Saturday, September 21, 2013

Finishing Kris's Pillow Sham

Or, How I Finally Finished Sewing The Stuff For Her Bed.....

almost, sorta, jeesh.....

SOOOOOO.....

Today, I am going to show the class how I finished this here pillow sham.
On my last post, I showed you how I did the back closure like a man's shirt.....
So, today,
 I will start with showing the welting I made to go around the outside of this damn thing.
Rather than cutting the welting fabric on the bias (diagonal), I decided to make it out of the stripe part of the fabric shown in the middle of the picture below.
For fabrics that are somewhat stiff, it's really important to cut on the bias, as it allows more stretch and give in the weave of the fabric, so the welt can bend around corners.
But, on stretchier and more pliable fabrics, it's possible to cut it straight with the weave and still have it be able to bend.
I wanted the welting to be a solid looking trim, rather that the angled stripes that a bias cut would have given me.
I made a whole bunch of it......
I used to be afraid of welting.....
now I am the wunderkind of welting!!!!!
I sewed the welting to the pieces of fabric I had cut for the sham fronts.
Then it was time to make the flange ruffle.
A flange is a flat piece of fabric, 
not ruffled,
not pleated.
flat.....
I chose a part of the stripe that I thought would look the best.....
(because, why would I choose one that would look the worst......
jeesh, sometimes I write the stupidest stuff.....)
I seamed the pieces together and ironed the seam open.
Then I folded it in half and ironed it flat.
This would now be my flange.
I pinned it to the sham tops, right side together, with the welting sandwiched in the middle.
Then I sewed it all together.
When I got to each corner, I bunched the flange a little, creating a ruffle detail.
Kris didn't want no girly stuff in her bedroom because she is married to a manly man,
but
I wanted a little softness at the corners,
 so there.
I seamed the flange together where it met.
I had to stop a little away from where it would join, as I had to seam the flange right sides together.
So, I stitched the flange together and finger pressed the seam open, then folded it back into shape and continued stitching it to the face of the sham.
The detail around the corner allows for the fabric to make the turn.
It would have to be either pleated, ruffled or mitered.

So, now it was time to sew the buttons on the back.
I took all these pictures, and didn't even notice that I matched the stripes up wrong on one of the shams.
This was my niece Miriam's fault, as she and her husband came to visit in the middle of sewing this, and I lost my train of thought.
That's my story, and I'm sticking to it.
FYI
Before I sewed the pieces together, I stitched a zig-zag stitch around all the cut pieces so that this could be washed and the fabric wouldn't unravel.
I don't have a serger, so this is the next best thing to do.
So,
here it is!!!!!
All sewed together and ready for it's pillow.
This is the back!!!!!
This is the front!!!!!
This is the side!!!!!
Kris's bedroom is really coming along.
We need to still get a rug.
And a dust ruffle.
And hang the other plate.
And accessories.
And a life.........

But before I go.....
I just want to say.....
Now I know why older folks eat prunes!!!!!
I bought a jar of stewed prunes.
They came in really handy!!!!!
The jar is the prefect size for storing some paint!!!!!!!

On that note,
Latah, Gatah
Photobucket

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hi Betsy!
You have done a better tutorial with this post than you can ever imagine- because unlike the sewing books- you made the project seem fairly easy and straightforward. I have never done a applied flange, I have always chickened out and just done a self flange because it was so quick and straightforward.
But the more that I read your blog, the more the maxim comes through that ’the devil is in the details’.
THAT’S the lesson to be learned ..
Dolores

Anonymous said...

I really enjoy your tutorials! They are helping me with my small sewing projects around my home. I love how you used the fabric on the shams. They are perfect!

Kim said...

I have been reading your blog for some time. You make me laugh. I think that Miriam is the luckiest niece. You turned a dark and scary dining room into a shining star. I sure hope she appreciates you. I love what you did with the chairs, in fact the whole room. What a pretty place to eat. I see all the sewing projects that you do and I would love to do them as well as you. I have been sewing since I was 10 years old and for many years I made my wardrobe. Kids and life meant the sewing was put aside for many years. Just not enough time for everything. I am trying to motivate my self to do some decorating. That means painting and then curtains, perhaps a wall or two of wallpaper. The thing that scares me the most is slipcovers for my couch in the living room and the loveseat and chairs in my breakfast room. I have never attempted to make these before. Do you have any suggestions? I wish I could just bring you to my house for a few weeks. I know that is not going to happen but let me say it is a lovely dream.
I really love your sitting room. It is beautiful and blue being my favourite colour that means I find your bedroom decor suits me to a tee. I just wanted to tell you how much I enjoy your blog and your creativity. Have a wonderful day!

Kim

Betsy Speert said...

My next post shows what I'm doing in Miriam's living room!

bmayer said...

Love all your posts and sewing projects (I'm a former Art and Home Ec. teacher)....do yourself a favor, and buy a serger. Just do it. You will wonder why it took you so long (and you'll thank me).....Just DONT sew over any pins!)

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