Placemats, Napkins, and Table Runner Sewing Tutorial

With the holidays fast approaching, it's the perfect time to give your tablescape an update. I recently sewed new placemats, napkins, and a table runner because I felt like a change.

All of these projects are fairly simple and quick to sew up. The trickiest part is learning the mitered corner technique for the napkins (but it's worth it for them to hold up for a long time). The placemats are reversible to either show a solid color or the accent. The table runner is also reversible, cleverly matching my new placemats on one side and my old placemats on the other side. Plus, I like the warm neutral side to set out during the day. It *may* be because it matches the pillows I made here. Since I live in a condo, the dining area and living room are the same room.

I made my placemats a fairly standard size. My napkins, however, are simply the maximum size the piece of remnant fabric allowed (minus a bit more from a sewing error!). The table runner is just the size of fabric samples I had, which I thought was a nice size for my table.

Easy Zippered Pillow Cover Sewing Tutorial

I have a pretty easy tutorial for you today. I know I've had several posts about making pillows before, but they're one of my favorite easy projects. It's a great way to update the look of your home when you want a change. This particular pillow cover tutorial is super easy and quick and probably the most basic zippered cover you can make. Even if you haven't sew a zipper on before (it's not as scary as it seems!) you will still be able to make these. It's a fast and beginner-friendly project with just 10 easy steps. You could sew up several of these in under in hour.

The only things you will need for this pillow cover tutorial are some fabric, a zipper, and a pillow form. If you don't have a pillow form, you can easily make your own using this tutorial. Another great source of pillow forms is a store like TJ Maxx or Marshalls. Be sure to check the clearance section you might find some "ugly" or damaged pillows for cheaper. Then you can simply remove the cover and sew your own with fabric of your choice. The pillow forms I used for this tutorial are feather and from IKEA (another cheap source!). I had them in storage for a long time and the pillow covers were worn and badly piling so I decided to re-cover them.

Crochet Christmas Decor + DIY Crochet Tree Pillow

Christmas is one of my favorite holidays, so it makes sense that one of my favorite hobbies gets brought into the mix. I love the look of crocheted Christmas decorations because it evokes feelings of warmth and coziness. I wanted to share with you a couple patterns I've used and loved for some decor, including one of my very own!

Crochet Pumpkins

I love fall. I love how the leaves change color. I love how cooler weather means wearing my favorite boots and handmade scarves and hats. I love all of the pumpkin flavored treats and spiced apples. I also love that it means my favorite holiday is just around the corner. Ok--Christmas is still over 2 months away so that one is a stretch.

Going back to fall, I wanted to get into the spirit by doing a little decorating. I found this pattern for Spice & Clove Knit and Crochet Pumpkins on Ravelry and thought they were adorable. So I whipped some up...and yes they are adorable! Probably one of the cutest things I've ever made that serves no purpose except to make me happy.

Crochet Button Pillow: free crochet pattern

I have been working on this crochet project on and off for a couple months. I am excited to finally have it finished! The funny thing is this looks more like a fall-winter decoration and I finished it in the spring. I think playing around with the buttons and yarn color though could give it a lighter and more summery look. I really do like how it turned out. It looks like my pillow is wearing a cardigan sweater.

The pillow itself it a pretty basic pattern worked up in single crochet. It's the kind of pattern you don't have to think too much about and can do in front of the tv (my favorite kind of crochet pattern!). It is worked in three pieces, the back and two front panels, and then slip stitched together.

10 for Tuesday: Throw Pillow Tutorials

The pillows above are my own. You can read about the crochet one here.
An easy way to brighten up any room is with throw pillows. The cost can add up quickly, however, when purchasing them from a store. Why not DIY your own? My favorite throw pillows had removable covers so you can easily wash them and changed them out with the seasons or your mood. (Sew your own pillow form following my tutorial HERE!) So why not do a bit of springtime redecorating and make some of your own? These projects range all levels of sewing skills and crochet. Enjoy!

Crochet Clover Pots for St. Patrick's Day

One of the memories I have of elementary school is sitting on the grass at recess trying to find four-leaf clovers. The "grass" usually seemed to be only 50% lawn, and the rest was weeds and dry patches. One of these weeds was the clover. My friends and I spent seemingly hours trying to find that elusive four-leaf among vast amounts of three-leaf clovers. Guess what? It never happened.

We then turned to cheating, and would carefully pull a leaflet and part of the stem off of a clover, and then hold it place on a three-leaf clover. Instant four-leaf clover! While it was momentarily satisfying that we got to trick our classmates, it wasn't as satisfying as finding a genuine one would have been.

Luck really isn't on your side when trying to find that lucky four-leaf clover. According to this video from Scientific American, it only occurs in about 1 out of every 10,000 clovers! So this St. Patrick's Day, I decided to crochet some of my own luck.

10 for Tuesday: DIY Valentine's Day Round Up

Do you have any Valentine's Day plans yet? Whether your going out or staying in, why not bring a little DIY into the holiday. I've got free tutorials to get you inspired on what to wear, what to give, and even decor to get you into the Valentine's Day spirit. Enjoy!

