Good afternoon, y'all. Earlier today , I posted the Blessed - 5 year IG Anniversary chart, and I thought I would share I how I finished it.
This post has a lot of photos so I do apologize.
Now I am no expert on finishing and some of you may cringe on my finishing techniques, but I figure it is better done than sitting in a basket of shame. Don't you? Hee ! Hee! So please, oh please do not call the CSFP on me that is the Cross Stitch Finishing Police .👮🚓🚨 If you do , I promise I will run to the hills with needle and thread in hand🏃🪡🧵. Hee! Hee!
First, I trimmed my Blessed stitch piece to 2 6/8" x 5". I know that is a strange measurement, but I play "chicken" with my edges and have the tendency to give myself little margin because I try to conserve fabric. Anywhoo...
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| Trimmed cross stitch piece and cut strips for finishing. |
I pieced the strips using a 1/4" seam allowance, and then sewed those strips to the stitched piece. I then squared up the piece by trimming.
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| The strips are sewn. I am fixing to sew the stitched piece to the strips |
I pinned a bit of crocheted lace in place along seam line and sewed a tacking stitch down on each side.
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| Pinning the crocheted lace in place along seam line. |
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| Tacking the lace near the edges of the stitched piece. |
After looking at my piece , I decided to trim a tad off the bottom.
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| I trimmed mine so my piece would measure 5" squared. |
I measured my stitched piece to determine size of backing (measurements may vary for your piece depending how much you trim and your seam allowance). Mine measured 5 " squared.
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| Measuring my piece and squaring it up. |
I cut 2 pieces of fusible interfacing like PF 44 5" squared (one for stitched piece and one for backing)
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| I cut the fusible webbing, backing and muslin . |
I cut my backing fabric slightly larger than my stitched piece.
I also cut a piece of white muslin about 5 1/4' . ( This is a tip that I saw on Vonna Pfieffer's video).
Follow manufacturer's instructions and adhere fusible to back of stitched piece and to the back of the backing fabric.
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| Adhered fusible to stitched piece and another to backing fabric . |
Layer white muslin on the back of the stitched piece . Trim any excess white fabric off.
Pin muslin in place.
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| Muslin pinned in place |
Placing right sides together , sandwich stitched piece and backing fabric. I add extra pins..
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| Pinned and ready to sew. |
I used a 1/ 4" seam allowance and backstitched at the corners. I completely sew off the edge of the fabric . Lift the presser foot turn the fabric and begin at the edge.
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| Sew off the edge and backstitch corners. |
I left a 2" opening along the seam line. Sometimes I leave the "stuffing opening in the seam line; sometimes I make a small hole in the backing fabric after I have sewn all the way around ( that is a preference choice and is totally up to you )
Trim excess backing off of the pillow form and clip the corners to reduce bulk.
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| Trimmed and corners clipped . |
Press seams open.
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| Press seams open. |
Turn inside out . Using your chopstick. Smooth out seams inside pillow form.
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| Turn inside out and smooth out seams and corners. |
Stuff with preferred stuffing. I pull my polyfil apart and then stuff it tightly small bits at a time pushing it with my fingers and chopsticks. Stuff until it is at the tightness that you prefer.
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| Filling pillow with polyfil. |
Once stuffed bring seams together and pin closed. On this piece , I used tan cotton thread to blind stitch and close the opening. Sink your knot into the fabric and take tiny stitches along the seams. Sink your ending knot into the pillow and pull the string out the backing and clip.
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| Pin seam together and whip stitch closed. |
Once I have finished my pillow, I like to turn my pillow over , spritz it with water and press my pillow with an iron slightly. This is a personal preference for a flatter look that I prefer. -Again that's just a personal preference.
Wahlah! Your pillow is finished.
Wheew , I do not hear any sirens yet! Do you think I did ok on finishing this little jewel? I sure hope so. When I finish a pillow , I always think about my Nanny who was a doll maker and a wonderful seamstress. I hope I did her proud . I am always inspired by her many finishes that I own and treasure.
I also invite you to visit these wonderful ladies who are amazing finishers and who share their techniques on Youtube. Vonna Pfeiffer and Helen D. .
Thank you for taking the time to see how I finished my little pillow.
Happy Stitching and Quilting, y'all
Melisa
"It takes good effort to begin and great effort to complete a task."
