Amy Butler's In Stitches: More Than 25 Simple and Stylish Sewing Projects (17 page)

c.
Using your scissors, trim the 2 corners
*
in the seam allowance, making sure not to clip the stitching.

*
See page 172
for an explanation of trimming corners.

Step 17. Attach the ribbon to the bottom corners of your duvet cover and comforter to keep the comforter in place inside the cover.

a.
Take your ribbon and cut it into 4 pieces, each 18″ long.

b.
With the
Wrong
side of your duvet cover facing out, fold the first piece of ribbon in half crosswise, place the center of the ribbon in the seam allowance at one of the bottom corners of the duvet cover, and pin it in place.

c.
Stitch across the ribbon a few times to secure the ribbon.

d.
Repeat steps 17b and 17c to attach a second piece of ribbon to the other bottom corner of the duvet cover.
(
FIGURE 17D
)

e.
Repeat steps 17b and 17c to attach a ribbon to each bottom corner of the comforter you will be using inside the duvet cover.

Step 18. Put the final touches on the Patchwork Duvet Cover.

a.
Turn the duvet cover
Right
side out and press it flat. Topstitch with a
¹
/
₄
″ seam around finished edges of the duvet cover, excluding the finished opening at the top, backstitching at each end. (Be careful not to catch the ribbons on the inside of the bottom corners of the duvet cover when topstitching.)

b.
Tie the ribbons at the bottom corners of your Patchwork Duvet Cover to the ribbons at the bottom corners of your comforter insert, in order to keep it from moving. Slip the duvet cover over your comforter and button the top closed.

BEDSIDE ORGANIZER

FINISHED SIZES:
MAGAZINE POCKET (2): 14″ WIDE × 14″ LONG (ON EACH END OF THE DECK) EYEGLASS POCKET (2): 3″ WIDE × 6″ LONG | CD PL AYER POCKET (2): 7″ WIDE × 6″ LONG IPOD/PEN POCKET (2): 6″ WIDE × 6″ LONG | SMALL MISCELLANEOUS POCKET (2): 10 ″ WIDE × 4″ LONG LARGE MISCELLANEOUS POCKET (2): 10 ″ WIDE × 6″ LONG

A tidy, serene bedroom environment is key to getting a good night’s sleep. And there’s nothing serene about a cluttered night table. The solution? Keep your bedtime essentials right at your bedside! This fabric organizer has a place for everything you need—magazines, digital music players, tissues, eyeglasses, lip balm, pens, journals—so you can rest easy. Don’t worry, I haven’t forgotten your partner—there’s an identical set of pockets for the other side of the bed, too!

FABRICS

• 2
¹
/
₂
yards (54″-wide) home-decor-weight cotton fabric for the organizer, lining, and deck topper

•
¹
/
₄
yard (44″-wide) coordinating cotton flannel to line the eyeglass pockets

• 1
¹
/
₈
yards (60″-wide) cotton canvas for the deck (for any size mattress; cotton duck or twill could also be used)

OTHER SUPPLIES

• Coordinating thread

• Yardstick or ruler

• Chalk pencil or fabric marker

• Scissors

• Masking tape

• Straight pins

• Turning tool (such as a closed pair of scissors)

NOTES

• All seams are
¹
/
₂
″ unless otherwise stated. (The
¹
/
₂
″ seam allowance is included in all cutting measurements.)

• The length of the deck is determined by the width of your mattress. Mattress sizes differ slightly from one manufacturer to another. Please measure the width of your mattress before beginning your project.

• Preshrink your fabric by washing, drying, and pressing it before starting your project.

Step 1. Cut out all pieces from the fabric.

a.
Simply measure and mark the dimensions below directly onto the
Wrong
side of the fabric, using a yardstick and a chalk pencil. Then, using your scissors, cut out each panel following the marked lines.
(FIGURE BEDSIDE ORGANIZER OVERVIEW)

FROM THE FABRIC FOR THE ORGANIZER, LINING, AND DECK TOPPER (
FIGURE 1
)

• Cut 2 magazine pocket panels: 17
¹
/
₂
″ wide × 31
¹
/
₂
″ long

• Cut 2 magazine pocket linings: 17
¹
/
₂
″ wide × 31
¹
/
₂
″ long

• Cut 2 eyeglass pockets: 4″ wide × 7″ long

• Cut 2 CD pockets: 8″ wide × 7″ long

• Cut 2 iPod/pen pockets: 7″ wide × 7″ long

• Cut 2 small miscellaneous pockets: 11″ wide × 5″ long

• Cut 2 large miscellaneous pockets: 11″ wide × 7″ long

• Cut 2 deck toppers: 16″ wide × 7″ long

FROM THE FABRIC FOR THE POCKET LININGS

• Cut 2 eyeglass pocket linings: 4″ wide × 7″ long

FROM THE FABRIC FOR THE DECK

• Cut 2 decks:
*
16″ wide × (width of mattress + 29″) divided by 2 (For example, if you have a standard queen-size mattress, each piece would be 16″ wide × (60″ + 29″) divided by 2, or 16″ wide × 44
¹
/
₂
″ long.)

