May 2012

Sewing Buttons by Machine

May 31, 2012 Kay Hickman

Last week Evan (2½ years old) watched me sew on buttons on the machine.
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We’ve all seen machine embroidery, but how about machine stitched needle-punched designs? Carol Nunns combines embroidery and digitized needle-punching to create a uniquely embellished vest featuring OESD’s Steampunk embroidery collection #12378. … More

Meet the Experts: Kay Hickman

May 29, 2012 Kay Hickman

Meet Kay Hickman, educator and trainer for BERNINA of America, Inc. Her blog posts include “Blooming” Chrysanthemums, Fuse & Fleece, Sterling Monogram “Love” Pillow, and Sweatshirts “with Decorations.” Kay lives in Edmond, OK, near Oklahoma City.
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Kissing Pillows

May 26, 2012 Jeanne Delpit

Birds of a feather flock together! If you haven’t seen the new BERNINA Exclusive Design Collection” Retro Birds,” #21001, be sure to check it out. To see how these clever little pillows were designed, sign up to for our BERNINA 8 Series Webinar on Tuesday, June 5. I hope to “see” you then! … More

BERNINA Customer named “Home Based Business of the Year”

May 25, 2012 WeAllSew

Rebekah Scott has been named South Dakota’s Home-Based Business of the Year, and her business has taken off in a big way. She started her business about nine years ago and even in a down economy her sales of her beautifully designed purses continue to climb. … More

Is that big, bold scrap of fabric staring at you? This quilt square is designed to let a large print fabric shine. This simple block is quick to make and easily stitched into a pillow. With a bit more fabric you can turn it into a placemat or table runner. The perfect project for turning fabric scraps into something bold and beautiful. Geometric Quilt Block Pillow Supplies Large scraps or fat quarters of 100% cotton quilter's fabrics: One large print One light solid or small print One medium solid or small print One dark solid or small print 1/2 yard of white cotton fabric for the pillow lining 1/2 yard of fabric for the pillow back Coordinating thread 14" square pillow form Universal or Sharp needle, size 75/11 1/4" foot (BERNINA Patchwork Foot with Guide #57) Straight stitch foot (BERNINA Straight Stitch Foot #13) Zigzag foot (BERNINA Reverse Pattern Foot #1) or overlock foot (BERNINA Overlock Foot #2) Rotary cutter and self-healing cutting mat Clear acrylic gridded ruler Download and print the Geometric Quilt Block Pillow Cutting and Piecing Diagrams: [download id="90"] Step 1) Cut the fabric pieces. Accurate cutting helps avoid crooked, puffy, or uneven seams in your quilt block. Use a self-healing mat, a clear acrylic gridded ruler, and a rotary cutter to cut the pieces for your quilt block. Rotary cutters Rotary Cutting Tips Self-healing mats come in different sizes. 24" x 36" is a good size to have, but if you don't have a dedicated sewing space or don't plan to use it often, try an 18" x 24" mat instead. Acrylic rulers also come in many shapes and sizes. A standard 6" x 24" ruler is a good start, and I've also found a 12-1/2" x 12-1/2" square ruler to come in very handy. Rotary cutters are measured by the size of the circular blade in millimeters. A 45 mm rotary cutter is perfect for making the kind of straight cuts needed for this project. Use the grid on your cutting mat to help square up fabric pieces when needed, but when measuring to cut the pieces be sure to use the gridlines on the acrylic ruler. Hold the ruler firmly on top of the fabric, and use a steady, firm, pressing motion when cutting with the rotary cutter. Cut one of each pattern piece from the corresponding fabrics (also see downloaded Cutting Diagram): Piece #1 - Light solid or small print, 4" x 3" Piece #2 - Dark solid or small print, 4" x 5" Piece #3 - Light solid or small print, 4" x 2-1/2" Piece #4 - Large print, 9-1/2" x 9-1/2" Piece #5 - Light solid or small print, 2-1/2" x 9-1/2" Piece #6 - Dark solid or small print, 14-1/2" x 2-1/2" Piece #7 - Medium solid or small print, 14-1/2" x 3-1/2" Step 2) Piece the block. Set your sewing machine for a straight stitch about 2.5 mm long. Attach a quarter-inch foot, such as BERNINA Patchwork Foot with Guide #57, to your sewing machine. The blocks will be sewn together using a 1/4"-wide seam allowance. Stitching an accurate 1/4"-wide seam will help your block come together with nice, straight seams and avoid pieces not fitting together as you sew on. Geometric Quilt Block Pillow Patchwork Piecing Tips Us a quarter-inch foot to help you keep the correct seam allowance width. The BERNINA Patchwork Foot #37 is designed specifically so that following the edge of the foot will create a 1/4"-wide seam allowance. BERNINA Patchwork Foot with Guide #57 is similar to foot #37, but adds a metal guide at the side of the foot to help you like up your fabric piece exactly at the edge of the foot. Attach a seam guide to the bed of your sewing machine along the 1/4" seam allowance mark on your stitch plate, then place the edges of your fabric pieces against the guide as you sew. Alternatively, place a piece of blue low-tack painter's tape along the 1/4" seam allowance mark on your stitch plate as a guide for your fabric. Piecing Diagram Geometric Quilt Block Pillow Start by stitching Piece #1 to Piece #2 along one 4" edge. Press the seam allowances to one side. Next, sew Piece #3 to Piece #2 along one 4" edge as shown in the diagram; press after stitching. Geometric Quilt Block Pillow Continue adding pieces to the block as shown in the diagram, pressing each seam as you go. Tip: When pressing seams, be sure to press DOWN with the iron as opposed to "ironing," or pushing the iron back and forth over the seam. Ironing (back and forth motion) can cause straight seams to go crooked. Pressing straight up and down with the iron will help your seams stay nice and straight. Press all seams again from the back of the block when finished. Geometric Quilt Block Pillow The finished block should measure 14-1/2" x 14-1/2". Geometric Quilt Block Pillow Step 3) Construct the pillow cover. Cut one 14-1/2" x 14-1/2" square of fabric for the pillow lining. Cut two 11" x 14-1/2" rectangles of fabric for the pillow back. Create a 2" hem along one edge of each 11" x 14-1/2" pillow pocket piece: Turn under 1" along one long edge; press. Turn under an additional 1"; press. Geometric Quilt Block Pillow Topstitch close to the inner edge of the folded hem with a straight stitch, using either a multi-purpose foot or a straight stitch foot. Geometric Quilt Block Pillow Layer and pin the pieces of the pillow together: Begin with the 14-1/2" square of white cotton for the lining. Add the finished patchwork block, right side up, matching all edges. Add one pocket pillow back, right side down, matching the raw edges. The finished hem will be about 5" from the other end of the pillow. Add the other pocket pillow back, right side down, on the opposite edge. The hemmed edges will overlap. Geometric Quilt Block Pillow Pin around all four edges of the pillow. Set your sewing machine for a straight stitch of 2.5 mm long. Stitch around all four sides of the pillow using a 1/2"-wide seam allowance. Trim all seam allowances to 1/4". Attach an overlock or zigzag stitch foot to your sewing machine. Set your machine for a zigzag or overlock stitch and sew over the raw edges to keep them from unraveling. Geometric Quilt Block Pillow Turn the pillow cover right side out, gently pushing each corner from the inside to turn it. Insert the 14"-square pillow form through the opening in the back of the pillow cover. If needed, use a little fiberfill to help fill out the pillow corners. Geometric Quilt Block Pillow Geometric Quilt Block Pillow

