REMAKE A PILLOW SHAM INTO A PLASTIC BAG HOLDER

Hello everyone!

I hope you all are well. I have been

super busy this week. My granddaughter Elise

and my grandson Cohen have both graduated

within a few days of each other.

Hopefully now things can get back to normal.

Jen Kerstin has a website called
Store Business Hours. Take a look at this
site and see if you can use it. It looks pretty
handy to me!
http://www.storebusinesshours.com/us/
Also take a look at her Fit and Fab site. There
is some good information in here.
http://fit-and-fab-kirsten.blogspot.com/

 

Ahhh Pillowshams! Some of them are so

lovely. There are many kinds of styles and colors

out there to choose from.

But, I bet that you already have 1 or 2 sets of

pillow shams just sitting on your linen shelf!

 

Keep in mind that for this project that you can

also use a piece of an old quilt! That would be

lovely, but just remember perhaps this bag

holder will get a lot of washing. If you are a

clean freak, then do not use anything that

is delicate. Use that fabric or quilt piece,

or any laces for a more fragile project.

 

Please read all of these directions because

I see that I have left out a photo when it comes

to how I attached the loops for hanging.

You can refer to tutorials from other blogs on

how to attach loops.

 

On this project I am not concerned with beauty.

I am all about functional and not so much fu-fu

when it comes to this sort of craft.

However, on these bags you can decorate them

up if you wish. The choice is up to you.

 

Materials needed:

1. Pillow sham (1 or 2)

2. Strings to use for loops to hang.

3. Sewing needle and quilt thread (optional)

4. Straight pins for pinning

5. Sewing machine

 

As you can see there are 2 styles.

One style has the traditional pull-out

on the bottom and the other is sewed

across.

They are super easy to make!

My pillow shams are old and are full-size.

If you would like longer and wider to hold

mounds of plastic bags then use queen and

king size shams.

Believe me, these full-size shams are about

22 inches wide X 28 inches long.

These are big!

So, have fun and decorate them up however

you wish!

I will be starting with the bag holder on the

left that has the opening at the bottom to

pull-out the bags. These bags hang in my

pantry.

 

Here are my 2 pillow shams that I am using.

 

The great thing about using pillow shams is that the

inside of the bag holders are lined.

 

First thing you do is cut off the tags.

 

Next lay out one pillow sham on your table. Straighten

up lining and pin down the lining. It is okay if your pins, pin

through to the design side. Make sure everything

is straight.

 

To sew the lining. I always hand sew it closed. It

does not take long at all to hand stitch it. You can

 machine sew this down if you like. I do not

like to see the stitching on the pretty design side, that

is why I hand stitch it closed.  You do what you like

for the design.

 

I save a lot of things and sometimes it is a few years

before I find a use for it. That is the case with this

cute string that I pulled out of a pair of bad pajamas.

This tie or string is a little stretchy and when I

stretched it - it became a yard in length.

Well, that was what I needed so this is what I used.

 

Once the lining stitching is completed, then the

rest goes pretty quickly! Fold the pillow sham

lengthwise with the design in the middle. As you

can see by this photo, the blue checked is my selvage

edge.

 

Old pillow shams can become a little stretchy over

time because you are putting pillows in and out of them.

So, just put those edges together the best that you

can and stitch down the length.

(sew at least an inch away from the stitched seams

because they are bulky. So stitch about an inch

away from those seams and you should be okay).

Be sure to back stitch all seams at the beginning of the tube and

the end of the tube.

 

See, how I did it here. Remember these pillow shams

stretch. Do the best that you can on stitching.

Do not stress.

 

Now turn the long tube to the right side so you can

see the design. This is the back of my bag holder. I

am not worried about the checks lining up - this is

just a bag holder.

Do not stress it.

 

It is hard to believe that these ties when stretched

equal a yards length. Now, take those ties and cut

them equally into 4ths. I only needed 3, but if you

like the gathered bag more than you will use all

4 ties. I did not hem any of the ties.

If you zoom into this photo and look at the upper

right hand corner you will see where a tie is already

tied on.

 

Sorry about this photo. I took it plenty of times

and this is the best picture that I had. I hope that

it does not hurt your eyes too much. There is no

bow on this tie. I tied it in a knot. Just try to note

how far that

In tying the knot take a tie and wrap it around the

upper part of the bag holder at least 2.5 inches down.

There is a lot of bulk here. The tighter you tie the

string will give you a smaller opening. So this is

left up to your discretion.

Tie the tie around the

bulk and tie into a knot.

 

With your fingers arrange

the gathers to give you a hole for the inside.

When that is finished to your liking, go to the

open side. This is where you put the bags in. Refer

to my first picture to see that there is nothing done

to the top.

For loops: take another string and this is how I sew

it down. I place the string at the top, one side of

the loop on the open side of the seam and sew it

down. Then I make sure that the string is straight.

I then sew down the other side of the string to the

inside of the seam on the other side. If you do not

understand what I am trying to say. It is okay,

just sew it down like a potholder.

 

I have used plastic bags as trash bags, since they first came out

with these type of bag holders. I have never bought

a trash bag in 18 years or so. My trash is always taken out

daily. We always double up the bags because sometimes

there are holes in the bottom of the bags. So I have

never liked getting rid of my plastic bags. Sometimes

my grocery shopping is erratic and many years ago

I found myself running a little low on plastic bags.