*
Cut these panels with the length going across the width of the canvas.

b.
In order to keep your pieces organized, mark each piece by writing the name on a piece of masking tape and attaching to the wrong side of each panel as it is cut.

Step 2. Mark the folding guidelines on the magazine pocket panel.
(
FIGURE 2
)

a.
Lay the first magazine pocket panel on a flat surface with the
Wrong
side of the fabric facing up. Fold the 17
¹
/
₂
″ top raw edge in
¹
/
₂
″ toward the
Wrong
side and firmly press a crease on the fold. Now open up the fold. Repeat this step for the 17
¹
/
₂
″ bottom raw edge.

b.
Next, fold both of the side raw edges in 1
³
/
₄
″ toward the
Wrong
side and firmly press a crease on both folds. Open up the folds.

c.
Then, measure down 14
¹
/
₂
″ from the top raw edge on the right side and make a mark. Move your yardstick over to the left side, measure down 14
¹
/
₂
″ again, and make another mark. Use your yardstick to draw a line connecting the 2 marks. Fold the magazine pocket panel on the line, folding the
Wrong
sides together. Press a firm crease on the fold.

d.
Follow the instructions in step 2c to measure, mark, and press 14
¹
/
₂
″ up from the bottom raw edge.

e.
Now, fold the magazine pocket panel in half with
Wrong
sides together, matching the top and bottom raw edges, and press a firm crease at the folded edge to mark the center bottom of the magazine pocket panel. Set the magazine pocket panel aside.

Step 3. Make the eyeglass pocket.

a.
First, take one eyeglass pocket and eyeglass pocket lining, place them
Right
sides together, matching the raw edges, and pin them together. Then, stitch a
¹
/
₂
″ seam around the raw edges, leaving a 2″ opening centered along the bottom raw edge. Trim all 4 corners
*
in the seam allowance, being careful not to clip into the stitching.

*
See page 172
for an explanation of trimming corners.

b.
Now, turn the eyeglass pocket
Right
side out, using your turning tool
*
to push out the corners, and press.

*
See page 172
for an explanation of a turning tool.

c.
Fold the 2″ opening
¹
/
₂
″ under along the bottom edge, toward the
Wrong
side of the fabric, and press.

d.
Then, topstitch
*
with a
¹
/
₄
″ seam across the top of the eyeglass pocket. Set the eyeglass pocket aside.

*
See page 172
for an explanation of topstitching.

Step 4. Make the CD player pocket.

a.
First, take one CD player pocket piece, fold under
¹
/
₄
″ toward the
Wrong
side at the top (8″) raw edge, and press. Fold under
¹
/
₄
″ again and stitch close to the inner folded edge.

b.
Now, fold under
¹
/
₂
″ toward the
Wrong
side on both side edges and the bottom raw edge and press. Set the CD player pocket aside.

Step 5. Make the iPod/pen pocket.

a.
First, take one iPod/pen pocket piece, fold under the top raw edge
¹
/
₄
″ toward the
Wrong
side, and press. Fold under
¹
/
₄
″ again and stitch close to the inner folded edge.

b.
Now, fold under
¹
/
₂
″ toward the
Wrong
side on both side raw edges and along the bottom raw edge and press.

c.
With the
Right
side of the iPod/pen pocket facing up, use a chalk pencil or fabric marker to draw a line from the top edge to the bottom edge 1″ from, and parallel to, the folded left edge. Measure and draw a second parallel line 1″ from the first. Measure and draw a third parallel line 1″ from the second line.
(
FIGURE 5C, D
)

d.
Measure 4″ down from the top of the third line and make a mark. Then, measure 4″ down from the top right edge of the iPod/pen pocket and make a second mark. Use your yardstick to draw a line connecting the 2 marks. Set the iPod/pen pocket aside.
(
FIGURE 5C, D
)

NOTE:
These drawn lines will be used as stitching guidelines to create smaller compartments for pens and your iPod in step 7d.

Step 6. Make the small and large miscellaneous pockets.

a.
Take one small miscellaneous pocket piece, fold under
¹
/
₄
″ toward the
Wrong
side on the long top raw edge, and press. Then fold under
¹
/
₄
″ again and press. Stitch close to the inner folded edge.

b.
Follow the instructions in step 6a to finish the top long raw edge of the large miscellaneous pocket.

BEDSIDE ORGANIZER OVERVIEW
This illustration shows the Bedside Organizer from above, as it would look lying across the box springs.

FIGURE 1

LAYOUT FOR THE BEDSIDE ORGANIZER