From Flannel Shirt to Pillow Cover - A Tutorial

I'm a big fan of flannel.  

I've talked about it before.  Lately I just can't seem to get enough of it. I have a flannel shirt that I wear on a daily basis, it's become my version of a hoodie.

It's not surprising at all that I'm always on the lookout for more to add to my closet.  Just last week while at the thrift store I stumbled across one that had very pretty colors but sadly was not the right size.

I brought it home with me anyways!  

Silly I know, since it didn't fit but I loved the colors and decided I was going to make it into a pillow slipcover instead.  I have always liked the look of pillow covers fashioned out of men's dress shirts so I figured I would like the look of one made out of a flannel shirt also!

And boy do I,  take a look.

Cute Right?

Want to make your own?

Good, I just happen to have a quick tutorial for you . . . follow along!

Before you begin, lay your flannel shirt on a flat surface and smooth it all out nice and flat with all the seams lined up.

Step 1:

Trim off one sleeve by following the seam.  Repeat on remaining sleeve.

Step 2:

Trim the side seams of the flannel shirt from the bottom up to the trimmed arm holes.  Repeat on other side of shirt.

Step 3:

Trim the collar off by following the shoulder seams across the top, and then continuing around the yoke of the front collar.  Flip the now loose collar cuff up and out of the way.

Step 4:

Determine the size of your pillow and cut the flannel shirt to the corresponding size.  You will cut through both the top and bottom layer of the shirt at the same time.

You will then have two rectangles cut to the same size.

To figure out the right size, I simply laid the pillow on top of the flannel and eye-ball the size (making sure to add a little extra on all side for the seam)  Because I wanted to keep the pockets, I laid the pillow centered over the pockets to make sure I had plenty of room on all sides before I cut the shirt to size.  As for the pillow, I used a travel sized pillow that I bought at Target.  They make a great accent pillow size and their cheap too!

Step 5:

Layer the two cut pieces of flannel on top of each other.  Making sure to place right sides together.

Step 6:

Pin the two layers together and sew all the way around  with a straight stitch.  Before you begin sewing make sure that your seam line won't hit any buttons.  If need be, remove any buttons in the way.

Step 7:

Check for fit.  
Simple unbutton the front and slip your pillow insert inside.  If it all looks good finish your seams with a zig-zag stitch to prevent fraying.  Turn the pillow cover right side out, insert pillow, button up the front and your done!

The whole project was so easy and fast I felt a little cheated out of sewing time!  The size of the flannel shirt I used was large enough(I think an XL) to use the bottom part of the shirt for an additional pillow cover.  Now I have two pillow covers, one with pockets - one without pockets, both with button down fronts. 

Lovely right?

Have a great day!

Robin

Linked to:

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Monday Funday

A Hankering For . . . A Nordic Christmas

Good Morning!

Although I don't allow myself to "officially" start decorating for Christmas until after I finish hosting Thanksgiving it hasn't stopped me from planning and dreaming up possibilities.

For years I have been drawn to the simple beauty of Scandinavian Holiday decorations.  I swear somewhere along the long line of ancestors there must be a little Nordic in my bloodline.  How else is a girl to explain just how strongly this type of decorating pulls at me.

Always a fan of simplicity, I think this style will suit me well.  Oh sure, I'll still throw in family favorites and items I find too "essential" not to use.  I'm hoping a heavy hand of simplicity will help balance it all out.

In order to help myself pull off the new look, I've been doing a little studying on the subject and I thought you might like to take a look at the pretty inspiration photos I've found.

Take a look.

I'll definitely need a handful of baby trees!

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Some Stars . . .

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And of course, lots of candles.

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And finally, a few items in red.

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Robin

Folded Page Book Wreath

Good Morning!

I've had a few requests for a tutorial on the folded paper wreath I made a couple weeks ago.

Surprise, Surprise! 

 Today's the day!  Last night I put together a Christmas themed wreath just so I could take some photos of the process.  If your in need of a quick and easy wreath this is the one for you!  Takes no more than a half hour to make.  

The first thing you'll need to do is find a book that your willing to rip apart.  
You'll need a total of 27 pages.

Take one page, and fold it in thirds . . .

It should look like this.

Unfold one section, and add a bead of hot glue. . . 

Close the fold and press closed until the glue firms up.

Now go ahead and make 19 more of these.  

Happy Gluing!!!

Now that you have all your book pages folded it's time for the fun part of assembling the wreath.

To begin, take four folded pages and lay them on your work surface in a "T" pattern.  Glue them all together in the middle.  This will be your base.

