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How To Make A Zippered Money Apron

How To Make A Zippered Money Apron

by | Jan 15, 2015 | My Makes, Tutorials

As I’ve previously mentioned we’re going on the road which of course means there’s been a ton of things to think about and organise, one of which is what would we do  with money on the day. If you follow me on Instagram then you will have seen me whip up some of these aprons a few weeks ago and I’m really please with how they’ve turned out. I had a few criteria, I wanted them to have a zip, I wanted a pocket for my phone and I wanted to make them from denim so they were super durable and wouldn’t need any kind of interfacing and most importantly so the Plush Boys would be happy to wear them. I didn’t want any kind of seam at the bottom of the apron to eliminate bulk and save myself a step. You could equally use 2 smaller pieces of fabric for the aprons and sew at the bottom but for some reason I was quite set on not having a bottom seam (maybe I am worried all of my money might fall out!) These aprons would be perfect for you to use at a craft fair if you have any coming up and will keep all your pennies safe and secure.

This apron is quite generous in size because a) I have a fat tummy and b) Joseph and Jon (Mr Plush) who will also be sporting these are men, and men need bigger things. Fact. I would suggest holding up a piece of fabric where you’d like the apron to sit and measuring it to get a size which suits you.

You will need

Step 1: Prepare Your Main Fabric

Cut and press your main fabric as detailed below. Overlock/ serge the edges (optional).

Step 2: Add embellishment (optional)

I decided to embroider our shop logo on to the front of the apron on the right hand side. This is entirely optional, but lovely! I placed the centre of the design (which measures 10 x 6cm) as below

Step 3: Add inside pocket

With RST (right sides together) stitch your 2 pockets pieces together and leave a turning gap of a couple of inches. Once sewn clip the corners.

Turn to the right side and press (a chopstick is very handy for poking out all of the seams)

 

Top stitch the top of the pocket only (see my top stitching tips here)

Pin your pocket on to the apron where you’d like the inside pocket to sit and stitch around 3 sides.

Step 4: Add the Zipper

Place the zip face down on to the right side of the fabric and pin/ clip (Wonder Clips are awesome for this). Think about which side you want the zip pull when closed (I placed it on the left as I’m right handed)

Stitch using your zipper foot. Once stitched press the fabric flat making sure the zipper tape is flat too.

Top stitch along the zipper using a longer stitch length (I used 3mm)

Repeat for the other side

Press your apron

Step 5: Make and Insert The Ties

Take your 3″ strips of fabric and press in half length ways. Then fold each edge to align with the centre you’ve just pressed and press again. You should have 3 pressed lines.

Fold in the 2 edges to the centre and then fold in half again. Clip.

Stitch the open side closed using a longer stitch length, I used 3.5mm as there’s 4 layers of denim here. Repeat on the other long side.

** Note that as my ties are the full width of the fabric the selvedges are at the end of each of my ties. I liked the tufty look so left them as they were but you might want to fold your ends in first if you want to conceal them)

To insert your ties turn your apron inside out and re-press along the top and bottom.

Insert your ties approx. 1″ from the top of the apron and clip/ pin. Sew along the sides with a  1/2″ seam re-inforcing the stitching 3 times or so over the ties and zip.

Repeat for the other side remembering to leave the zip partly open so you can turn your apron.

Step 6: Create the Divider Pockets

Turn your apron to the right side and press. Fold your apron in half and press again to mark the half way point to make your divider pockets. Mark the line with a fabric marker.

Sew along your marked line stitching through all the layers from the bottom of the apron to the zip.

You’re done! Congrats!

The darker denim apron is mine and I couldn’t resist inserting a pop of colour at the zip and I managed to use some Echino stag scraps I’ve been holding on to for ages for my inside pockets. Love him!

I hope this is helpful. If you make one please post to our Facebook, Twitter or Instagram pages and tag us @plushaddict, thanks!

Here we are modelling after the event. I can report that they all held up well, and will see their next outing at Duxford Quilt Show!

(Grab a cheeky 10% discount off your next Zip purchase with ZIPPEDUP10 One time use per customer.)

A Rainbow Kona Cotton Peppermint Swirl Dress

A Rainbow Kona Cotton Peppermint Swirl Dress

by | Jan 5, 2015 | My Makes, Robert Kaufman Kona

Happy new year! Did you all have a good Christmas? I hope you managed to grab some rest in amongst the mayhem and are feeling ready to take on 2015, I know I certainly am. November and December are pretty hectic months for me, Christmas aside everyone I know has a birthday in November. OK, that’s an exaggeration, but with husband and daughter having their birthdays just a few days apart plus two of my besties also enjoying November birthdays within a few days it seems to feel like it’s that way.

