Youโve all seen puffer jackets. The look has now shown up on high-end bags! S4H leads the pack, bringing you a DIY version. We combine ripstop nylon and high loft batting, creating the texture with straight line quilting + ruler work.
Ragging – letting your seam allowances show and fray on the outside – is traditionally found on blankets, pillows + quilts. We stepped outside that box to use the technique on a pair of trendy canvas + flannel totes.
Add a graceful floral touch to pillow covers, linens, garments, and more. This free embroidery collection includes six different designs, each in two size formats. Cross stitch cloth was a perfect base fabric for the delicate designs.
A set of plants in these cute and clever baskets makes a lovely gift idea. Theyโd also be fun as table decorations for a family gathering โ or set up an assembly line and make matching baskets to adorn the tables at a wedding.
Learn how to create this unique edge finish with a padded satin stitch. Itโs an easy technique that works especially well on the bias edges of scallops. The result is smooth, stable, and beautiful. We show it on both napkins + placemats.
Make our scaled-down stocking as table dรฉcor, use several to hold flatware, create an elegant place card or adorn a gift box. Itโs made”in the hoop” with just a single line of stitching to finish. Free embroidery download too.
Itโs the call of the wild! Our adorable lumbar pillow pair features a Gregarious Gator and an Amiable Elephant. Youโll find all the steps for three different appliquรฉ techniques: outline and stitch, raw edge, and reverse.
Applying initials to something to identify it as undeniably yours dates back as far as the signet rings of the ancient Romans. Today, machine monogramming makes it easy. Janome expert, Anne Hein reviews a variety of options.
Bright and fanciful designs can add a splash of freshness to linens, garments, and more. Pick a Grapefruit, Papaya, Pineapple, Watermelon or Grapes. Use one or collect them all as a set. Free downloads in 8 formats.
We took a classic, box-style zippered case and embellished it with a blend of Sashiko style straight stitching and Sashiko style machine embroidery. Learn the techniques to simulate this beautiful handwork tradition with your machine.
Sashiko means โlittle stabsโ and references the running stitch that is a defining feature of this traditional handwork. The style can be created by machine using a Triple Stitch, often found in your machineโs utility stitch collection.
We took at peek at some favorite cross stitch options from the experts at FQS this past Spring. The good news is: patterns are still in stock and many of the Stitch Alongs are available in their YouTube channel archives.
When you want to keep a seamed edge sharp and clean, you understitch the inside piece to the seam allowance so it won’t roll to the outside along the edge seam and look all messy and unprofessional. Learn the steps.
Join us, along with our friends at Janome, as we pull together information, tutorials, and projects to rekindle sewing as a real life survival skill. Now is the time to remember, re-learn, and teach others how to create from scratch.
Weโve alphabetized 20 terms into a mini glossary. If youโre a pro, buzz through and see how many you know. If youโre new, use them as great vocabulary builders as well as to impress your non-sewing friends.
Covered buttons are cool! They add the special touch that says, “Stand back… I’m a home dรฉcor professional.”ย Making them with a kit is easy and inexpensive. We like working with the Dritz kits โย available in lots of sizes.
We all love little cheats and hacks! Our popular Cheat Cards cover important, need-to-know sewing tips and/or techniques in a handy business card size: 2โ wide x 3ยฝโ high. Get the six card set for just $1.99 in our Etsy Shop.
Our beautiful abstract flower design is full of flourishes โ perfect to render in the soft texture of a quality wool blend felt. When done in striking solids, this appliquรฉd pillow makes a stunning statement.
One of the signs of a truly well-made project is that it looks nearly as good on the inside as it does on the outside. Finishing a project’s inside raw edges elevates the final appearance and adds to your sewing toolbox.
Create a square pillow with an embroidered peace symbol and a coordinating rectangular pillow with the word PEACE embroidered in a gorgeous floral flourish. Our custom embroidery designs are offered as free file downloads.
Mistakes happen to the best of us. The good news: ripping out a seam and starting over is something we all do all the time. With a little care and patience, it’s an easy fix and no one but you is ever likely to know it happened.
Learn to achieve tip top topstitching and enviable edgestitching. For embellishment or assembly, stitching visible from the right side is an important detail and its precision can make or break the final outcome of your project.
Learn our tips for using a pair of standard hemostats to quickly, easily, and smoothly turn tiny ties. Once turned, we also show you how a thin piece of cardboard is the perfect template jig for pressing the tie flat and even.
Sometimes the perfect webbing or strapping youโve selected for a project is simply too darn wide for the D-ring or Swivel Hook you really want/need to use. Try this quick trick to bring your wide webbing down to size.
No matter what kind of sewing you do, sooner or later, you will likely have to sew a dart. To get the perfect contour a dart should provide, follow our professional tips for marking, stitching, and pressing. We review 6 styles.
Ah – decorative stitchingโฆ as long as you’re going straight, all is well. Then the corner approaches. If making a turn with a decorative stitch has you puzzled, we’re here to help with several ways to make a turn for the better.
Making adjustable straps can seem like a magic rope trick with all the threading this way and that. But, itโs really quite easy and makes the strap much more flexible. Lengthen to wear crossbody, shorten for a shoulder strap.
For some reason, button-sewing by hand is stuck in our head as a dreaded, time-consuming task. That need not be true! Read on to learn our favorite, super speedy, five-step process to perfect buttons every time.
Itโs a classic way to secure all types of straps and narrow panels: a stitched box with an “X” through the middle. The pattern provides strength and stability, and when done with precision, also adds a pretty detail.
A blind hem is exactly what it sounds like: a machine-done hem with stitches you can barely see. It’s perfect anywhere you want a clean finished edge. Good news: the specialty Blind Hem presser foot is standard on most machines.
Double the precision in half the time. A twin needle is basically two needles attached to a single shank. One is slightly shorter than the other so your bobbin can catch the thread from both needles. So clever that bobbin!
Rick rack has been at the top of the trim list for nearly 200 years. From elegant lace gowns to prairie pinafores, itโs a trim thatโs weathered the test of time, and we have the best tips for adding it to todayโs projects.
Start with a simple yet bold fabric, add some distinctive decorative stitching, and you can have a stunning table runner perfect for any holiday gathering or special occasion. Remember, “Life is short; use the good china!”
A straight line seems like the most basic sewing technique. But weโre amazed by the number of comments and questions we get about how to do it better, easier, and more consistently. Using the right foot for the job is the real secret.