Hugs and Stitches!!!!🤗🧵❤
Dedicated to my dear sister, Amy. I love and miss you so much.❤❤👼 You were and still are a blessing in my life.
Thank you, Melisa, for joining IG and sharing on your blog, love your designs and love the Blessed Charts!!You are truly a jewel, and your instructions are the best. Have a wonderful rest of your week and enjoy the weekend with the grands. Hugs and love from sunny Arizona.
ReplyDeleteAaah I can not tell you how blessed I feel to have you as a sweet friend, Mary. You have brought so much joy and happiness to me these last few years. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. Hugs.
DeleteExcellent tutorial, Melisa. I love the look of the strips sewn together and attached to the cross stitched piece. I'll have to give that a try.
ReplyDeleteOh thank you very much, Jeanna. I had a great time finishing this little piece. I am pleased with how it came out. I wish you a great day and I hope you are enjoying your vacation. Hugs.
DeleteBeautiful finish on this; the crocheted lace adds so much and I love how you added those Fall fabrics to the bottom--
ReplyDeleteGreat work--thanks for the finishing tutorial,,, hugs, Julierose
I just knew I wanted to use the lace as I was stitching this piece. I am super excited with how it came out. Thank you so much, Julierose . Hugs.
DeleteThank you for posting your tutorial for pillow making! I just don't have the confidence! Big sigh!!! The pillow is lovely. I hope your day was wonderful. DarleneJ
ReplyDeleteOh I know you could do it, Darlene. If I can, anyone can. Hee! Hee! Though I am not the best finisher in the world. LOL, but I try. Thank you sweet friend. Big hugs.
DeleteA lovely tutorial Melisa. Such pretty fabrics. I really must finish some of my cross stitches that are languishing around the house. 😆 🤗👍🙋♀️💜👋😘xx
ReplyDeleteOh Barbara, I wish you could see the big tub of cross stitches that are just waiting to be finished. I drag my heels on that task. LOL. I wish you the best on the finishing task. Big hugs.
DeleteSorry forgot to say that was me “languishing” around the house. 😂🤣 Barbara of @flashinscissors. 👍🙋♀️👋xx
ReplyDeleteHee! Hee! Big Hugs, Barbara
DeleteMelisa, thank you for the finishing instructions. Love the finished pillow, the addition of the lace just set it off. 5 years, thats awesome. I have enjoyed you every step of the way. Checking your blog first thing every morning and seeing your post starts my day off perfectly. My pinker pouch and pinker neighborhood is busting at the seams with all my pinker pieces of art. You have a great stitchy day my friend. I’ll be here to see BLESSED #6 🤗💜
ReplyDeletePatti, I am so grateful to call you a friend. You have been such a blessing in my life these last few years. I can not thank you enough for all of the joy and support that you give me. You always bring a smile to my day. Warm hugs from the holler.
DeleteNice tutorial Melisa! Love the result. Are you getting some wind/rain today?
ReplyDeleteHi, Linda. I hope you have had a good weekend. Oh yes, we have had rain and wind for the last few days. Thankfully, there has been little damage except for 2 trees that fell. Oh bummer on the having to log in with the new browser. I hope it is not too difficult. I wish you a lovely afternoon and thank you for the sweet visit. Hugs.
DeleteThat was me posting as Anonymous. I changed browsers, and now I have to log in all the time!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful!,! And never apologize for too many pictures. Love seeing them all😊
ReplyDeleteAaah thank you from the bottom of my heart, Maureen. You are always so kind and encouraging. I wish you a blessed day. Hugs.
DeleteAbsolutely beautiful!! I love the fabric and lace you chose to to add to the cross stitchery. Your tutorial on finishing is great too. I suppose the muslin addition is to help keep it from stretching, along with the iron on stabilizer?? I love seeing the photos Have a great weekend my friend! Hugs!
ReplyDeleteHi, Brenda. I hope you are doing well. Is all well in your neck of the woods after the storm ? I sure hope so. Thank you so much for the kind words on my pillow finish. Oh yes, the stabilizer and muslin helps keep it from stretching and gives the pillow some body. It has made stuffing and shaping the pillow a lot nicer since I have started using them too. Have a beautiful and blessed day. Hugs.
DeleteGreat tutorial, Melisa! Spritzing with water and pressing makes such a huge difference, doesn't it?