From here, start layering the folded pages onto the base one at a time.

Here you can see that I have attached three folded pages.

I'm at the half way mark here.

At first the placement of each page may be a little difficult to determine.  I have found that keeping the tiny triangle on the outside edge of the wreath a uniformed size takes the guesswork out of the way and make a nice shape to the wreath.  Hope that makes sense, you can see below what I'm talking about.

Continue adding and gluing pages all the way around until you reach your starting point.  Overlap the final page onto the starting page.

At this point if any of your base pages are sticking out like mine happens to be the right side below, simply flip your wreath over and trim away the access.  While you have the wreath flipped over, if you think it needs it, do a little gluing around the center to firm the wreath up a little.  Just lift a flap of the book, add some glue and press.  Sometimes I skip this step all together - it's your call.

The next step in assembling the wreath is to prep the second layer.  Take your five pages and once again fold in thirds.  Then fold in half.  Add a little glue to hold the fold about half way up one side.

Lay all five of the pages on your wreath and play with the placement a little until you find what you like.

I seem to start by lining up one piece with the last page added to the first layer.  From there I stagger the remaining pieces in a circle shape.

Once you have the placement you like, set the wreath aside and assemble your final layer before gluing on the second layer of the wreath.  I'll do this to make sure that the second layer is spaced wide enough to be seen around the final layer.

For the final layer you will need the remaining two pages ripped from your book.

Fold the page accordion style starting at the bottom and working towards the top.

Next fold the page in half.

Glue the page into a half circle by running a small bead of glue along one edge from the fold to the outside edge.  Press together until the glue holds.

Fan open the page and it should look like this.

Repeat with the final remaining book page.

Now attach the two pieces.

The easiest way to do this is to gently unfold a tale from each piece. So it looks like this.

Add a bead of glue to edge of one side and place the edge of the other side one top.  Press until the glue holds.

Gently fold the two sides back together.  
As you do this add a dot of glue to the "valley's" of each fold.
Once you have one side done, flip the whole thing over and add glue to the "valley's" were needed.

Now you have both the third and second layer of the wreath assembled.  It's time to check placement and then glue it all on.

The final step of making your wreath is to add a little something to the center.  I picked a pretty Christmas sticker from my stash of scrapbooking supplies and a scalloped punch-out from another book page.  After simply layering the two together I glued it on the center of the wreath.  

Ta- Da!  

Simple right!  

You will need to add a ribbon or string to the back in order to hang it.

I'm thinking I may make a couple more to hang on bedroom doors for the holiday's.  They seem like the perfect size!

Hope you enjoyed this.  Now get out your glue gun and make yourself one.

Have a great day,

Robin

Linked to:
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Hand-painted Sign

I adore hand-painted black and white signs.  

I made myself one ages ago and it is still a favorite of mine, you can check it out here.

Feeling a little crafty the other day, I thought it was high time to make another one.

I took the quick and easy route by using letter stencils for instant gratification.

I decided to highlight my childhood hometown for a little trip down memory lane.  I saw this type of design on a pillow years ago and have wanted to reproduce it with a meaningful subject for me.  I think it translated well into a sign.

My newly painted sign is the perfect backdrop for the cluster of candles on my side table.  This time of year I can't seem to get enough of candles.

This collection was once all brass that I picked up for a steal here and there until I had a good grouping of them.  A coat of white enamel paint gave them a fresh look which blends into my decor nicely.

Hope you all have a wonderful day,

Robin

Linked to:
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Tweak It Tuesday
The Scoop
Amaze Me Monday
Inspire Me Tuesday
Twirl and Take A Bow
Be Inspired
Treasure Hunt Thursday

A Hankering For . . . Red

On any given day if you were to ask me what my favorite color is I could answer with any hesitation at all.

Hands down, forever and always my favorite color is . . . 

Red

Oh sure, other colors like soft green, cheerful yellow, pale blue and gentle pinks all pull at me from time to time for attention.  I indulge them at certain times of the year because lets face it, sometimes it fun to mix things up a bit.

Their pretty hues are enjoyed for a while but all to soon the pull of red starts to call out to me and I start to crave it.

I adore light filled room, with an airy, cheerful feeling and plenty of pops of red scattered around.  It seem perfect for this time of year when the days are cold and often dreary outside.  Red is just such a cozy, cheerful color for me.

So today, as I start adding more of my favorite color to my decor I thought it was only fitting to share with you a few photos I've found lately with inspiring red.

Enjoy!

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The color red truly is lovely isn't it!

Robin