How to Make a Geometric Quilt Block Pillow

May 24, 2012 Erika Mulvenna

Is that big bold scrap of fabric staring at you? This quilt square project is designed to let a large print fabric shine. It is quick to make, and can be used for several projects, such as a table runner or pillow. The perfect quick project to turn scrap pieces into something bold and beautiful. … More

Simple Home

May 23, 2012 WeAllSew

Lurene Swalve made these to coordinate with her version of Susan Fears’ Tuscan Garden Quilt, a BERNINA block-of-the-month project. Now to figure out how to get a bed into the classroom for the display! … More

Vote Now for Your Favorite BERNINA WeAllSew Challenge # 2 Entry

May 22, 2012 Alice Voss-Kantor

Visit our Facebook fan page (www.facebook.com/berninausa) to see all the creative projects and vote for your favorite upcylced project into reinvented home decor! You can vote once every day. Voting ends May 27, 2012.
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Words for a Wedding

May 21, 2012 WeAllSew

The groom’s ring pillow I made for my brother’s wedding uses words his fiancee used to describe him, and the bride’s ring pillow is embroidered with words my brother used to describe the bride-to-be. After the wedding, the pillows will be taken apart and matted and framed. … More

Zippy Boxed Bag

May 18, 2012 WeAllSew

This clever Box Bag is the perfect size for toting markers and pencils, makeup, or your wallet and a few essentials. Libby from Truly Myrtle shows you how to make it! … More

The Christina Christening Gown

May 17, 2012 Ed Roux

While many of the basic heirloom techniques used in his Christina Christening Gown may be a review for many sewers, Ed Roux breaks them down into easy steps even a novice can master. In an heirloom sewing series for WeAllSew, he also offers a few new techniques that even experienced stitchers will appreciate. … More

Take the Fear Out of Sewing with Knits

May 16, 2012 Stacy Schlyer

Sewing with knit material, even without a serger, can be a fun and pleasant experience so long as you take your time and keep a few tips and tricks in mind.

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Month: May 2012