Christine Sews

This is the 100th post on this blog.  In celebration,  here is a round-up of the ten most popular posts, and a few comments.  I’m guessing, due to the way that statistics are collected; it’s difficult to tell.  My top ten is based on reader comments, questions, and page views.  Thanks for looking.

How to Make Bias Tape

How to Make a Tutu

Free Westinghouse Antique Sewing Machine This post has generated more questions than any other.  And I promise to do more research and provide more information as soon as I can get it.

How to Make Piping for Upholstery

How to Make a Reversible Dress

How to Save Sewing Patterns

How to Slipcover a Rubbermaid Container

Waist Hem Quarter Pin Skirt Refashion

Six Inch Skirt Pattern

Hand Puppet - How to Make a Pattern with Your Copier

Kids love dressing up.  And your little chef can have an apron for the cost of less than a yard of fabric.  (Unless you have a teen, then you might need the whole yard.)

How to Scale an Apron to Child Size:

1. Measure your child from collar bone to knee.  (When you hem the top and bottom, you’ll have an apron that falls approximately from chest to just above the knee.)
2. Measure from armpit to armpit.  Add 4-6 inches.
3. Neck strap length should be the length from armpit to armpit, across the back of the neck, plus 2-4 inches.
4. Cut a rectangle according to the chest measurements above.
5. Cut a long rectangle the strap length by 4 inches.  (For reference, the child above, a four and half year old boy, has a 13 inch strap.
6. Cut two ties 4 by 24 inches.
7. Fold the chest rectangle in half lengthwise, and cut a curve for the armscye.  I like to use a curve tool from the office supply store and my rotary cutter to get a perfect curve.  A dressmakers tool is nice too.  I bought a whole pack of the curves and shapes in the drafting section of the office store for pennies and like that I have a lot of choices.



8. Hem the top and bottom of the chest piece.  I used a cut-on hem .



9. Finish the edges of the chest piece, turn under and stitch.
10. Draw a line one inch from the arm curve of your chest piece using the same curve tool you used for cutting if you have one.
11. Clip up to the line you drew.
12. Turn under the curved and clipped armscye.  Stitch.
13. Create tubes with the strap and tie pieces and press.
14. Attach the strap about an inch from the edge of the chest piece.  You can either stitch both sides down so the child pulls it over their head.  Or use a velcro, button or snap, closure.
15. Attach ties below the armscye.

Current works in progress are a little boys apron with fire trucks and placemats with helicopters.  Hopefully, the boy prints will make them reasonably cool gifts.  Just in case, I also have Hotwheels at my disposal (obviously did not make those).  The apron and placemats were the ideas of my four year old girl.  Really.

I will soon properly document instructions how to size the childs apron to your own child, and make up quick placemats in favorite motif in attempt to lure them to the table.

We have some pillows in need of freshening up, and fabric needing a home.

I made this one with a zipper I recycled from those packages that sheets come in - the thrifted sheet from the thrift shop fabric find - where this fabric came from also.

How to make a Faux Turkish Corner Pillow:

1. Measure your pillow or pillow form.  The one in this example is 17 x 17 inch square.
2. Cut decorator fabric to size for a snug fit.  If you cut for seam allowances, the pillow cover will look sloppy.
3. Install a zipper or other fastener.
4. With right sides together, stitch around the remaining three sides of the pillow cover.
5. Twist the corners of the pillow and secure tightly with a rubber band or unwaxed dental floss. Here, small hair rubberbands are used.
6. Turn your pillow cover right side out.  Be careful not to push out the corners.