Tag: easy

Lovely Little Llama

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With Valentine’s Day coming up I was inspired by a cute new idea! A Lovely Little Llama Valentine!

This little llama has a blanket with two pockets that can deliver valentines for the big day 🙂

Not only would this llama be adorable for Valentine’s Day, but any holiday! Change the colors to green and red and you have Christmas. Dress it up for birthdays, Easter, or even Halloween. Changing the colors, accessories, and fabrics will completely change the feel of the project.

The pocket pouch is definitely my favorite part of the project, aside from the overall cuteness, of course! You can place notes, treats, and gifts in the little pockets.

The pattern is available in two sizes. The small size measures approximately 9 inches tall without the ears, and the large measures approximately 11.5 inches tall.

It is constructed with swirl fur which is great to work with and is super fluffy! It just calls out for cuddles 🙂

This project is fairly simple, but the fur does add a bit of difficulty. I would say it is about a 4/10 in terms of difficulty. You need to be comfortable using small seam allowances and sewing curves. Experience with fur or plush fabrics is also helpful.

Supplies – (See Cut Layouts for Fabric Sizes)

  • Fleece or Swirl Fur Fabric (Body)
  • Fleece or Felt (Face)
  • Cotton Fabric (Blanket, Ears, & Tail)
  • 1/4 inch wide elastic (3.5 inches – small, 4.25 inches – large)
  • Two Safety Eyes (8mm – small, 10mm – large)
  • Black Thread or Embroidery Floss
  • Blush or Pastels (Optional)
  • Yarn, scrap felt, and beads (Necklace – Optional)
  • Coordinating Thread
  • Poly-fil

Tools

  • Sewing Machine & Basic Sewing Tools (Pins, Scissors, etc.)
  • Hemostats or Tweezers (Recommended)
  • Hand Sewing Needles
  • Ultra Fine Point Sharpie (Optional)
  • Air Erase Marker (Recommended)
  • Purple Thang (Optional)

Free Patterns & Cut Layouts

lovely-little-llama-SMALL-by-learncreatesew-updatedDownload
lovely-little-llama-LARGE-by-learncreatesew-updatedDownload

QUICK OVERVIEW:

DETAILED VIDEO INSTRUCTIONS:

Happy Sewing!

One Hour Easy Zippered Purse

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I absolutely love the project I am sharing with you today! I few years ago I was rushing to get ready for a vacation and my purse would NOT fit in my bag. I had one hour before I had to leave for the airport. What was I going to do? Well, being me, I decided to sew a new purse!

This is what I came up with! And since then I have used this purse absolutely all the time.

This purse is very lightweight and super handy to have around. I love to use this when I travel so I can fold it up in my luggage. I also really like to use it when I go for walks. It is the perfect size for a cell phone and smaller items.

This is a great first zipper project, so if you are just beginning with zippers this is a great place to start because you don’t have to worry about linings. Since the purse doesn’t have a lining it can be made quickly and simplifies the project. This is definitely a casual bag and I have enjoyed making this using both cotton and flannel fabrics.

Free Cut Layouts are available for two different styles, narrow and wide.

The black confetti purse is the wide version, and the cotton print is narrow.

Once you are comfortable with the process of how it is constructed it is super easy to adapt. By changing the length and width of your rectangles you can change the size of the bag. You can also use the same process to increase the number of zippers! I love the look with 3 zippers!

The wide bag measures approximately 7.375 x 9.5 inches and the narrow bag is approximately 6.375 x 9 inches.

SUPPLIES:

  • 2/3 yard cotton or flannel fabric (Makes 2 if the fabric is at least 40 inches wide)
  • Two – Three 9 inch zippers (for each purse)
  • Coordinating thread
  • Fray Check (Optional)

Tools

  • Sewing Machine
  • Basic Sewing Tools (Pins, scissors, etc.)
  • Ruler and marking tool (to draw the rectangles from the cut layout)
  • Iron

Free Cut Layouts:

2-zipper-cut-layouts-by-learncreatesewDownload
3-zipper-cut-layouts-by-learncreatesew-1Download

DETAILED VIDEO INSTRUCTIONS:

QUICK OVERVIEW:

Happy Sewing!

Fur Pom Poms

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With all of the stress of this year weighing heavy, I decided to take up a new hobby to help myself relax. I decided to learn how to crochet! I had crocheted before, but it had been several years. My mom came to visit with her assortment of crochet projects and I just couldn’t stop myself from exploring the craft again.

