Come Stitch With Me

How about a travel pillowcase + pillow insert in a themed fabric tailored to the recipient?

Supply chains woes may impact your ability to locate a 12″x16″ pillow insert. This is my go-to size, but I could not find any. My options were: (a) DIY the pillow inserts using muslin & polyester fiberfil I had on-hand or (b) buy a slightly bigger travel pillow insert (14″x20″) I found at Wal-Mart in the pillow section. I’ll take option (b), please. The five pillow inserts I needed were less than $20, including tax.

In case you’re interested, here are the cut measurements from Miss Teresa’s Magical Pillowcase directions adjusted for a 14″x20″ pillow form:
Body: 21.5″ x 30″
Trim: 2.5″ x 30″
Cuff: 7.5 x 30″

I use the hot dog/burrito method of pillowcase construction using French seams. Fabrics with an all-over design work best, but you can use a print with a one-way design.
Here are the modifications for assembling the bun/burrito part using one way designs:

Fabric Placement Alignment of One Way Design
Cuff Face up Upside down (rotate fabric so top of design is facing you)
Trim Face up Right-side up with raw edges along the top edge
Body Face down. Right-side up

It will seem wrong to position the fabrics this way; however, once you sew the cuff edge and turn it inside-out, the one-way designs on the cuff, trim and body pieces will be pointing in the right direction.

Complete the rest of the pillowcase as usual.

My adult nieces had requested Legos as Christmas gifts for their kids. My husband and I gifted a 1500+ Lego piece set to each family. However, I wanted each child to have something personal, as well. Enter themed pillowcases. My great-nieces and nephews instinctively knew which pillowcase was theirs. It was so much fun to see their excitement! 🙂

Classes and clubs are back! Woo-hoo! Today, I attended my first table runner club. One of the online groups I follow is hosting a monthly table topper QAL featuring Trendy Table 3 from Anka’s Treasures. When I learned that a local quilt shop offered a similar program each month using the same book, I signed up! I have really, really missed dedicated sew days with friends. Spending six hours today sewing with friends was good for my soul. Guess I’m a little out of practice at packing for a quilt class because I left my pins & pin cushion, 6-1/2 x 6-1/2″ square ruler, machine screwdriver & lint brush at home. That’s what I get for trying to pack at midnight after a long week at work. I couldn’t find my handwritten checklist either. So, I’ll be rewriting it in the coming weeks.

Anyhow, what should you bring to a quilt class or retreat? Like “essential” sewing supplies, it’s highly personal. I typically take a small machine in a wheeled tote plus everything else in an oversized canvas tote bag. Today, I transported supplies in a wheeled sewing machine trolley, Sew Steady bag and a small canvas tote.

Here’s what I took to today’s class:

Elna STAR sewing machine (which stays packed in its travel case with all machine accessories).
Small Sew Steady table in bag
Pattern book, precut fabrics (should have bagged & labeled them by step# instead of color)
Piecing thread, needles, wonder clips, seam ripper, yellow seam guide, thread snips
Pencil, small ruler, 5×15 ruler, turquoise scissors, rotary cutter, 9×12 mat, mini stash n store.

Need help developing/fine-tuning your own packing list? Here are a few quilt class/retreat checklists that you might find useful in putting together your personal quilt class/retreat checklist.

Quilt Retreats – CreativeBeeStudios

Retreat Packing List – A Little Crispy

What to Pack for a Quilt Retreat – American Patchwork & Quilting

Happy Sewing!

Have you ever received a supply list for a class that included the item “essential” sewing supplies? What exactly does this mean? “Essential” is somewhat subjective, so I recorded the notions and supplies (no fabric) that I actually used over the course of 7 days. I worked on a pieced/applique quilt top. I also mended a couple of items.

Here’s what I had on my list:

Sewing machine, piecing thread, invisible thread, bobbin thread, appropriate needles for thread, regular, 1/4″ and open toe sewing feet, walking foot & guides, bobbins, lint brush, screwdriver and yellow seam guide for scant 1/4″.

Pins, magnetic pin cushion, wonder clips, seam ripper, purple thang, point turner, seam roller, perfect scissors in orange and turquoise, 8″ gingher shears, 45mm and 60mm rotary cutters with blade changes, hand sewing needles, thread conditioner, silver thimble, needle threader, embroidery scissors, DMC floss, glue bottle with tiny tip, baby wipes, black smooth soleplate no-steam iron, iron spray starch, press cloth, ironing board, mechanical pencil, black sharpie marker and notebook..

Small cutting mat, large cutting mat, assorted rulers 8-1/2″ square, 10-1/2″ square, 6-1/2″ x 12-1/2″, 5″x15″ and 2-1/2″x8″ MSQC rulers plus a couple of specialty rulers I use for HSTs and flying geese.

What’s on your list?