Birds of a Feather

Chirp. Honk. Hoot. Warble.
Squawk. Trill. Tweet. Cheep. Cluck. Caw. Cuckoo.
Quack-a-doodle-doo.

A haiku poem from Haiku Maui
by Mark

My new collection, Birds of a Feather, started shipping mid-November and Kait from Michael Miller Fabrics decided to kick off the release with a blog post. Her posts are great so make sure you check out Michael Miller Fabric's blog Making It Fun for the complete BofaF (as we refer to it) post!

There are lots of wonderful, inspirational projects and as you can see below, I am offering the instructions for the standard-size pillow case. The machine embroidery appliqued feather can be downloaded at The Needlework Factory.

Clockwise: Quill - white; Nest - coral, Cotton Couture - soft white, Twigs - teal

Standard-Size Pillowcase with Separate Cuff and Trim

Mark's technique gives the inside of the finished pillowcase a professional, tailored appearance!

MATERIALS:

Body (main fabric): 1-1/4 yards                                         Matching and/or coordinating thread

Cuff:  1/4 yard fabric                                     Scissors, rotary cutter, cutting mat, tape measure

Trim 1-3/4" fabric                                                              Sewing needle and basting thread

CUT:

Body:   43" x width of fabric       Cuff:    8" x width of fabric         Trim:    1-3/4" x width of fabric

PREP:

Body: Cut just enough to remove the selvage from one side of the Body fabric. From this side measure 29-1/2". Cut off extra fabric so Body fabric measures 29-1/2" x 43".

Cuff: Along one of the longest sides of the cuff fabric, turn and press 1/2" to the wrong side of the fabric.

Trim: Fold, and press the Trim fabric in half, wrong sides together, to measure 7/8" x width of fabric.

CONSTRUCT: **If using one-way designs, "test" the placement of your pieces before sewing to make sure the designs are facing in the correct or desired direction.

~ With RIGHT sides together, match the raw edges and sew the Trim to the Body fabric along the longest (43") edge using a 3/8" seam allowance. Pin if necessary.

~ With RIGHT sides together, match raw edges (pin if needed) and sew the Trim side of the Body fabric to the Cuff using a 1/2" seam allowance.

~ On the RIGHT side of the pillow case, press the Cuff up and away from the Body of the pillowcase and the Trim down toward the Body of the pillowcase. Turn to the WRONG side and make sure all seam allowances are pressed toward the top and the Cuff of the pillowcase.

~ Fold the pillowcase in half lengthwise RIGHT sides together, matching the raw edges and seams. Pin. Remove any excess Trim and Cuff that "hangs over" the raw edge of the Body, if necessary. *Remember to remove any pins before cutting.  Starting at the bottom folded edge of the pillow body (not the turned under cuff edge) sew, using a 1/2" seam allowance, along the two (2) raw edges. Back tack at the Body/Trim/Cuff junction and at the start and stop of sewing.

~ Starting at the bottom of the pillow Body (as above) serge the edges of the pillowcase, trimming to a 1/4" seam allowance. Slow down at the Body/Trim/Cuff junction, and run the stitch off of the seam allowance 2" before the turned under edge of the cuff. An overcastting or zigzag stitch finishes the raw edge nicely too!

~ On the Cuff: Fold the turned under edge of the unfinished seam allowance down along the seam, forming a small dog-ear. Fold the cuff to the WRONG (inside) side of the pillowcase. Cover the stitching with the turned edge, match the seams and fold the seam allowance to one side to make it lie as flat as possible. Pin along the turned under edge. Base turned edge in place from the RIGHT side of the pillowcase, a scant 1/16" away from the sewn Cuff edge, where the edge-stitching will be (the basting serves as your guide).

~ Edge-stitch on the RIGHT side of the Cuff through all layers to secure the turned edge of the Cuff the Body of the pillowcase on the WRONG side.

~ Trim threads. Turn case. Press if desired.

Women's Pre-washed Reversible Bucket Hat 

Quill - color Bark 

Three different linings. Anyone interested in the pattern, please contact me. The women's size S (shown) is comparable to the children's XL (included in the 5 sizes of the children's pattern available).

Tweet - aqua - newborn