I did squeeze in a make of a rather splend dress for Little Plush for her birthday party, have you seen the Peppermint Swirl Dress by Candy Castle Patterns? I saw it quite some time ago and knew immediately it was the perfect special occasion frock, what little girl wouldn’t love to twirl around in a dress like this? Little Plush certainly did!

A special occasion dress it most certainly is, each one of the 14 skirt flounces takes a fat quarter of fabric and the entire dress used around 4.5m of fabric in all, pretty punchy for a toddler sized dress! Each of the skirt flounces is made from two curved pieces of fabric and there just isn’t any way you can get the shape of the skirt and be frugal, there’s a lot of wastage (I prefer to think that my quilt scraps have had a boost) but I think it’s worth it for such a special dress. I’ve seen some beautiful two colour Peppermint Swirl dresses made up but when deciding which colours to use I was automatically drawn to using a rainbow from Robert Kaufman’s Kona cotton, a no brainer as there are 303 colours to choose from. If you wanted to recreate this dress then the shades I used were Geranium for the bodice, Corn Yellow for the ties, Azalea, Kumquat, Lipstick, Parrot and Peacock (plus Geranium & Corn Yellow) in the skirt.

The pattern comes in 12 sizes ranging from 6m to 10 years and it also additionally benefits from both a slim and regular sizes. According to the measurements on the pattern I should have been making up a size 3 slim for Little Plush but I was warned before hand that it came up quite big so I decided to measure out the actual pattern pieces to compare measurements and I made a bit of a boob. I measured very carefully and worked out I should be making up a 2 slim BUT I forgot to take off the seam allowances when I was measuring – doh! The 2 slim fitted but if I’d have put a zip or button closure in she wouldn’t have had much room for birthday cake so I ended up just using a single heart shaped KAM snap fastener at the back at the top of the dress which was cute and worked out fine, especially as the long ties kept it from gaping. A regular size 2 would have been perfect.

I generally hate PDF patterns, all that sticking and cutting tends to confuse me and no matter how well laid out the pattern is I always seem to end up with a small triangle of paper which I can’t work out should be destined for the bin, or is in search of a pattern piece  mate, but the pattern was easy to cut out and put together and each size was colour coded. Cutting out the skirt flounces was made easier as I made a template from a couple of sheets of quilter’s plastic template and I was able to cut out 4 flounce parts at once using my lovely 28mm Olfa (I can’t recommend the smaller Olfa enough for cutting round patterns – it saves loads of time and is so easy to manoeuvre around pattern pieces).

The whole pattern was very clearly laid out and the photos and instructions were detailed and easy to follow. It’s  billed as suitable for “an adventurous beginner” and without an overlocker/ serger. I’d question both of these points, particularly about the overlocker. Yes it would be possible to sew without one but I wouldn’t recommend it if you are a beginner too. If you’ve got some experience under your belt then I’m sure it’d be fine without an overlocker but you may swear. A lot. (Who am I to stand in your way if you are an overlocker-less beginner?! I fully prepare to stand corrected!)

Essentially when sewing the skirt flounces you are sewing a convex and a concave curve together which like to spiral in opposite directions. It really is one of the strangest things I’ve ever sewn but seeing the skirt come together was magical, I loved it!

The flounces love to spiral!

It’s a pretty amazing pattern

I did hem the dress originally with bias tape as I was hoping to get a stiffer, more pronounced wave to the skirt hem when “at rest” but it just didn’t work well, perhaps I had “sewing on the curve fatigue” by that point. I think it would have been better to have used a narrower bias tape then the 25mm I used. I ended up unpicking all 8m of it and finishing with a rolled hem on my overlocker in the end.

Do I love the dress? OhGodYeah! Despite its imperfections which I shall aim to iron out on the next one I think it’s pretty damn awesome.  Definitely a proud mummy moment as she twirled and twirled and seeing her face light up with it on was priceless. This dress isn’t a quick make (by toddler dress standards) but I definitely see another on the horizon.  I might give the skirt a whirl next which will probably get a bit more wear than the dress.

There is an adult sized version too, I’ve not even looked how much fabric that might take! What do you reckon? Are you tempted to give the Peppermint Swirl dress a go?