One of the first projects I made were these Half Double Crochet Beanies. These were simple and quick and a lot of fun. But they were definitely missing something…the fur pom pom! Hence this tutorial.

I thought I would share with you how I made the pom poms for the top of the beanies.

All it takes is faux fur fabric, poly-fil, needle and thread.

I think it adds a lot of character to the beanies! These pom poms have long ties that can be used to attach the pom poms to any project you like.

SUPPLIES:

  • Button thread
  • Faux Fur fabric (8 inch square or less)
  • Poly-fil stuffing

FREE PATTERN:

fur-pom-pom-pattern-learncreatesewDownload

QUICK OVERVIEW:

DETAILED INSTRUCTIONS:

How I made the Beanie…

CROCHET PATTERN:

YARN: Serenity Premier Chunky – Weight 5

Hook: 7.0 – 9.0 

     A larger hook will require fewer stitches, but they will be more spaced out.

     I used hook 7.0 for the burgundy beanie and 9.0 for the black beanie.

Size: Teen/Adult

Terms:      Ch – Chain             

                 BLO – Back Loop Only

Hdc – Half Double Crochet

Chain 34 – 42

     The number of chain stitches you need will vary depending on the size of the hook you selected.

     You want your chain to be 11 – 14 inches long, not including the chain 2 at the end.

     Mine (the burgundy beanie) was 12 inches long. I chained 36 stitches and measured stitches 1 – 34.

Leave the thread tail long.

Row 1 – Beginning in the 3rd chain from the hook Hdc in each stitch. Hdc in back loop only. [Total Stitches: 32-40]

     The total number of stitches should be 2 less than your chain.

     Check the length again after completing row 1. You want your row 1 to be 11 – 14 inches long.

      Mine was 12 inches long and I had 34 total stitches.

      You should have the SAME number of stitches in every row from now on.

Row 2: Ch 2, turn, Hdc BLO in each stitch [32 – 40]  

     Don’t forget to skip the turning chain when you begin your stitches.

Row 3+: Repeat Row 2 until your work is 17 – 20 inches wide. 

You can test the width by wrapping the beanie around your head. It should be about two inches or so shorter than the circumference of your head.

Mine ended up being 12 x 19 inches. (The circumference of my head is 21 inches). Since this is a large yarn and a big hook it will stretch.

A smaller width will give a more snug fit.

STOP ON AN EVEN NUMBER OF ROWS.

Your working yarn should be on the opposite end from your starting tail. Cut the working yarn to be about 1 yard long.

Fold the beanie in half with wrong sides together. Sew the edge together. You should end with the working yarn next to your original thread tail. This will be the top of the beanie. Tie the thread tails in a knot.

Stitch through all the raised stitches around the top edge and pull closed. Tie in a secure knot. Weave in the thread tails.

And then add your fur pom pom!

Happy Sewing…and Crochet!

Christmas Gnomes

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Happy Holidays! These little Christmas Gnomes are a great addition to your holiday decorations.

They are quick and easy to make and super cute!

I used flannel fabric for the hat and felt for the body. My favorite part is the sparkly pom poms I found for the tops!

The beard is faux fur and gives the little gnomes a lot of character. I also picked up a mixed set of wooden beads at Walmart that work great as noses!

Each gnome is filled with polyfil and poly pellets to weigh them down.

Supplies:

  • Felt Fabric (Body)
  • Flannel Fabric (Hat)
  • Faux Fur with a long pile (Beard)
  • Pom Pom
  • Wooden Bead (Nose)
  • Polyfil Stuffing
  • Poly Pellets (or another filler to weigh down the gnome)
  • Coordinating Thread

FREE PATTERNS:

The Medium sized gnome body is approximately 8.25 inches tall when finished. The Large sized is 9.25 inches. These measurements are WITOUT the hat.

gnome-pattern-medium-8.25-by-learncreatesewDownload
gnome-pattern-large-9.25-by-learncreatesewDownload

DETAILED VIDEO INSTRUCTIONS:

QUICK OVERVIEW:

I hope you enjoy this project!
Happy Holidays!

Christmas Stocking Embellishments

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At this holiday season, I want to express my gratitude to all of my followers. Thank you! Thank you for supporting learncreatesew.com and subscribing to my YouTube Channel. Having the opportunity to share my love of sewing with so many is a great privilege and an opportunity I never thought I would have.

