Have you ever made a pillow case or had your daughter make one? If you have been hesitant to break out your sewing machine or to make a project with your daughter, then wait no longer! This is such a fun and easy project that is so useful and can be as simple or elaborate as you like. If you don’t have a sewing machine this could easily be sewn by hand.

This simple project uses straight seams, measuring and ironing.

All the supplies you will need:

• 1 yard of Material
• Thread
• Scissors
• Straight Pins
• Measuring Tape, Gage, or Ruler
• Iron
• Ironing Board

F a b r i c  P r e p a r a t i o n

When you bring your fabric home from the fabric store be sure to wash and dry it to remove any sizing and so that it will not shrink and buckle the seams after you sew it. (You might want to get in the habit of washing all your fabric when you bring it home and that way when you shop from your own stash of fabric it will be ready to go.)

Using your scissors, trim both ends of the fabric to remove any scraggly strings and to straighten the edges of the material. If you don’t have exactly one yard left that is fine, it will still work. This could also be done with a rotary cutter and mat if you have one, but if not regular scissors will do the job just fine.

I n s t r u c t i o n s

When you look at the following illustrations you will see the front of the fabric is gray and the back of the fabric is white.  The front of the fabric is also called the right side and the back of the fabric is also called the wrong side.

The selvage edge is the sides of the material that are bound and usually have technical printing along the edge.

Step #1 – Fold the material in half with the right sides together, matching the selvage edges. Use straight pins to hold in place.

Step #2 – Sew a 5/8″ seam around the bottom and side of the pillow case. This seam should completely include the printed selvage edge. If not, move the seam in a little more to conceal it.  Make sure to hold onto the ends of the thread as you begin sewing to keep the beginning stitches from tangling up inside the machine.

Step #3 – Iron open the seam along the side.

Step #4 – Fold 1″ down from the top of the pillow case and press with iron.

Step #5 – Fold down another 3″ and press with iron. Secure the fold with pins. The first 1″ fold should be underneath the 3″ fold so that you have a nice hem line.

Step #6 – Sew 1/2″ from the edge of the hem line. Turn pillow case right side out.

Ta Da!  You now have a sweet home-made pillow case.

If you are new to using a sewing machine be sure to read my previous posts: Getting to Know Your Sewing Machine Part One and Part Two.

By Robin, Resolved to Be