I Cheat at Curves - Placemat Tutorial

Don't be intimidated by the curves. As the name suggests, I have a sneaky little trick that will have you whipping out placemats in no time.

This tutorial has been written to compliment my free I Cheat at Curves PDF pattern. You will need to download the pattern from Payhip for this tutorial to make any sense.

Free PDF Pattern available from Payhip

These placemats are quick and easy to make...and just as quick and easy to adjust. You can really make them any size you like. Just cut your rectangles approximately 2'' longer  and about 1'' wider than your desired finished size.

You could use more or less fabric as needed. For example, if you want six placemats, simply cut six rectangles. You could even cut more curves for a really funky look.

Let's get started...

Stack your fabric so that the right sides are all facing up and the raw edges are aligned.

Stack the fabric with raw edges aligned.

Slice through all four fabrics, dividing them into four roughly equal parts. As you can see here, I am slicing a very gentle curve. If it's too rounded, it will be more difficult to sew.

Slice easy curves, dividing the fabric into four roughly equal parts.

Rearrange the fabric, as detailed in the pattern, so that each placemat now contains one strip of each fabric.

Rearrange the fabric, as detailed in the pattern.

Starting with the first placemat (i.e. the top four strips), take the first and second strip and overlap them 1/2''. The raw edge of the top strip will be visible.

Overlap the strips 1/2''. Right sides of both fabrics are facing you.

You can pin here...

Pin the strips in place.

...but I found glue basting to be a much quicker method.

Glue basting is a great alternative.

It is important that the fabric is flat before sewing, even if it means using a little more than 1/2'' for the overlap.

Zigzag along the raw edge. You could use any decorative stitch here. You could even just straight stitch 1/8'' from the edge and have a pretty cool raw edge effect.

Sew along the raw edge.

Practice on some scraps first to find the zigzag settings that appeal to you. I used a very funky variegated Aurifil thread for my zigzag. This is why you can see some light and dark sections along the seams. In hindsight, I probably should have stuck with the orange I had planned, but it still looks kinda cool and adds a little depth I feel.

Strips have been stitched together.

Join the remaining strips in the same fashion.

The first placemat top is complete. For the record, Yes, I did iron the fabric first.

Continue until you have made all four placemats.

I trimmed my placemats before quilting, for no reason other than I had a brief moment of insanity and forgot I had to quilt it. It was fine though and I only had to trim it a tiny bit again after quilting to ensure it was square.

I used a gorgeous yellow Aurifil thread and quilted simple horizontal lines, using the walking foot as a guide.

Simple straight line quilting.

For quilting and binding tutorials, check out my Beginner Quilt Along series.

Completed Placemats.

There you have it. Quick and easy placemats that will have everyone ooo-ing and aah-ing over how fabulously daring you are to try piecing curves. Don't worry, I won't tell if you don't *wink* *wink*.

Cushion Cover Tutorial

I originally posted this last year, so it may look familiar. I really wanted to show you again since I know you're running around looking for teacher gifts, secret Santa ideas and whatever other wackiness takes place from now until the New Year. I had intended on chopping out the extra bits and just have the tutorial...but how seriously cute are those bags!!!

Last Christmas I decided to get a little crafty and give a few handmade gifts. Naturally, I left this decision until the last minute and only had time to whip up these lined totes (aren't they pretty?).

Lined totes just in time for Christmas.

I had some more fabric from this beautiful range and wanted to make Mum something a little different, so I chose some cushion covers. The following tutorial was made on the fly so please don't hesitate to ask questions if any of the steps aren't clear.

You will need:
Cushion insert - I chose 16" (41cm) square cushions
Fabric
Light/Medium iron-on interfacing - I used medium because it happened to be laying around.
A Zip an inch or so shorter than your cushion insert - I cut mine down to be about 15". There's 14'' from zipper pull to the stopper.

The following measurements use a 1/2" seam allowance. If you like a bigger or smaller allowance, you will need to adjust your measurements accordingly.

Cut two 17'' squares of fabric and two 16" squares of interfacing. I'm using interfacing to give a little strength and body to my cushion covers. They will be getting a lot of use, so I'd hate for them to wear out too quickly.

Cut your fabric and interfacing.

Iron the interfacing to the wrong side of each piece of fabric. I like to leave the edges free of interfacing so as not to create too much bulk.

Iron the interfacing to the wrong side, keeping the edges clear.

Overlock/Overcast all four edges of each piece of fabric. This is purely option but it will prevent the fabric from fraying.

Overlock all edges.

Place two piece right sides together and pin the bottom edge. I like my zip to be on the bottom so it is less visible.

Pin the bottom seam, right sides together. 

