It's a Cinch again...

Here’s a quick tutorial. This may be very handy for those of you who have my Twirl Skirt pattern and you’re looking for an easy way to cinch up the side. As I said in my last post about skirt cinching, I prefer to just fold it up by hand and add a bow or other embellishment. This method is pretty simple though, so give it a go!

What you’ll need
A finished skirt or other project that needs a little cinching
1/8” elastic: white for light fabrics, black for dark fabrics
Thread that coordinates with your skirt
Your sewing machine

I am using a mock skirt in the photographs. The Yellow is the skirt and the blue along the top is the waistband. You will need a length of 1/8” elastic that is at least a few inches longer than the drop length of your skirt, or a few inches longer than the length you would like to cinch up. An excessively long piece is fine, there’s no reason to cut it yet. Begin by attaching the elastic to the underside or, the wrong side, of your skit in the spot you want to create a cinch. Tack the end of the elastic at the hem line with a straight stitch. Be sure you back stitch.

Now, change your machine to a zigzag stitch and set it to full wide and about a medium stitch length. Zigzag over your elastic, taking care not to stitch into it, until you are within 1” of your waistband or where ever you would like to stop.

Hold the hem of your skirt in one hand and the long end of your elastic in the other hand. Pull the long end of your elastic until you achieved your desired amount of cinch. Finish by tacking down the long end of your elastic with a straight stitch and trimming off the extra. Add a bow or add nothing at all. Hit the elastic with some steam for a little extra bounce and stretch.

Children’s Cloth Book Tutorial

I like making all sorts of stuff with my fabric scraps. This morning I decided to put together a little tutorial on making a cloth sensory book for babies and toddlers. I’m sure this tutorial isn’t perfect and things could be done in better ways, but this is what I tossed together. There is always room for improvement. I hope you enjoy it!


What you will need
Your sewing machine
Thread
Scissors
Scrap fabrics different patterns and textures
Scrap ribbons
Non toxic, baby friendly embellishments
Tips
Use a zigzag or multiple stitches to secure embellishments and ribbons, they will be tugged on!
Avoid choking hazards and long pieces of ribbon.
Consider the patterns and textures of your fabric scrap as they can add to the sensory appeal of the book.
You want to avoid toxic materials. I recommend stitching ribbon edges that may fray and avoiding fray check and other chemicals.
Have fun and be creative!


First I cut 8 pieces of fabric about 5.5” x 6” for the inner pages, 2 pieces of fabric 6" x 6.5" for the first and last pages and one piece 12”x 6” for the cover. I also gathered pieces of scrap ribbon and other non toxic and baby safe embellishments I had on hand. Add as many pages and embellishments as you like but be cautious of bulk.


Next, I attached all of the ribbons and embellishments to the appropriate pages. Be certain to place things away from the edges. You will lose up to ½” seam allowance. If you are attaching ruffles and ties to the front cover, as I did, direct them inward and sew them at the edges of the pages.


Then, I attached the first and last pages to the cover. Right sides go together and you will stitch around thefour outer edges, leaving the middle unstitched. Make sure you don’t stitch any of your ribbons and embellishments into the seam, you may want to pin them out of the way.



Clip the corners, not the inner stitch, and flip the cover right sides out.


Now you will stitch all of your pages together along three edges, leaving the inner edges unstitched. Be cautious of page placement and direction; left to right and top to bottom. Also, be sure you don’t accidently stitch your embellishments into your seams, you may want to pin them out of the way.


Again, clip the corners and turn your pages right sides out. Iron and top stitches all of your pages and your cover.


Stack your pages in the correct order and directions, with the raw edges lined to your left. You will stitch them all together down the raw edge. Clip the two corners of this stitch.


Slide the pages into the cover of the book. I slid them under the first page and tucked in the raw edge. You can also tuck them into the last page, just be sure they are lined up at the center of the cover. Run a zigzag stitch down the center of the book.


You’re done!