Color Block Pillow With Hidden Zipper

Color block pillow with crochet heart garland
I think that throw pillows are a great way to change up the decor in a room. That's why I love zippered pillow covers. You can change out the pillows in the room seasonally or when you feel like a change. It also makes them easy to wash and store the covers you're not using. I have limited storage space, so storing extra throw pillows is not really an option.

To get in the Valentine's Day spirit, I wanted to make this pillow red and pink. I had scraps of red and pink twill in my fabric stash that were perfect for this pillow. I knew I wanted to add a zipper, and I was inspired by this tutorial showing how to hide a zipper in the middle of a pillow using a contrast flap. I decided to make by own by incorporating the flap into the design. It's an easy project and a fun way to add a pop of color.


Let's get to the tutorial...

Crochet Hearts Garland

I have really been getting to the Valentine's Day mood around here. What can I say though, I am a sucker for red, pink, and anything with hearts. I went onto Ravelry searching for a basic crochet heart pattern. I wasn't even sure what I was going to use them for yet, but I just knew I wanted to make some hearts. Plus, I had just enough red leftover from my Cloudburst Shawl project to made some. I just love this yarn color because I think it's the perfect shade of red.


I found this crochet hearts pattern to use. I liked that it is done in three rows, and you can stop at any row depending on what size you want to make. I started by making the large size and just kept going. Soon I had a whole pile of these cute hearts.

10 for Tuesday: DIY Valentine's Day Decor and Gift Ideas

I've already started to get into the Valentine's Day mood around here. If you follow me on Instagram, you would see a sneak peek at one of my future projects. So for today's 10 for Tuesday, I'm sharing with you some DIY Valentine's Day ideas. I believe that this holiday is really about showing others that you care, and going the DIY route is perfect for this. It's a way to spend time, not a lot of money, to spread the love. Here are 10 DIY Valentine's Day ideas!

The Lodge Pillow

Yesterday, I showed you how to make a zippered pillow form. Today, you get to see what I made the pillow form for! I love that this project mixed sewing and crochet.

I have been eyeing knitted blankets lately. The idea of having a big sweater-like throw for the winter seems so nice and cozy. I've seen some great ones at T.J. Maxx and Home Goods for about $30-$40, but couldn't bring myself to buy one. Part my thinking was I could make my own. However, I don't know how to knit and crochet just wouldn't be the same. Plus, yarn for a blanket could easily run nearly as much (or more!) money and hours of my time. So I have yet to get myself a cozy knit blanket until I feel like spending the money or learning to knit.

In the meantime, I still wanted to bring a bit of yarn work into my decor this fall. I found this pattern for the Lodge Pillow in the One-Skein Wonders book that I've been quite addicted to lately. This crochet pillow the perfect solution for now. You can see my review of the pattern on Ravelry. I used Lion Brand Heartland in Grand Canyon for it. It was an impulse buy because I just loved the color. It was my first time working with Heartland yarn and I liked using it so much that I've already bought two more skeins for future projects.

How to Sew a Pillow Form with a Zipper

The last pillow slipcover I sewed I bought a pillow form for out of laziness. I didn't have any fiberfill and had to go to the store anyway, so figured I'd just buy one pillow form instead of buying a bag of fiberfill. I really wanted the instant gratification of going home and putting the pillow insert right into the slipcover and being done with it. (Yes, I weirdly made a slipcover I didn't have a pillow form for). That worked just fine...until I wanted to make another pillow and had no fiberfill. I was again in the same position.

This time I decide to be smarter and more frugal and purchase fiberfill. Purchasing a pillow form last time did have another benefit though. The pillow form I bought has a zipper. This means I can take out the polyfill and wash the pillow form cover, and replace or add to the polyfill when it inevitably goes flat. I really liked this idea of being able to wash and re-use the pillow insert with ease. I decided to incorporate this into my own pillow form I was sewing.

Reversible Scalloped Edge Table Runner

I have to confess that I am not that great at decorating for the seasons. Part of that has to do with the very limited amount of storage space I have. I don't want to devote much space to storing off-season decor when I'd rather use that space for other things...like fabric and yarn! I did want to get into a more festive fall mood though, so I decided to make a table runner. It takes up very little space, and can easily be folded up and stored.

10 for Tuesday: Fall Decor Sewing Tutorials

I've given crochet projects a lot of love lately, but don't worry I haven't forgotten about the sew-ers! Here are 10 free tutorials for decorating your home for fall. They are categorized by Halloween, Thanksgiving, and general-fall themed projects. Many don't even require a sewing machine, just a bit of hand sewing.

10 for Tuesday: Crocheted Halloween Decorations

Tomorrow is the first day of October, which means Halloween is just a few weeks away. Get in the spirit by whipping up a few of these crocheted Halloween decorations. Some of this are just fall themed and can last through Thanksgiving (and all are free patterns!). Let's make a pretty and spooky handmade Halloween.