On each end of the seam, mark in 1 1/2".  This is where the zipper pull and zipper stopper will be positioned.

Mark both ends where the zipper pull and zipper stopper are to sit.

Sew as you would for a normal seam, up to the first mark. Once you reach the mark, backstitch a few times to add a little strength. Increase your stitch length and continue to sew until you reach the second mark (1 1/5" from the end). Change back to a normal stitch length, backstitch a few times and sew to the end.

The stitches between the two marks are simply to tack the seam together to make positioning the zip easier. They will be removed once the zip is in place. The stitches beyond the marks, to the corners, will remain.

Sew the seam, using long basting/tacking stitches in between the two marks.

Iron the seam open.

Iron the seam.

Position the zipper teeth on the seam, with the zipper pull facing down. The zipper pull should sit on one mark and the stopper on the other. I have used both fabric glue and pins to keep the zip in place.

Position the zipper between the marks, with the teeth along the seam.

Change your sewing machine foot to your zipper foot. Starting just behind the zipper pull, sew down one side until you reach the zipper stopper. Turn and sew over the stopper. Then turn and sew up the other side until you're back to where you started, but on the other side of the zip.

Sew down one side.

Turn and sew over the zipper stopper before continuing up the other side.

On the right side, unpick the tacked seam between the zipper pull and zipper stopper. Do not unpick past these points or you will unpick the seam. You simply want to create an opening so you can actually use the zip.

Unpick the tacked seam between the zipper pull and zipper stopper.

Open the zip half way.

Open the zip half way.

With right sides together, pin and sew the remaining three sides of the cushion cover.

Pin and sew the remaining three sides.

Turn the cover right sides out through the zipper opening. Press the cover, insert the cushions...and now you have a beautiful cushion cover with zipper closure.

Mum's finished Christmas present. Better late than never right? 

Perfect for a last minute gift idea, wouldn't you agree?

Quilted Cushion Cover Tutorial - UPDATED AS A NEW POST (READ BELOW)

Quilted Cushion Cover Tutorial

THIS TUTORIAL HAS BEEN UPDATED AND RE-RELEASED ALONGSIDE A PDF VERSION. FOR MORE DETAILS SEE Ombré Cushion Cover Tutorial

I made my Nan this cushion cover for her birthday and I just couldn't resist sharing the love. These instructions are for a quilted cushion cover but I have provided some suggestions if you want to avoid quilting. 

You will need:

• 11 fabric strips, 2.5'' wide x 16'' long. I love using strips from a jelly roll for this as they're already 2.5'' wide and will be in a coordinating fabric range. 
• Batting, approximately 16'' x 16''.
• Backing fabric: Two pieces sized 14.5'' x 10.5''
• Scrap fabric for the quilted backing, slightly larger than the batting. This will end up on the inside of the cushion so it doesn't need to be anything fancy. 
• Size 14 cushion (36cm x 36cm).

Steps:

Firstly figure out the order you want the fabric strips to appear in e.g. darkest to lightest. I find taking a photo and viewing it through my camera phone gives me a better idea of how the final product will look.

With right sides together and using a 1/4'' seam, sew the first and second strip along the long edge.

A few points to note:

• You don't need to backstitch at the start or end of the seam. 
• I like to set my stitch length shorter to make the seams less likely to unravel when I cut through them later.
• You will see in the photos that I am using a 1/4'' foot on my machine.  You don't need to race out and buy one. You can easily use the markings on your machine or place some tape 1/4'' from the needle to use as a guide. 

Sew the first two strips along the long edge.

The first two strips sewn together.

I place a clip or pin on the first strip as a reminder. There has been far too much time spent unpicking after sewing strips to the wrong side lol. 

Continue adding strips until you have 11. Now is a great time to double check that you have them in the correct order. 

Eleven strips sewn in order.

Press all the seams in the same direction. You can do this as you go but I find it quicker to wait until now. 

Press the seams.

It is important to press the iron down rather than dragging it across the fabric, as you would when ironing clothes. This will help to prevent the fabric from being pulled or stretched. 

All the seams are pressed in the same direction.

Lay the strips on your cutting mat and straighten one side. Make sure your seams are straight when you do this or you will end up with angled pieces. Ask me how I know ;)

Neaten the side, making sure the seams are straight.

Using the straight edge you just cut as a guide, cut 6 x 2.5'' sections. Again, make sure your seams are straight. 

Cut 6, 2.5'' sections, making sure the seams are straight.

Six sections.

Take three of the sections and press the seams in the opposite direction. This will allow you to easily join them in the next step. 

You should now have two groups of three strips. In my case, I have one group with the seams pressed toward the green and another with the seams pressed away from the green. 

Take one strip from each group. With right sides together, stagger the strips so the first seam of one strip is lined up with the second seam of the other strip. See where the pen is pointing below?

