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nancita You, Too, Can Make an Appliqued Throw Pillow! Mar 18, 2010 3:41 PM I am not an expert crafter, but I have a friend who is, and she has started hosting a Craft Happy Hour , where she teaches her noncrafty friends to sew, using a different project each month. Food and drinks are served, hence the "happy hour." My first time using a sewing machine ever (!), we made these throw pillows with self-made appliques. I didn't think I could do it, but it was surprisingly easy and oh so cute. My pillow is now proudly displayed on my bed, so you know it wasn't a total disaster. Here's how to do it. What you need: A 14" x 14" pillow form At least 15" x 15" of fabric for the front panel At least 21" x 15" of fabric for the two back panels An image printed for your appliqué. The image is best as a silhouette (search Google Images for basic art) and printed to the size you want it to be on the pillow. I chose a maple leaf, while another friend used a goose (at right). A coordinating fabric for your appliqué big enough to fit your image (could match the back panels or not) A coordinating thread in a color that you want to border your appliqué Enough Wonder Under for your appliqué How to do it: Cut the front panel and two back panels of the pillow cover to size. Cut the appliqué fabric to a square a little larger than your image. Cut a piece of Wonder Under slightly smaller than your appliqué fabric square. Iron the Wonder Under to the wrong side of your appliqué fabric square. Peel off the paper backing of the Wonder Under. Draw/trace your image on to the wrong side of the fabric, on top of the Wonder Under adhesive. Cut out your image silhouette to create your appliqué. Iron the appliqué on to the front panel of your throw pillow cover in your desired location. With a narrow, short zig-zag stitch, sew around the border of the appliqué with your sewing machine with a thread color of your choice, coordinating or contrasting. Now prepare your back panels.  Fold the short side of one panel under once, then iron the fold line. Fold the short side of the other panel under twice for a double fold, then iron the fold line. Hem the double-folded panel close to the inside edge of the first of the two folds.</li><li>Lay your front panel on a flat surface, right side up.  Lay your double-folded panel right side down on top of the front panel.  The long side should be vertical and the unfinished end should line up against one edge of the front panel.  Lay the single-folded panel right side down on top of the other two pieces of fabric.  The long side should also be vertical with the unfinished edge against the opposite edge of the front panel than the first back panel is lined up with.  The two back panels should make a square the same size as the front panel with your finished edges overlapping in the middle. Pin all the way around the border of the pillow cover catching all pieces of fabric. Sew all the way around the border with the appropriate size seem allowance.     Trim your corners close to the seem with three snips each. Turn the case right-side-out and use a point turner or pen to clean-up your corners and get them nice and pointy.     Stuff your pillow cover with your pillow form. Voila! You have a throw pillow cover accented with a self-made appliqué! Congratulations!   Behold the proud pillow makers! Note: Three of us had never really sewn before at all.  
Casa Community Cool Idea: Alternative Art Hanging Feb 26, 2010 4:00 AM Here's a post from CasaSugar Community member EarthPlusArt from the Su Casa group: I wanted a unique way to hang some of my botanical photographs, and came up with this very easy and cheap solution. All I needed was a branch, some twine and a handful of alligator clips. Since they're not under glass, I sprayed the photographs with an archival varnish to protect them from dust and fading. Before I hung them up, I painted the wall a warm color to complement the sepia tones of the art. Have you been hanging artwork of your own lately, or doing other DIYs? Be sure to post photos and tales in our Su Casa group!
artistinmaine New member, clueless Jan 10, 2010 4:35 AM A long while ago, a friend of mine left the management of an on-line "senior" social site and came here to offer this site her expertise. She invited me to join. Which I did....way back then. Movie stars and pop culture have never interested me. Over the many years of my professional life, I have been commissioned by a few famous people, and find them just as interesting as the hundreds of tourists I meet while painting plein air at Walker's Point in Kennebunkport, Maine.   I'm an illustrator of children's books, and medical articles, a past member of the National Society of Mural Painters, and am one of the very few artists featured at the Barbara and George Bush Cultural Center, probably for my seascapes. I manage an art school on-line, and have just begun teaching 14 very emotionally and physically challenged adults to become children's book illustrators. They completed their first effort, illustrating "the Night Before Christmas" which they requested that printed copies be donated to the children's ward of the local hospital, which I delivered Christmas Eve. They are now conceptualizing images for "the Velveteen Rabbit".   I have no idea where this particular endeavor will lead, I simply wish it to be self-sustainable, like those community development projects I began while a Peace Corps Volunteer in two countries. The two hours I spend with these extremely motivated individuals, once a week, takes more out of me than the months it took to illustrate "The Lost Button".   As I mentioned in the headline, I'm clueless concerning this site. I find twitter mysterious, Facebook superficial, and have no idea why anyone would want to read a Blog of mine. I believe a picture says 10,000 words and so, if you view my art, you might understand me much better than by my text. Robert
nikkeeb Last Minute DIY Gift Ideas! Dec 19, 2009 10:09 PM
nikkeeb Map Coasters - Introduction - MarthaStewart.com Dec 14, 2009 7:30 PM

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172 Members
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Started Mar 16, 2007
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Welcome to Art(ist)s & Craft(er)s! Are you a person who finds great pleasure in making, designing, or appreciating crafts? Then this is the group for you! Tell us all about you craft passions. Share your favorite techniques, materials, books, resources, and trends. Express yourself!