vows pillows

for our first anniversary, i decided to do something special. i gave mason a leather bound journal in july (i have a reallllly hard time keeping my gifts under wraps)--so that takes care of the traditional first anniversary gift of paper. the journal is cool because it was handmade (an etsy find) and it holds large moleskines instead of just one notebook. i always think it's a shame to buy an expensive journal when you know you're just going to fill it up and never get to use it afterward. so this gives mason the ability to replace the notebook as long as he wishes.

ok, so i did the traditional thing...but something my dear friend whitney told me about gave me another idea. there is a website (spoonflower.com) where you can print your own fabric (among other things). you just upload it, choose your style of fabric and amount you want and voila!

i contact our pastor who married us, asked him for a copy of the vows we said to each other. when he emailed them over, i asked mason to write out the vows on a piece of white paper. of course, i had to tell him about the whole thing at this point because he was curious as to why i gave him an assignment :) i wrote it on a different sheet, and then i scanned them both into the computer, uploaded them to spoonflower.com, and ordered 1 yard of each in the linen fabric--tougher than just cotton, plus i like the canvas look.

i am a novice seamstress (and that might be giving me too much credit), so i asked whitney for a simple lesson in making a pillowcase. she sweetly obliged by making a beanbag size for me and figuring the dimensions for a 16x16 pillow.

i didn't take pictures throughout because i wasn't thinking about anything but the finished product (and being semi successful). i did get my goal, and i'm pretty proud of it.


tools:
1. fabric (make sure you have enough for the size you're thinking)

2. pillow inserts (i found mine at walmart in the craft section--16X16)
3. iron/ironing board (to iron fabric and seams)
4. sewing machine (i got mine at target--it's called the QuickFix)
5. ruler/measuring tape, etc. (something to measure...i have a board for exact cutting)
6. rotary cutter (or scissors if you can cut straight... i cannot.)
7. pins
8. pinking shears
9. patience

optional: a quilter's pencil or washable pen to make marks on the inside of your fabric



directions (via whitney--she's amazing...check her blog/etsy shop out):

1. cut out the front piece (17x17 inches)
2. cut out the back two pieces: (14x17inches each)
3. iron your fabric pieces
4. take piece 2 (top half of the back side) and find the edge that would be in the center (which is the bottom). make a 1 cm fold, and then fold over again. iron this for the seam, and pin it in place. set aside.
5. do the same for piece 3 (bottom half of back side), but make sure to pin the top of the piece (the side that meets piece 2 in the center). iron, and pin. *if you have writing (like vows) make sure the writing faces the correct way!!!! 
6. sew the seams for pieces 2 & 3 (i'm not the girl to ask about how far in to sew...i would trust youtube or google for how-to's like that)
7. arrange the three pieces with piece 1 print facing up, then piece 2 & 3 on top in their respective places with the print facing inwards towards the print of piece 1. (like sides touch)
8. pin the pieces together to form the pillowcase (it is inside-out)
9. sew the pieces together along the perimeter, leaving about a half-inch to three quarters (check this by putting the pillow inside and seeing if your original cut outs were correct--adjust if need, but remember the pillow will need some room to stick out its tummy and booty, so leave a little extra room!) :)
10. i check the snugness of the pillow insert to its new pillowcase before i cut anything off, so i suggest (all you newbies) to do the same.
11. if all is well, turn back inside out to where the excess fabric is showing.
12. with pinking shears, cut off the edges as well as the corners of the excess fabric is. be careful not cut too close to the seam. i leave a quarter inch or so. this will help eliminate creases underneath the pillowcase...just looks sloppy.
13. if you are having trouble keeping the fold over pieces (2 & 3) down, use some stick on velcro to keep them in place.
14. otherwise, ENJOY!

you can do this...if i can, you can! :)

happy anniversary, mase. thank you for indulging in my crafts. sometimes, they do pay off.

                               ahr