Stagger the strips.

The seams should nest together. This is why you have them pressed in opposite directions. 

The seams will nest together nicely.

Pin this seam in place. I use Clover Wonderclips in place of pins.

You can continue on and pin the remaining seams along the strip, but I usually don't bother. The distance between them is so small that I find easier just to match them as I sew. 

Pin the first seam.

Sew the strips together using a 1/4'' seam. 

Sew the strips using a 1/4'' seam.

A little tip for keeping you seams neat when they're not pinned...

I stop sewing as soon as the needle passes the first seam.  I then nest the next seam and hold it in place, with my fingers, as I sew. Once the needle passes that seam I stop and prepare the next and so on until I reach the end. If you take your time and stop at each seam, you will see how easily it falls into place. 

Stop at each seam, prepare the next seam and sew slowly.

The first two strips sewn together.

Press the seam. Unlike earlier, I find it easier to press as I go for these seams.

Continuing adding strips in this method until all six are sewn together. Remember to stagger the strips and press as you go.

Remember to stagger the strips as you add them.

Now comes the magic! We need to cut diagonally through our strips. See the black line in the image below for the direction of the cut.

Cut diagonally through the strips.

Try and keep the cut as neat as possible and go through the middle of each square (see below). The first and last squares will be slightly off centre due to the seam allowance. Don't panic if things aren't perfectly lined up. Just be as accurate as possible.

You want to be cutting directly through the middle of each square.

You now have two pieces.

Switch the two pieces around. I.e. Take the right piece and place it on the left and the left piece on the right. The cut edged will be on the outside.

Switch the pieces around, with the cut edges on the outside.

Using the same technique we did to join the strips, sew this seam.  Remember to nest the seams together and keep the staggered look as shown below. 

Stagger your seams and sew as before.

Pretty

How great does that look!!!! It's times like this I really love what I do. 

Square off the piece to be roughly 14.5'' x 14.5''. I just slice off the top and bottom triangles...

Cut off the top and bottom triangles.

...and then slice off the sides to the correct size. I'm not to fussy about where I make these cuts, so long as it's neat and tidy.

Note: You could do the quilting before you cut the front to size but I don't usually bother for these cushions.

Cut off the sides to measure 14.5'' x 14.5''.

Neat, tidy and ready for quilting.

Now we're ready for the quilting. If you want to avoid this step, you can simply use this piece 'as is' for the front. I have tried this with success, but love the quilted look. You may even choose to simply iron on some interfacing to give it extra stability.

Baste your cushion front to the batting and scrap backing fabric. You can use whatever method suits you. Pins, curved safety pins etc. I like to use basting spray. It keeps everything in place and means I can avoid pinning. 

Baste the cushion front, batting and scrap backing fabric.

Quilt the cushion front in your preferred method. I have used a walking foot to quilt lines 1/4'' to each side of the seams.

I quilted 1/4'' to each side of the seam.

I love how the back turned out. I used an aurifil 28 weight thread and it's just gorgeous. 

Don't stress if the back gets messy as it will be inside the cushion cover. 

It's almost a shame that this will be hidden inside the cushion.

Trim off the excess batting and scrap fabric, keeping the front at roughly 14.5'' x 14.5''.

Trim off the excess to complete your cushion front.

The front is finally ready so let's move on to the back.

Take your two pieces of backing fabric to hem the long edge (see where the pen is pointing). 

Hem along the long edge.

Fold the edge down 1/2'', press and then down another 1/2'' and press again. 

Hem the edge by double folding 1/2'' and pressing.

Sew the hem in place.

Sew the hem.

I like to sew two lines. One close the edge and another 1/8'' away.

Two lines sewn for the hem.

Both pieces hemmed and ready to go.

Now we're on the home stretch...

Take the front of the cushion and lay it right side up.

Front piece, right side up.

Take one backing piece and lay it on top of the front piece, right side down and with the hem in the centre. 

The first backing piece is placed right side down, with the hem in the centre.

Lay the second backing piece right side down and in the opposite direction to the first. 

The second piece is placed in the opposite direction to the first, with the right side down and the hem in the centre.

Pin the edges. 

Edges pinned.

Sew around all four edges, using a 1/4'' seam. You may wish to use your walking foot here but I don't usually bother. 

Sew the four edges, using a 1/4'' seam.

Finally, clip the corners and turn the cushion cover out the right way. Use a paint brush or other blunt object to push the corners out. Place the cushion inside and abracadabra....

The back of the cushion.

You have a beautiful quilted cushion.

A beautiful quilted cushion.

Please share your cushions on my Facebook Page or on Instagram using the hashtag #sewtodaypattern.

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