Elf Clothesline Garland in American Patchwork and Quilting

My Elf Clothesline Garland is featured in the December 2016 issue of American Patchwork & Quilting magazine! See my project, as well as other featured projects from the issue here: www.allpeoplequilt.com/december

Used with permission from American Patchwork & Quilting® magazine. ©Meredith Corporation. All rights reserved.

Mini Halloween Pillows

October has arrived, so it's time to scare up some Halloween decorations. How about a pair of frighteningly cute mini pillows? They're simple to sew from fun green and orange print fabrics, felt and rickrack.

My pillows are about 6 1/2" by 4 1/2", but you can make yours any size you like. First, cut two rectangles with rounded corners from cotton print fabric, adding 1/4" seam allowance to all edges. Now comes the fun part--creating the "Boo" and "Eek" lettering. To make the templates, choose a nice fat typeface in your word-processing software (I used Garamond bold). Remember--the fancier the font, the trickier the cutting will be. Adjust the size of the typeface so each word fits within the pillow front with at least an inch of space all around. Print the word out and pin it to a piece of black felt. Use sharp small scissors to cut the letters from the felt. Center a word on each pillow front, pin in place, and whipstitch with black thread. 

Now, let's give some attention to the pillow backs. Cut a rectangle of green or orange felt and pin it, centered, to the pillow back. Sew it in place along the side and bottom edges to create a pocket to hold small treats or a gift card.

To assemble the pillow, press the edges of the pillow front and back 1/4" to the wrong side. Pin the front and back together with wrong sides facing, sandwiching a length of wide black rickrack between the pieces. Sew the pillow together with running stitch and matching sewing thread. Leave an opening and stuff the pillow with fiberfill before you complete the stitching.

I added ribbons to my "Boo" and "Eek" pillows so I can use them as ornaments. To give your kids a Halloween morning surprise, tuck treats in the pockets and hang the pillows on your little goblins' bedroom doorknobs.

My Designs in "Make It Yourself" Magazine

So excited to see my designs in the Fall/Winter issue of Make It Yourself magazine! Those are my felt Penguin Gift Bags on the cover.

And below is my Night Owl felt applique picture. Look for the issue on newsstands now--it's filled with Autumn, Halloween, Christmas, and holiday projects for all kinds of crafters.

USED WITH PERMISSION FROM Make It Yourself™ magazine. ©2016 MEREDITH CORPORATION. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Appliqued Autumn Leaf Sachet

I am a great believer in the power of aromatherapy. I haven't studied the topic scientifically, and I'm not an expert on the use of essential oils. I just know that certain scents have an amazing effect on my mood. Citrus energizes me, lavender calms me, and cinnamon gives me a feeling of warmth. If you follow my blog, you know that pine is another of my favorite scents--and not just for Christmas. I use the cozy, homey aroma of pine balsam year-round. As you may have guessed, this appliqued autumn leaf sachet filled with pine balsam. It's easy to sew from wool-blend felt and embroidery floss.

To start, cut two 4-inch squares from orange and sage green wool-blend felt. Cut a simple leaf shape from gold felt and whip-stitch it to the orange piece with two strands of sage green embroidery floss. Use stem stitch to create a stem at the base of the leaf. With orange and gold embroidery floss, backstitch veins on the leaf.

When the applique and embroidery are complete, pin the orange and sage green squares of felt together, wrong sides facing. Sew the pieces together using gold embroidery floss and blanket stitch. Leave an opening so you can fill the sachet.

Fill the sachet with dry pine balsam, which you can find at craft stores or online vendors. (Be careful not to "over stuff" the sachet, or it will be hard to stitch it closed.) Stitch the opening closed with blanket stitch, and your appliqued autumn leaf sachet is finished! Tuck it in a basket or on a shelf to give a room a woodsy scent and a touch of autumn color.