ReplyDeleteIt does, Carol. Do you do it too? I always marvel at your beautiful finishing, Carol. I aspire to finish as beautifully as you do someday. You are an inspiration. Thank you so much for the sweet visit and kind words. Big hugs.
DeleteWhat a great tutorial on finishing your Blessed piece! I especially loved the part about trimming a tad off the bottom after looking at it. . .that's how I operate too! Well done! --TerryK@OnGoingProjects
ReplyDeleteLOL I am thankful that I cut the strips big and then trimmed . It made it a lot easier in the end. Thank you so much, Terry for the sweet visit. Have a blessed day. Hugs.
DeleteEven though I am not on IG, I appreciate that you share the Blessed stitches with us as you celebrate your anniversary. Every one of them has been a beauty. Thank you. Your pillow finishing compliments it so well and is so pretty.
ReplyDeleteOh thank you so much, Ginny. I have really enjoyed making each one of the pillows. I always try to keep them super simple . I usually put them on display fall through Christmas. I hope you are having a lovely weekend. It is still raining here- good stitching weather. Hugs and Blessings.
DeleteI loved seeing how you finish your little cross-stitched pillows, Melisa! I need to branch out and try adding some patchwork and trims to mine. Yours turn out so cute that way! No CSFP here!
ReplyDeleteOh thank you so much, Diann. It is a little time consuming to add the fabrics and trims and such, but I am always glad when I do. I had a lot of fun finishing this one. Have a great evening, Hugs and Blessings.
DeleteI just love your Blessings pillows and thanks for sharing your finishing tips. Even though I have sewn my entire life, it’s always great to see someone else’s ideas. I appreciate your talent!
ReplyDeleteAah you are so welcome, Gail and thank you . I love to see how others sew and complete things too. I always pick up a tip or trick . Have a beautiful day and Happy stitching. Hugs.
DeleteHola mi bella Meli como SIEMPRE que entro a visitarte me quedo 😍 ENAMORADA cuantas bellezas!!! sencillas pero que he atrapan!!!! Me ensaya este cojín y el tutoriales muy bueno. Gracias cariño por tanta generosidad.
ReplyDeleteBesos de ti amiga Dianet
Good afternoon, sweet Dianet. I always appreciate your sweet and cheerful visits. You are a ray of sunshine. Thank you so much for the kind words on my little pillow. I wish you a beautiful and blessed day. Hugs.
DeleteHope everything is OK with you and your family and that you came out OK with Helene! Thinking of you.
ReplyDeleteOh thank you so much, dear for checking on me. We just had a few trees come tumbling down , but other than that all is well. I was prepared for the electricity to go off but it only went off once for only a couple of hours and that was before the storm. My heart goes out to all of those who were affected worse though. These storms can be frightening. Thank you again for checking on me . Hugs and Blessings.
DeleteA very cute finish! Hope you didn't get too much rain from Helene, the photos from Florida and other spots in the south have been very scary.
ReplyDeleteHi, Kate. Fortunately we just received a good amount of rain . The wind brought down only 2 trees one of which was an old pear tree which we hated to see go. But other than that there was little damage. It is still raining ; hopefully it will not flood, but we shall see. Thank you so much for checking on me, Kate. That means the world. Hugs.
DeleteThank you so much for sharing the step-by-step instructions for making this beautiful pillow, Melisa!
ReplyDeleteHave a lovely weekend.
Hugs from Spain
Aaaah you are so welcome, dear Isabel. I am not the best finisher, but it was a joy to share how I finished mine. Have a wonderful day. Hugs.
DeleteAdorable mini pillow, Melisa! Your blessed design is so well done and a creative finish!!! If the police show up, just tell them it's a gift you made for them!
ReplyDeleteLOL I will have to do that, Nancy. Hee! Hee! A bribe goes a long ways. LOL. I am happy with my little pillow finish and I am so very grateful that you dropped by for a visit. Hugs.
DeleteIt looks like a perfect finish to me and thank you for all that extra information!
ReplyDeleteAaah you are so very kind, Elaine. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. I wish you a wonderful evening. Happy quilting. Hugs.
DeleteYou did awesome finishing this sweet little pillow. I sure learned a thing or two :) nwpaintedlady
ReplyDeleteOh thank you so much, Sharon; I can not tell you how happy that makes me. I am not the best at finishing, but I try and I do enjoy it. I wish you a lovely evening . Hugs.
DeleteFaantastic!
ReplyDelete