Thank you for making all of this possible and encouraging me to keep creating.

And for you, here are my next videos!

I had a lot of fun adapting the Christmas Stocking pattern for you! I don’t know about you, but I love options. But what if I did this…or this…? That is what I am always asking myself. As a result, I wasn’t satisfied with just the basic stocking. I wanted to expand upon it to provide more great options for creativity.

The first video explains how to add a contrasting cuff, if you wanted the fabric of the lining to vary from the fabric of the cuff. The stocking shown here has a sherpa cuff but a flannel lining.

The next video adds a burlap overlay to the main fabric as well as decorative embellishments.

I hope these videos inspire creativity, and I hope you have a lot of fun making your own stockings!

See the Christmas Stocking page for the free pattern.

Christmas Stocking

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I’m so excited to share this project with you today! It has been quite a while since my last post and I am happy to finally share with you a fun holiday project.

Life and work caught up with me the last few weeks and it took the excitement of Christmas projects to motivate me to get back to sewing!

This is a quick easy Christmas Stocking.

It is fully lined and has a fold over cuff!

The free pattern is available in several sizes.

The pattern works great with flannel, fleece, and cotton fabrics.

If you enjoy this tutorial keep an eye out for future posts in which I’ll show you a few quick alterations to the same pattern.

SUPPLIES:

  • Coordinating Thread
  • Ribbon (4 – 8 inches)
  • 7/8 yard (or less) Fabric for the Outside of the Stocking (Cotton, Flannel, or Fleece)
  • 7/8 yard (or less) Fabric for the Lining and Cuff (Cotton, Flannel, or Fleece)
    • The project works best when the lining and outside fabrics are the same type of fabric.
    • The amount of fabric needed varies a lot depending on the size of the stocking you make and the direction you need to cut your fabric.
    • I recommend reviewing the pattern sizes in the table below if you would like more specific measurements.
    • Remember you will need two lining pieces and two outside pieces.

A bit more on yardage:

For instance, if I want to make a size small I know I need two pieces of outside fabric that will fit the pattern (which is 8 by 16.25 inches). If the direction of my fabric doesn’t matter 1/4 yard would work…but if I have to follow the selvage, for example on fabrics with words or a specific direction, I may need 1/2 yard.

Enjoy!

FREE PATTERNS:

Christmas Stocking 2XLarge by learncreatesewDownload
Christmas Stocking XLarge by learncreatesewDownload
Christmas Stocking Large by learncreatesewDownload
Christmas Stocking Medium by learncreatesewDownload
Christmas Stocking Small by learncreatesewDownload
Christmas Stocking X Small by learncreatesewDownload

QUICK OVERVIEW:

DETAILED VIDEO INSTRUCTIONS:

Learn to Sew: Lesson 6: Drawstring Bag

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In this lesson we will learn several topics that are applicable in a wide variety of sewing projects. The drawstring bag introduces how to make a casing or channel that can be used to hold, a drawstring, elastic, ribbon, and more. This skill is used everywhere from bag making to garment construction and makes the drawstring bag a great project for beginning sewers.

Lesson Category:

  • Machine Sewing – Straight Seams

Lesson Topics:

  • Making a Drawstring
  • Making a Casing
  • Sewing Straight seams
  • Finishing Seams
  • Pressing

This bag measured approximately 13.5 x 15 inches when finished, but could easily be adapted for other sizes.

The bag features a 1/2 inch wide drawstring made by piecing and folding 2 inch strips of fabric.

This project was designed to only use 1/2 yard of fabric, and as a result the drawstring is pieced, but you could use more fabric if you prefer to make the drawstring out of a continuous piece of fabric rather than multiple pieces.

It has a wide casing for easy threading of the drawstring. I’ll show you a quick way to make sure the sizing of your channel is consistent.

It also introduces finishing seams, which is a great skill in general. If you are interested in learning more about finishing seams check out my Skill Building Video on the topic!

In the video also introduces tips for how to turn a corner exactly, how to finish the edges of the drawstring channel and more.