A Guide To Plush (A Guide To Minky Fabric)

A Guide To Plush (A Guide To Minky Fabric)

by | Dec 28, 2014 | Fabric Guides, Fabric Information Guide, Minky Fabric, My Makes

I wrote this article a few months ago and was originally published in the September issue of Sewing World Magazine but I’m sharing it here for those that missed the publication at the time (did you know that Sewing World Magazine have been around for over 20 years? Impressive!) Super proud that this was the first in a series of fabric guides I wrote for them, which I thoroughly enjoyed (#ExcitedMuch). I hope you find it helpful and feel free to ask any questions, I’ll surely do my best to answer them.

Plush : A Fabric Guide

The name of my shop “Plush Addict” has to be testament to how much I love this kind of fabric. Once you’ve stroked it I promise you will feel the same! If you’re not familiar with it you’re in for a treat as plush fabric is a buttery soft, fluffy fabric with a short pile and is incredibly tactile. The divine softness of the fabric lends itself very well to children’s makes such as soft toys and baby blankets but it can be used in a plethora of other places such as clothes and home furnishings. You might have heard it called “minky” before now, but in the UK it’s no longer possible for the fabric to be sold under that name because of a trademark issue and it’s becoming better known as plush or cuddle fabric [see this post for further information about minky fabric name change.] 

The popularity of plush fabric has been growing over the past few years; this is evident as more of the larger fabric brands are bringing out collections. From Timeless Treasures we have “Softie”, from Riley Blake we had “Dreamy”, Michael Miller recently introduced “Cozy”, don’t the names sound inviting? They remind me of snuggling under a blanket on the sofa sipping a hot chocolate, and that’s exactly the feeling that plush fabric gives you – a little bit of “Mmmm, lovely!” It’s fantastic that some of the big brands are waking up to the wonder of plush and providing more choice, however the unrivalled King of the Cuddle has to be Shannon Fabrics. They have a mind-boggling selection of plush fabrics available and I’m very proud to stock a huge selection of the Shannon range. Shannon plush really is the premium version of this fabric and the quality is unrivalled. It has a gorgeous sheen and the hand is quite exquisite.

The most popular types of plush are smooth and dimple (or bubble) and we carry all of Shannon’s amazing 85 colours so you’re sure to find the perfect colour to suit your taste and project. There is also a huge choice of patterned plush from chevrons to florals to charming children’s prints.

There is a textured range of plush which include burn out prints such as chevrons, stripes and florals, a delightful rose swirl which is very popular for blankets as it has a deep, cosy pile. There’s even a fabric called shaggy which has a 25mm pile and makes amazing monsters, see the fabulous monster rucksack we made in this fabric!

Composition and Handling

The fabric itself is polyester so it’s a dream to launder and doesn’t require any pressing. It has a right and a wrong side, the short, fluffy directional pile is the right side and there’s a smooth knit on the wrong wide and it has a cross grain stretch. The pile on these fabrics means once cut there will be some shedding, but once that’s shaken away the edges won’t fray and edges can be left unfinished without the worry of any unraveling. The pile and the stretch can prove tricky under the needle but with the right management there isn’t any reason why a beginner sewist can’t be successful.

Top Tips For Sewing With Plush

If left to it’s own devices plush can slip and slide on your machine giving you an unsightly finish so it needs a bit of special handling. If you follow these simple tips you are lining yourself up for success and it really is so scrumptious it’s worth the effort! My top tips are:

  • Pin, pin and pin some more – I find that either pinning on a diagonal or horizontally to the edge helps to stabilise the fabric, I place pins about every 1cm. Wonderclips are also a fantastic gadget to invest in for sewing plush and keeping it in check.
  • Use a longer stitch length – I find a length of 3 to 3.5 works very well, longer for the deeper pile fabrics such as shaggy.
  • Use a walking foot – this will help feed the top and bottom fabrics through your machine evenly at the same speed. A walking foot will give you the best results but if you don’t have one you can reduce the pressure on your presser foot, pin lots and sew slowly.
  • Keep the grain lines the same – this will help combat any issues encountered with the pile and stretch
  • Use a ball point needle – I find a 90/14 ballpoint needle works well

Embroidering on plush fabrics

Machine embroidery is getting more popular and embroidery on plush fabrics and looks wonderful. You can embroider soft toy faces or add a commemorative message on to baby blankets for a special keep sake. You need to use a water soluble topper when embroidering fabrics with a pile to ensure the fabric doesn’t poke through your stitches. We stock Avalon water soluble topper which is perfect for the job and dissolves in cold water. I would recommend using a medium weight cut away stabilizer and using some temporary adhesive spray such as 505 spray to ensure your stabilizer and fabric don’t move in the hoop. The key to successful embroidery is to ensure you don’t stretch the plush fabric in your embroidery hoop and to make sure it’s your stabiliser that is drum tight.

