Guest Post at The Dressmaking Diaries

Hi friends!

Today I'm guest posting over at The Dressmaking Diaries.  I've put together a simple tutorial for a bread cover.

Go and have a look!    

Round Tablecloth Tutorial

As promised, a tutorial for the tablecloth featured in this post!  Most cloths you'll find in stores are just one big circle of fabric.  This one is slightly different, as the drop (the part that hangs off of the side of the table) is cut out and then stitched to the top.  This makes for a much more fitted look.  I think it keeps the tablecloth in place a little bit better, too.   My table is about 40" across, but this project is customizable to different sizes, whether it be for a dining table, side table, etc.  My nightstand is round, and I'm itching to make a smaller version to cover it!

You will need:
medium weight fabric (the amount depends on how big your table is.  I got by with 2.5 yards of 45" wide fabric)

coordinating thread

2 packages of single fold bias tape

a length of string or yarn

a pencil

Stitched Mother's Day Card Tutorial

A few of you may remember my post about re-purposed cards waaay back from the beginning of this blog.  Admittedly, I don't do a lot of paper crafts.  As much as I would like to TRY ALL THE CRAFTS , I strive to limit myself a bit when it comes to supplies.  Otherwise, you'd see me on Hoarders.  I do like to keep a few basics on hand from other crafty areas though.  A few years back I picked up a big box of pre-folded blank cards with matching envelopes on clearance at JoAnn's with the intention of making all of my Christmas cards.  Yeah, didn't happen.  I still have about 93 of the 100 blank cards.

After searching for Mother's Day cards at a supremely overcrowded Wal-Mart in Skokie and coming up empty handed, I decided to make my own.  Here's what I came up with:


Charming in kind of a wonky way, yes?  Here's how you can make your very own.

Start by tracing a heart onto the inside front of your card.

Carefully cut out the heart using a very sharp craft knife.  I decided to treat myself to this one by Fiskars, and I love it!  It's very comfortable to hold and allows for a lot of control.

Choose the fabric you'd like to use for your heart and cut it to size.  You don't need much, so this is a great project for using up small scraps.

Next, apply some double sided tape to the inside of your card, and place your fabric piece over it.

And here's what it should look like from the inside and outside of your card.  I used a couple of different fabrics, as you can see.

Now it's time to stitch!  When you're sewing regular projects with fabric, machine needles tend to dull pretty quickly.  It's a good idea to use a fresh, sharp needle with each new project.  You may be able to eke out 2 or 3 smaller items.  Rather than throwing these spent needles away, I like to set them aside and use them for sewing on paper.

I've used my quarter inch piecing foot here.  It tends to hold things in place a little better. Stitch very slowly around the outside of your heart, especially around the curved parts.  I find it easier to start at the bottom point and work my way around. 

Here they are, hot off the sewing machine:

Next, apply the rick rack trim.  I used a tiny bit of white glue to hold it in place before stitching.  It worked fine on the green trim (which is cotton), but not on the blue (which is polyester).  I had to use a bit of double stick tape on each end to hold the blue trim in place.

And that's pretty much it!  I applied an additional piece of card stock with double stick tape behind the fabric heart to give the card a little more stability.

Just add a message and they're ready to send.  I'm thinking, "Sending love your way for Mother's Day!"  Kind of cheesy, but isn't that sort of what greeting cards are about?