CHAPTER 1
For your room
Doggy keyboard wrist rest
Here's a super-cute and soft pet pal who will help take the strain out of your homework! Rest your wrists on his tummy while you're using a computer keyboard and his head when you're using the mouse.
You will need
Dalmatian faux fur fabric, 21? x 29½in (55 x 75cm), for the body (see tip)
Black felt fabric, 4 x 4in (10 x 10cm), for the ear
Approx. 3½oz (100g) recycled polyester toy fiberfill
Basic sewing kit (see page 5)
Hem gauge (optional)
Pointer
Finished measurements
9 x 24¾ in (23 x 63cm)
Templates required (see page 134)
Body
Ear
Cutting and marking guide
Fold the dalmatian fabric in half so the two long sides meet. Pin the body template to the fabric. Make sure the faux fur is flowing toward the dog's feet. Cut out the body, so you're cutting through two layers.
Pin the ear template to the black felt fabric and cut it out.
On one of the body pieces, mark the turning gap on the wrong side of the fabric and the ear position on the right side of the fabric, as indicated on the template.
Learn how to
Sew with faux fabric
Leave a turning gap
Sew round many tight curves
Stuff toy fiberfill into small corners
1 Lay the body piece with the template markings on the table with the right side facing up. Place the ear on the dog's head in the marked position, matching up the raw edges. Put the other body piece on top, so that the right sides of the fabrics are touching, to make a sandwich with the ear inside. Pin all around the matched-up edges in a clockwise direction (see page 117). Mark the turning gap in the tummy with pins put in at right angles to the edge of the fabric.
2 Sew all the way around, starting at the green dot and finishing at the red dot and reverse stitching at the start and finish (see page 115). Use the right-hand side of the foot as your guide on the edge of the fabric (see page 118). There are a lot of curves and corners, so go carefully at each change of direction and pivot with your needle down (see page 115). You can use a hem gauge to help you (see page 118). Clip into the inward corners and trim across the outward corners as close to the stitching as possible, and clip round the curves (see page 116).
3 Turn the dog to the right side by pulling the fabric out through the turning gap. Point out the nose, legs, and tail.
4 If the fiberfill has compacted in its packaging, pull it apart and fluff it up before you use it (do this over a table so you don't make a mess!). Put small amounts of fiberfill into the legs, nose, and tail, through the turning gap. Then backfill the dog with more fiberfill. Make your dog as firm or as soft as you like and test it as you go.
5 Tuck the seam allowance to the inside and pin it closed (see page 120). Use ladder stitch (see page 123) to sew the gap closed, pulling up your stitches tight after every 5 stitches. Fasten off (see page 123), dive down with your needle, and pop up about 1in (2.5cm) farther along the seam. Cut off the thread close to the fabric. Let the typing up of your memoirs begin-it's easy with a doggy companion!
TIPS
■ You can choose any fabric, but the softer it is the more comfortable it will be for your wrists (and the more strokable it will be!).
■ Your doggy has one ear but if you turn her round to be used by a left-hander, you can flip the ear over.
Chain link decoration
This fun loopy garland has multiple purposes-use it to liven up your décor or wear it as a statement scarf. Why not poke your soft toys through the holes and use it for storage?
You will need
Polar fleece fabric strips, each 4¾ x 13¾in (12 x 35cm), for the loops:
4 strips in lilac
3 strips in gray
3 strips in green
9 strips in yellow
Approx. 10oz (285g) recycled polyester toy fiberfill
Basic sewing kit (see page 5)
Finished measurement
59in (150cm) long
Cutting guide
For the fabric strips, make a 4¾ x 13¾in (12 x 35cm) card-stock (cardboard) template (see page 112). Using a pen, draw round it onto the fabrics (pressing the pen lightly to avoid dragging on the fleece), and cut out the pieces. You can fold your fabric in half to cut two loop pieces at a time, but remember to keep the rectangle shape parallel to the selvage (see page 112).
Learn how to
Sew fleece fabric
Sew a tube and turn it to the right side
Stuffa tube
Whipstitch a gap closed
TIPS
■ Using a stretch fabric such as fleece or jersey (see page 117) will help to make the links more bendy and flexible.
