them up and make napkins out of them...there's certainly enough material!  Plus, sometimes you just can't find the color napkins you want.  I have been looking for some polka dot napkins for this summer and I can't find any anywhere, but I've found the material I can make them out of!  Last week I looked for some red napkins for my daughter to use for Valentine's and could only find some that were a dark, ugly red, so I just bought some material and made them for her!  Where there's a will, there's a way.  So, for all you beginning sewers, and all you seasoned sewers, this is an easy project with straight seams that I hope you'll enjoy as much as I have.  Here's how you do it!

First decide how large you want your napkins.  Most napkins are 18" square and some are 20"...for this project I chose to go with an 18" square because I think that is large enough.  You will need to cut yourself a pattern out of newspaper first.   You will be adding 3" to the finished size of 18" to allow for a 1" hem and 1/2' to turn under the raw edge so draw and cut  your pattern 21" x 21".  If you would like another size napkin, make the adjustments in your calculations and then cut your pattern.  I will say that you don't always have to have a 1" hem.  Most napkins you buy have 1/2" hem but I think the 1" looks so much nicer and has a little more formal look.  After cutting the pattern, layout your fabric and cut the number of napkins you will be making.  I'd also like to add this little bit of info when selecting your fabric.  Make sure your fabric is 100% cotton.  Polyester absorbs grease stains and you'll never get them out and cotton presses and finishes up so nice!  Linen makes beautiful napkins too!

Turn down 1/2" towards the wrong side of your fabric on each side and press.

Now, turn down 1" and press again.  Place a pin on each side where the fabric intersects.

With right sides together, fold your napkin on the diagonal so that the pins meet, having edges even.

Draw a line from the pins to where the creases meet on the fold line.  Stitch along this line backstitching at the beginning and end of the seamline.  Do this on all 4 corners.

Cut the corners to about a 1/4" seam allowance on all corners.

Open up the napkin and lay it flat so that you can press open the seam allowance on each corner.

Now, turn corners back in and press making sure your corners are sharp.

Stitch close to the edge of each side.  Press your napkin and you're ready to go!

I apologize that my photos are not clear.  I don't have one of those fancy expensive cameras that take really good close up pictures but I think you will get the idea of what needs to be done!  I hope you enjoy this simple project and let me know how yours turn out!  Have a wonderful weekend!

                                                                                                  ~Becky

Weekend Sewing Project - Making a Tissue Holder

For all of you who may be slightly inspired by my previous post, here is a quick and easy little project that makes the cutest little tissue holder for your purse.  It takes very little fabric and maybe 20 minutes of your time.  They make nice little surcies and are very useful.  You can use fabric scraps you already have or, if you need to purchase material it only takes 1/4 yard and you can make several!!  Let's get started!

First you will need to make a pattern.  Cut a rectangle 6.5" x 7.5".  I usually use newspaper but you can use tissue paper or printer paper.

1.  Cut 2 pieces of fabric.  One is your face fabric, the other will be the lining.  You can cut both pieces out of the same fabric or use something different for the lining.  I'm using a pretty red toile for Valentine's!

2.  Pin right sides together and stitch a 1/4" seam allowance around all 4 sides leaving about a 2-3 inch opening on one of the long sides to turn the fabric.  Useful tip:  When beginning a seam and ending a seam backstitch to secure stitches.  By doing this you won't have to worry about your seams coming apart when you turn your fabric.

3.  Trim corners and trim seam allowance about 2 inches down on each side of corner.  This will keep your fabric smooth at the corners when it is turned and it won't bunch up.

4.  Turn your fabric inside out making sure your corners are pulled out and sharp.  I usually use a HUGE safety pin to help me do this.  They make a tool to help you do this but I've just never bought one.  Press your side seams and corners flat making sure the opening seam allowance is turned in and smooth.  You don't have to stitch the opening because it will be encased in your final end seams.

5.  Fold your rectangle in half along long sides and pin to mark the middle.

6.  Fold each end up to meet the middle pins having right sides together.

7.  Using a 1/4 inch seam allowance stitch each end along pins making sure you back stitch at the beginning and ending of your seam.

8.  Turn inside out and insert tissues.

You can buy individual packs of tissues but I have found the best deal is to buy them in a pack of 8 at CVS.  I get the CVS brand.  I have a tissue holder for every season.  They make nice little gifts for secret pals, ladies in nursing homes, teacher gifts, or just because I love you gifts!  Now, dust off that sewing machine and get inspired!!  Hope you all have a fun weekend!

