No-sew frills
By NICKI LEFEVER for Smart
When Jennifer Way, 33, of Jacobus decided she wanted to make onesies with little animal appliques, she had to find something to make it stick.
After researching online, she found Steam-A-Seam, a magical material that makes fabric stick to other fabric with no sewing required.
After one year of operating Beebee Mod , a kids’ clothing business, Way makes perking up plain pieces look like a snap.
Her onesises and T-shirts are adorned with patterned butterflies, elephants, camels and whales.
Home decorating can be expensive. A single throw pillow at Pier 1 can cost up to $35, and a couch usually needs more than one.
Winter is a great time of year to switch simple software such as pillows to deeper colors or more vibrant designs.
The challenge for Way was to take a $5 navy blue throw pillow from Wal-Mart and make it pop. The only rule: no sewing. She could use any materials she chose as long as it didn’t involve a needle and thread.
She took to the task and created a modern-looking pillow with geometric shapes that took no time at all.
“It’s totally a no-brainer,” she said.
What you’ll need
• One plain pillow
• Coordinating patterned fabric
• Various felt in colors to match
• Steam-A-Seam fusible fabric
• Fabric Fusion glue
• Scissors
• Pinking shears
• Pencil
• Decorative template
How to do it
Step 1 Trace a template or download template or design one of your own on the paper liner of the Steam-A-Seam product. Be sure to do it in reverse for letters.
Step 2 Cut out the shape and remove the second liner of the Steam-A-Seam.
Step 3 Place the shiny side of the Steam-A-Seam to the nonvisible side of the fabric that you will be attaching to the pillow.
Step 4 Cut Steam-A-Seam and material together along traced lines.
Step 5 Peel off remaining paper liner (leaving the web on the fabric) and stick appliqué to the pillow. Reposition as desired.
Step 6 Use an iron for 10 to 15 seconds for cotton fabric. Adjust temperature and pressing time to suit your fabric. Repeat, slightly overlapping pressed areas until complete.
Step 7 Continue adding as many funky flowers or other shapes as you like.
Using a pair of pinking shears, cut circles out of felt. Cover the back of each cut piece of felt with Fabric Fusion glue and stick to the pillow in desired area. Overlap shapes for a more modern look. Let the pillow dry and place it on your couch.
No-sew ideas • Lay a pillow in the center of a piece of fabric or old silk scarf. Wrap the fabric around the pillow, gathering the edges into the center. Fasten with a decorative pin. • Use fabric glue to glue buttons in a flower pattern, using different colors for the petals, center and stem. (If you have small children, you should sew the buttons on.) • Cut 2 pieces of fabric a little larger than a pillow. Sandwich the pillow between the fabric. Gather each corner together and tie with a ribbon.
Comments (0)