I hope this guide helps has enlightened you to the joys of sewing with plush and wish you many happy makes from this wonderfully addictive fabric.

About me: A self confessed fabric addict, I adore fabric of all kinds and the journey of imagination and possibilities it presents. When I’m not managing my web shop www.plushaddict.co.uk I like to write tutorials and fabric guides for my blog and somewhere I squeeze in looking after my hubby and gorgeously funny daughter!

And if you have any tips of your own to have then do let me know!

DIY Make Up Bag: Free pattern and tutorial

DIY Make Up Bag: Free pattern and tutorial

by | Nov 4, 2014 | My Makes, Tutorials

We wanted to spoil you with a little sewing wizardry in this tutorial; this handy make up bag is just the right size for the essentials and conveniently fits in a handbag. Make one for yourself or as a gift to make someone a smile.

And the magic you ask – Odicoat! This clever gel gives fabrics a waterproof coating that is machine washable.

Then for an extra flourish we’ve gone with a lace edged zip; we’re crazy about the way they take projects to another level. Once you get to grips with them you’ll be adding them to everything too!

Skill level: Intermediate Seam-Star

You will learn

  • How to apply ODIF Odicoat
  • How to insert a lace edge zip

You will need

If you don’t fancy making your own waterproof fabric, check out our guide to ready made options here

We used

Grab your DIY Makeup Bag Pattern!

Click the button below to get the pattern emailed straight to your inbox.

Send Me The Make Up BAG PATTERN

Important notes

1.5 cm seam allowance throughout, unless directed.

For steps using machine sewing, straight stitch, backstitching at the start & end using stitch length 3 unless otherwise stated.

Pre-wash your fabrics

Use clips or pin within the seam allowance – pin holes will remain visible.

If your machine is sticking to the Odicoat these tips may help:

  • Try a Teflon or roller foot, or a strip of Scotch ‘magic tape’ stuck to the bottom of a standard foot
  • Sew over tissue paper over the side that is slipping, and tear it away after.
  • Use an 80/12 needle

Disclaimer

  • The finished purse is water resistant not waterproof.
  • Fabrics coated with Odicoat should only be washed at 30 degrees.

How To Use ODIF Odicoat

1. Before cutting, in case of shrinkage, apply the Odicoat to the right side of the lining fabric: Place your fabric right side up on a covered surface (greaseproof or plastic sheeting are ideal)

2. Spread a thin layer of Odicoat onto the fabric using the card provided; start from one corner and work outwards. Go back over the fabric with the card spreading out any thick patches/ streaks. Avoid moving the fabric until it is dry to prevent Odicoat getting onto the wrong side.

3. Wait until the Odicoat is touch dry (20 to 30 minutes) then apply a second coat. A third coat can be applied if required. Allow 24 hours for the Odicoat to cure fully.

Print the pattern

Print the pattern and cut it out. You can request the pattern is emailed to you here

4. Use the 1” test square to check the sizing. If the sizing is incorrect check print settings. Depending on the device used, select ‘actual size’ or deselect the ‘fit to page’ option.

5. Using the pattern piece cut out the following:

  • 2 pieces Outer fabric
  • 2 pieces Lining fabric
  • 2 pieces Interlining

6. Apply the interlining to the wrong side of the outer fabric

7. Align one outer & one lining piece right sides together. Clip top edges together (see pattern).

8. Sew the top edge then press the seam allowance toward the lining.

9. Understitch along the edge of the seam allowance on the lining side, sewing approx. 2mm from the seamline.

10. Fold the panel along the seamline then cover and press.

11. Repeat steps 7. to 10. for the other outer and lining pieces.

Inserting The Lace Edge Zip

12. Check the zip works.

13. Open one panel out flat and align the zipper teeth next to the seamline on the lining side

14. Tape the zip in place.

15. Sew the zip using a zipper foot just above the lace cut outs.

16. Refold the panel along the pressed seam line

17. Repeat steps 13. to 16. for the other panel ensuring the 2 sides line up.

18. Check the zip then leave the pull halfway.

19. Open out the panels bringing the outer and lining fabrics right sides together and clip the bottom edges.

20. Align the zip ends and clip them together.

21. Clip the 2 sides, leaving the cut out corners unclipped.

22. Sew both sides and bottom edges leaving a 10cm turning gap in the lining.

23. One at a time open out the corners, align the side and base seam lines with the seam allowances open.

24. Align the edges, then clip and sew them together.

25. Turn the purse out the right way.

26. Clip and sew the gap in the lining closed: either machine straight stitch or hand sew with ladder stitch

And you’re done! Congrats!