Supplies

  • 1/2 yard cotton fabric
  • Coordinating thread

Helpful Tools

Instructional Video:

Learn to Sew: Lesson 5: Felt Carrying Case

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Thanks for your patience for this latest post! I am a full time teacher, and with school starting back in full swing I haven’t had as much time to devote to new posts as I would like. Don’t worry! I still plan to post new content. However, it just may not be as frequent as it was over the summer. I hope you enjoy the new projects as they come and until then check out my free projects that are already available!

This is a fun quick project that helps practice sewing straight seams. It also introduces bag making basics with boxed corners.

Lesson Category:

  • Machine Sewing – Straight Seams

Lesson Topics:

  • Essential Tools
  • Cutting Rectangles
  • Sewing Straight Seams
  • Boxing Corners

This project uses large sized felt fabric, since the pieces are larger than the standard sized felt sheets available in most stores.

Felt is a great fabric to start with for your first projects because it doesn’t fray. You don’t have to worry about raw edges and it will look nice inside and out!

The top of the bag is made with two layers of felt stitched together for added strength and to provide contrast.

It also has boxed corners. Boxed corners can be a bit of a challenge, but it adds a lot of great features to your bag.

It provides space at the bottom of the bag so it is no longer flat.

In this case it also allows the bag to stand up. Once you learn how to add boxed corners it is a great feature to add to many different types of bags and cases.

felt-case-pattern-letter-size-by-learncreatesewDownload

Lesson:

Learn to Sew: Lesson 3: Machine Stitching Practice

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Using a sewing machine for the first time can be exciting, intimidating, and often frustrating.

With this lesson I hope to provide you with tips and instructions that will help you feel comfortable and confident as you begin to use your sewing machine.

Lesson Category:

  • Sewing Machine Basics

Lesson Topics:

  • Basic Machine Functions
    • A Brother Computerized Sewing Machine is used as the example
    • How to control the speed
    • Basic Stitches and Parts
  • Sewing Lines
  • Sewing Corners
  • Sewing Curves
  • Sewing with a Seam Allowance

It may seem strange, but the best way to start using the machine is to practice sewing on paper.

21-3

This allows you to learn how to control your machine without having to deal with the complications that arise when using fabric and thread.

41

We’ll learn how to sew corners and curves. We’ll also learn how to use a seam allowance.

51

This lesson uses a Brother Computerized Sewing Machine for the example, but the principles can be applied to any machine. If you are using a different type of machine you may want to do some research or consult your manual to find your machine’s default needle position as well as how to use the seam allowance measurement guides so you can accurately read your needle plate.

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Stitching Practice Sheets:

Stitching Lines Practice by learncreatesew

Stitching Corners Practice by learncreatesew

Stitching Curves Practice by learncreatesew

Seam Allowance Practice by learncreatesew

Here is a Seam Allowance Measurement Guide for Brother Computerized Machines:

Brother Computerized Seam Allowance Guide by learncreatesew

Brother Computerized Seam Allowance Guide by learncreatesew.pdf

LESSON:

2 Layer Face Mask with Filter Pocket

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I am constantly trying the think of new ways to improve face masks. I am going to be wearing these every day to work like many of you and I hope to create masks that are both comfortable and functional.

After making the 3 layer mask with a filter pocket I thought I would give this one a try. I was very pleased with the results.

3img_1925

This mask uses my regular contoured face mask pattern, but cut at the pocket line, so it is a bit more narrow. This actually is nice because it’s not as hot since it doesn’t extend as far toward the ears.

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The channel for the nose bridge wire is optional, but is simply a row of stitches attaching the lining to the exterior fabric.

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I didn’t use any interfacing on mine, and I really like how lightweight it is, even with the filter.

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I also tried strap adjusters with this mask. They are handy and are quite easy to use. I like that they are small and not bulky.

Supplies:

8 x 10 inches Main Cotton Fabric (Dimensions work for all sizes. You may need less fabric for smaller sizes)

8 x 10 inches Lining Cotton Fabric

Straps (I used 1/8 inch elastic)

Filter (Optional)

Nose Bridge Wire (Optional)

Strap Adjusters (Optional)

Free Pattern:

Contour Face Mask Pattern with Filter Pocket by learncreatesew

DETAILED INSTRUCTIONS:

FACE MASK KEY CHAIN CASE:

The face mask key chain case is always a fun project 🙂 It’s a little tight fitting the nose bridge wire, and you have to fold the filter, but I like to store my mask in the case when it’s not in use, without the filter and wire. I find it keeps my masks nice and organized.