I have a plastic bin in the garage that holds my excess

plastic bags should I run low.

 

I like how my cabinet stays clean like this all

the time.

 

The other side stays clean also.

 

 

TO MAKE THE 2ND BAG HOLDER. Sew down

the long seam as in the first bag you have made.

 

At the bottom instead of ties, simply make sure that

the seam is in the middle. Line up the edges and sew

across from edge to edge.

 

As you see here. Again do not worry about the seam.

It hardly shows on the outside. Turn the bag to the

right side and poke out those corners.

 

As you can see with the 2cd bag holder, the only

difference between the 2 of them is at the bottom.

My preference is the bag holder on the right.

To make a bag this big to me, does not require

an opening at the bottom.

 

Have fun.

Thank you for visiting me!

Conny



PILLOW SHAM SEWING MACHINE AND SERGER MACHINE COVER

Hello Everyone!

 

These sewing machine and serger machine covers

are super easy!!

 

I made a set for Catherine and forgot to show you

what they look like. Catherine's covers were

Shabby Chic. These that I made for my sewing machine

and serger are a country patchwork.

 

These are SUPER SIMPLE! One pillow sham gives

you a front and a back. I can use either side that I want

for the front side. I sewed lace on the bottom of both

edges. I had a pink silk bow with a matching silk

flower that was in my craft box. I had taken these

from a dress that I cut apart many, many years ago.

The pink silk bow  is safety pinned on.

 

The other side of the pillow sham has the pink silk

flower on it. I did not sew this one either - just pinned

it on there with a large safety pin.

 

I have had these ties for eons. They came from

shopping store bags. I am glad that I was able

to use these here.

 

I wonder though if I should have kept

the blue strings together and the white

strings together. Nah - I think that I like

this look.

See how fast this cover was to make!!

 

This is the serger machine cover. It is also

reversible. I am not sure if I like this look or not.

I will have to think about it. Perhaps I open up the

sides and add more ties on the sides. I am looking

for a flower or something to dress it up some.

 

Pick you out some pretty shams that you are not using.

I have had these for years.

 

Turn the pillow sham to the inside and either

machine sew or hand sew it closed.

 

This is what mine looks like. Now you are finished

here. Just add your ties and decorate the front and

back!

I hope you enjoy doing this project!

Thank you for visiting me

Hopblogger



A Sewing Machine cover made from Pillow Shams!

A GIFT FOR MY FRIEND!

 

I made my friend Catherine

over at "I Love To Stitch", a

sewing machine with a

matching serger cover!

 

I really do like how it has turned

out and I hope that she does also.

 

Let me tell you how this is made.

 

This is EASY PEASY!!!

AND IT IS MADE IN MINUTES!!

 

MATERIALS NEEDED:

2 Shabby Chic full size Pillow Shams, a little

bit of lace, ribbon ties, 3 buttons and

a little bit of flannel for the letters!

Further down I tell you how to make it.

 

This is what the first pillow sham looks like as

a finished Sewing Machine cover, without the pink letters

that say the name of her blog. you can see the pink

letters on the 3rd photo. This sham was not

cut in any way. The sides were not sewed together.

They remain open with just pretty sheer pink

ribbons to tie it on. Neither did I hem any of the

lace on the sides. Again hope for it to look shabby.

 

 I did not cut any of the second pillow sham. The Serger Cover is

stitched up on both sides. I was not sure of the height

of her Serger so I am including some of the lace so

she can stitch it to the bottom, just in case it is

a little short. I think that the width of this cover is

okay and should fit her Serger.

 

I hope Catherine likes this. I tried to make it

Shabby. I just drew out the letters on paper and cut

them out. Then I traced them onto fabric and pinned

the letters where I wanted them. I want the letters

to eventually fray to make it more shabby.

 

Here is a picture of what the pillow shams look like.

Hold the pillow sham up against your machine and

see which side looks best against it. If you need more

width then just turn the sham lengthwise. Otherwise

just fold the sham in half and there you have a

front and a back. Choose which side you like

best to be the front side.

 

Turn over the pillow sham and give some small

stitches to stitch down the inside opening. I hand stitched

this closed because I did not want any machine

stitching to show on the front side of the sham. I

like how this gives an automatic lining to the covers.

I hope that you are able to see it.

 

I hand stitched the lace to the backside. Add lace

or ruffles to give the sham height.

I have not shown you where to stitch on the ties.

That is left to your discretion. I placed my ties

about halfway down and hand stitched them on.

Adding multiple ties on each side, would be so cute.

After the ties are on - then decorate the top

of the shams if you wish.

I forgot to take a photo of how the shams look

on a sewing machine and a serger. Perhaps

Catherine will show you. However I did

place the sham on top of my machine to

make sure it would hopefully fit her machine.

 

I have a couple more full size pillow shams. Next week, I will

make them up and show you what those look like

on my machine and serger.

 

Catherine - I hope to get these in the mail to

you later this week. There is an additional

surprise coming with these covers!

 

I sure do hope that you will use this idea!

Thank you for visiting me.

Many smiles, Conny