We hope you found this tutorial useful!

Let us know how you get along in the comments below 🙂

Follow Plush Addict on social media and keep an eye out for more tutorials!

Grab your DIY Makeup Bag Pattern!

Click the button below to download the pattern.

Send Me The Make Up BAG PATTERN

Follow Plush Addict on social media and keep an eye out for more tutorials. Please tag us @PlushAddict on your fave social media channel… we’d love to see your makes!

Tutorial : DIY Make Up Bag With a Pretty Lace Edge Zip

Tutorial : DIY Make Up Bag With a Pretty Lace Edge Zip

by | Nov 4, 2014 | Fabric Guides, My Makes, Tutorials

We wanted to spoil you with a little sewing wizardry in this tutorial; this handy make up bag is just the right size for the essentials and conveniently fits in a handbag. Make one for yourself or as a gift to make someone a smile.

And the magic you ask – Odicoat! This clever gel gives fabrics a waterproof coating that is machine washable!

Grab a cheeky 10% discount off your next Odicoat order with WATERPROOFME10 One time use per customer.

Then for an extra flourish we’ve gone with a lace edged zip; we’re crazy about the way they take projects to another level. Once you get to grips with them you’ll be adding them to everything too!

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A Toddler Duvet Cover

A Toddler Duvet Cover

by | Oct 8, 2014 | My Makes, Quilt Fabric

I’m not alone that many of my sewing makes end up being dictated around my family and their needs and desires, well ok – mostly Baby Plush and the things she needs (I really should stop calling her Baby Plush as she’s almost three now, I’ll have to think of another descriptive, but anonymous name for her soon). All of a sudden she seemed to have outgrown her sleeping bag overnight and was was about to burst out of the bottom of it. I was prepared for such a day with a duvet and pillow, but hadn’t managed to get a duvet cover and I decided I needed one quick smart! I was going to buy a shop bought one as I needed it so quickly but after scouring the possibilities of shop bought versions I just couldn’t find anything that was nice and would go in her non-pink room, or that wasn’t a polycotton when I really wanted 100% cotton. So time against me, I decided to run over to the warehouse one Sunday afternoon and get some fabric and knocked this up. It was super easy and gave me an excuse to use Gnomeville again which has to be one of my all time favourite fabrics.

Gnomeville from Michael Miller – just look at those cute little fellas!

If you are thinking of making one of these you’ll need to do a bit of easy piecing because 110cm width isn’t enough fabric (in this case you need extra on the “height” as Gnomeville is a border print).  I used Michael Miller’s Red Quarter Dot which matches the dots on Gnomeville exactly and there was enough Quarter Dot fabric left over to make the pillow case.  I used this extra wide backing fabric from Wilmington for the reverse so I didn’t have to have a join on the back. You could use buttons to fasten it but if you’re lazy like me KAM snaps  are the way forward. The size 16s are perfect for duvets as they keep snapped but aren’t too hard to undo when you’re in a hurry on laundry day.

Size 16 KAM snaps in action

Of course there’s a wash one, wear one scenario with bedding so I had to make two in the end. For the second one I decided to use one of the Riley Blake Extra Wide fabrics. These puppies are a whopping 274cm wide are used for backing quilts  but I used 1.25m (the duvet is 150cm x 120cm), folded over the top and pieced a bit of quilt cotton at the lower border and used the remainder of the contrast print as the pillow case so this one is just two pieces of fabric – easy peasy! Alas we don’t have this ladybird fabric anymore but if you want to hunt it out it’s a Robert Kaufman Picnic Party  print. 

Unfortunately she seems to almost be growing out of the cot bed all of a sudden so we’ll be upgrading to her first proper bed soon enough (where is the time going?!) I doubt I’ll get away with something non-pink and non princessy for the next redecoration. Why is it that little girls love pink so much? She certainly didn’t get it from me. Have you made any of your own bedding? Is it something you’d consider?