                                                                                               ~Becky

My Stress Reliever . . . Sewing!

I have been sewing since I was 6 years old!  Yes, that's the truth.  When I was younger (a lot younger!!) my mother made all of her clothes and mine.  It was so exciting to come home from school and my mother had spent her day at the sewing machine making me several new dresses for the spring or summer. When I went to my bedroom  she would have them layed out on my bed.  After seeing everything she was able to make I naturally wanted to do that too, so, at a very young age I began making pin cushions for everyone in my family.  My mother would get up from her machine to press a seam and I would jump in her place and try to get as many seams as I could sewn before she returned.  I have always loved sewing!  I had the best teacher in the world, my mother.  I got my first electric sewing machine when I was 8 years old.  I think she was excited as I was on that Christmas morning!  It was a child's Singer sewing machine that would sew a chain stitch.  The Christmas morning I woke up and saw that machine under the tree was the best Christmas ever!!  I ventured to making aprons for everyone in my family got...and finally I gradually started making doll clothes.  Later, when I was in the 9th grade I got my first real adult sewing machine and started making all my clothes.  I couldn't afford to buy clothes from the stores so, for my birthday and other occasions my family would give me money to buy material.  I could make a whole outfit for little of nothing!  It's a gift that the Lord has blessed me with and I am so thankful.  Now don't get me wrong!  I am no seamstress!!!  There are tons of things I will not tackle, but, I have made window treaments for my whole house, and for others, made all my daughter's clothes as she was growing up and now I'm back to making clothes for myself.  I always loved sewing for Brooke when she was growing up but you know there comes a time when it's just not cool anymore to have "homemade" clothes.  Well, guess what?  Brooke is 27 years old now and.....it's very cool to have homemade clothes!!!  Only they don't call them "homemade" anymore.  They are "specially designed, one of a kind" outfits.  I started making dresses for her again about 2 years ago and she loves it.  I have made dresses for $10 that cost $350 at a "designer" dress shop where all the dresses are "homemade"!  More stories on that later...but, the exciting thing is now she wants to learn to sew!!!  Finally, my daughter wants me to teach her to sew!!!  I'm so excited!!!  As she was growning up I tried to get her interested in sewing to no avail, but this past summer she looked at me one day and said, "I wish I could sew mama."  "I don't know why I didn't let you teach me when I was younger."  (Kinda like why did she ever stop taking piano lessons because now she wants to sit down and play like a concert pianist?)  Well, honey it's never too late!  I jumped for joy when she said that and immediately started convincing her it is never to late to learn to sew!  Twenty-seven is the perfect age to learn...you don't have to make pin cushions and doll clothes...you can make real clothes!  So, for Christmas we bought her a sewing machine!  It's beautiful...wish I had it...mine is so old but still sewing good...hers has a free-arm...mine doesn't, and sometimes I say bad words when I can't get my fabric to go in the right direction...but I still love it!  I know this may sound strange but sometimes my machine is my best friend!  :)  I was so happy the day I purchased her machine. During the Christmas season my mother and I went to the fabric store to buy a sewing basket and fill it with all the essentials.  She was excited too!

So, after getting the machine for Christmas we needed to go shopping for fabric and a pattern...nothing too hard, but it needed to be functional!  She opted for an apron pattern and Amy Butler fabric and a cute clutch purse pattern.  The hard part about teaching her to sew is she lives in Charleston, and that's an hour and a half away!!!  We planned for a whole weekend of sewing...she came home and I taught her how to lay out the pattern and cut the apron...she did a beautiful job!!!  She was so excited and proud...see it's not all that hard!  Next she laid out the clutch purse but was only able to finish half of it before she had to head back to Charleston.  The next weekend I went to visit her and help her finish the purse. I am so, so proud of her accomplishments!  She wants to learn and that's half the battle.  Here are the pictures of her first two projects!  She did a beautiful job!

Today she informed me she has already cut out another clutch purse and she did it without my help!  She's gonna be a natural.  Sewing has saved me so much money and, made money for me when I needed it.  God has blessed me with this gift and I treasure it.  If there is anyone out there that has an inkling they would like to sew I would encourage you to pursue it!  Be looking for a few sewing lessons and neat little gift ideas in upcoming blogs!  You'd be surprised what you can make out of a scrap of material!!!  Happy sewing!!

                                                                                              ~Becky