New Craft: Sewing

This particular craft adventure started for me because I was looking for sofa pillows for our new house. The ones I picked turned out to be "designer pillows" (is there such a thing?) and they costed 500 DKK (76 USD/50 GBP) each! 

It just didn't feel like an acceptable price for a pillow...

So instead I did some research and invested into this little beauty.

I had absolutely no previous experience with sewing. I didn't even know how to thread the needle on a machine. But surprisingly enough, with a little help from books, internet and my lovely husband (Danes have housework classes in primary school!) I was able to make the first trial project.

I didn't think I could make pillows I would be happy to display in my living room right of the bat.

Instead, I bought some discounted rough cotton fabric and made an envelope for my laptop. It took several tries to get the seams semi-straight but the final result was usable.

Encouraged by the experience, I bought the fabric I wanted and two pillows at the local haberdashery store and set out to do the job.

I picked out a simple envelope pattern from Sewing Machine Basics by Jane Bolsover - a book I can wholeheartedly recommend for beginners. A similar patterns can be found all over the internet. For example here or here.

One cozy evening later, two pillow envelopes were ready. The effect is visible on the photo below. They are not perfect. One is a little too big for the pillow and the other's seam is not perfectly straight if you look closely enough.

But they are proudly displayed on the sofa and another, bigger one in yellow, is in the plans.

Once I am done with the pillows, I am planning on making stuffed toys from my friend's babies. There are so many lovely patterns out there. Just look at this toothy little monster or these bunnies.

I am ashamed to admit I was all squeamish where sewing was concerned. I thought the initial investment was too substantial to risk for a craft I have never tried.

Luckily, I am pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to get started. I wish I had started earlier. Come to think of it, a sewing intro class might have taught me the basics and rid me of my "fears". It is a very practical skill, everyone should have.

Nonetheless, I am very happy I have EVENTUALLY started and I am looking forward to making many more projects.