■ You can make any number of links for your chain. The technique is repeated so you'll become an expert!
■ There's quite a lot of hand-sewing in this project, so find a nice comfortable space, put some music on, and enjoy the moment. You'll soon get it done!
1 Fold a lilac rectangle in half, right sides together, so that the two long sides meet. Use a pen to mark a dot 2¾in (7cm) from each short end. Sew between the dots down the long side. Reverse stitch at the start and finish (see page 115).
2 Turn the tube to the right side (see page 126). With the right sides of the fabric touching, put the two short ends together and pin them in place. Sew slowly down this edge, straightening out the fabric with your hand as you sew. Reverse stitch at the start and finish, but not too close to either edge as the fleece can get caught up in the machine.
3 Push the wrong side of the seam you've just sewn to the inside of the fleece loop. Using small pieces at a time, push the fiberfill inside to the halfway point from both sides, then fill to the opening, so all the loop gets filled. Don't fill the loop too firmly because it needs to be flexible.
4 Tuck the seam allowance to the inside and pin it closed (see page 117). Use a pin to match up the two seams (see page 121). With a double thread, whipstitch (see page 122) along the opening, pulling up your stitches tightly so that they sink into the fleece fabric. Once sewn you can distribute the fiberfill evenly around the loop. Repeat steps 1-4 with the remaining lilac strips and the gray and green strips.
5 Take a yellow strip and fold one of its short edges to the wrong side of the fabric by ?in (1cm). Sew it in place using the right-hand side of the foot as your guide on the folded edge (see page 118).
6 Fold the yellow strip in half, right sides together, so that the two long sides meet. Sew down the long side, reverse stitching at the start and finish (see page 115). Turn the tube through to the right side.
7 Fill the yellow tube lightly with fiberfill so it can bend into a loop. Leave the ends free of fiberfill by about 1in (2.5cm). Repeat steps 5-7 with the remaining yellow strips. You will use the yellow tubes to link the gray, green, and lilac loops together.
8 Place a pink loop on the table, then a green loop and a gray loop from left to right. Repeat to place the rest of the loops in a line in this order. Take a yellow tube and put the ends through the first two loops to form a link. Tuck the raw end of the yellow tube inside the hemmed end. Pin it in place, making sure the seams match up. Using whipstitch, sew all the way around the opening of the yellow link, making sure you don't catch fabric from the other side of the tube which would flatten out its shape. Repeat with the rest of the yellow tubes to join all the loops together. Where will you drape your statement scarf, or will your toys get to it first?
Pinwheel pillow
Liven up your bedroom with this fun throw pillow. The pinwheel can be made in one, two, or four different colors-experiment and see what combinations you can create! You can make a mini pinwheel pincushion version, too.
You will need
For a pillow
4 pieces of polar fleece fabric, 7½ x 7½in (19 x 19cm), for the front
4 pieces of polar fleece, each 7½ x 7½in (19 x 19cm), for the back
4 pieces of contrast cotton fabric, each 6? x 6?in (17.5 x 17.5cm), for the pinwheel-use a non-directional print (see page 113)
Button, approx. 1?in (3.5cm) in diameter
Approx. 9oz (250g) recycled polyester toy fiberfill
For a pincushion
4 pieces of fabric, each 3? x 3?in (8.5 x 8.5cm), for the front
Fabric, 6 x 6in (15 x 15cm), for the back (see tip on page 15)
4 pieces of contrast fabric, each 2¾ x 2¾in (7 x 7cm), for the pinwheel
Batting (wadding), 6 x 6in (15 x 15cm), for the back-optional, if you would like to quilt the back
Button, approx. 1¼in (3cm) in diameter
Approx. 1oz (30g) recycled polyester toy fiberfill
For both versions
Basic sewing kit (see page 5)
Pointer
Finished measurements
Pinwheel pillow: 13 x 13in (33 x 33cm)
Pincushion: 4¾ x 4¾in (12 x 12cm)
Cutting guide
For the front and back pieces make a card-stock (cardboard) template (see page...
