Presenting…Secrets of Home Décor Sewing!

That’s me on the set of my Stitch Workshop video less than a month ago, and thanks to the superhuman video team at Interweave, the video is already available for download (or to preorder on DVD)! Having gotten used to working on a year-plus book schedule, it feels like quite a whirlwind.

Like the cover says, the video’s all about home-dec sewing—easy ways to sew pillows and more to dress up your living space. Home dec was what got me sewing in the first place, so I cover all the basics in the video for people who might be similarly new to the field. One of the best things about sewing for the home is how accessible it is—if you can run a sewing machine, you can make a pillow.

Of course, there’re a few tricks to make it easier, and I share all the tips I’ve got in the video. You can see how I join the ends of piping cord, for example, in this preview from the Sew Daily Shop:

For more tips and tricks to build your home-dec sewing skills, download and watch the video now or preorder the DVD, which is scheduled for a June 26 release. And keep an eye out for more home-dec hints here during the countdown to the DVD’s arrival.

Update: To see everything in intimate detail, the video is also available in high definition.

Coming to a screen near you

If you read Stitch magazine’s Sew Daily blog or subscribe to their newsletter, you may have seen this little snapshot yesterday…

Yep, that’s yours truly on the set of my very upcoming Stitch Workshop video, due out within the next few months. Here are some of the kind words editor Amber Eden had to say:

I was truly amazed at all of the tricks that Kevin had up his sleeve when it comes to pillows. If you are familiar with any of Kevin's work, you know that he creates dramatic home decor accessories. In fact, I think that everyone on set was charmed. We had filmed over an hour of sewing tips and it is all about pillows! I love learning any new sewing tricks and I definitely walked away with a few. Kevin was also pleased that he had taught us all something new.

Check the full blog post for a few more sneak-peak details and share some pillow-making tips of your own. And I’ll be sure to let you know when the video’s ready for viewing!

Gardens of fabric and flowers

Two weeks ago there was almost nothing blooming in our garden aside from the camellias, but about the time I got my Vintage Seed Packet Wall Art project back from Stitch, that was all changing. So I dragged the piece out to the front yard so I could show you some stitched-up flowers amongst the real ones that have been pleasant surprises during out first spring in this house.

I have to credit my friend Sandra Mollon for putting dimensional flower appliqués in my head and for her inspiring use of silk and other non-cotton fabrics. She leads a monthly appliqué group I attend and is always demonstrating different ways to make flowers for Baltimore Album and other quilts—this ain’t no Baltimore, but it was a fun way to play with some new-to-me techniques. One of the things Sandra always does especially well as a teacher is making new techniques accessible, and I hope the raw-edge approaches I’ve used in this project serve a similar purpose.

These oriental poppies are a bit vicarious, since I haven’t had much success growing the real ones in my short gardening career. Generally fabric seems much easier to bend to my will than live plants! (You may notice in the magazine that the petals got a little squashed in the mail; since they’re only sewn down at the centers so they can be fluffed up again with a finger if that happens.)

I’ve had more success growing celosias, though this was the scariest part of the project to sew. I’ve mentioned my aversion to velvet, but it was the natural material for representing the feathery flowers, so I faced my fear. As a side note, I was really pleased with how the embroidered “CELOSIA” text turned out.

Back to the real garden…these are bluebells, right? It’s been fascinating to see what the plants at our new place have in store for us, but also little tricky to identify everything. I almost ripped these guys out several times when I couldn’t tell if they were bulbs or weeds; they’re growing like weeds but are kind of pretty, so I’m thinking “wildflower” may be the best term for them. And the bluebell theory is supported by bluebells’ supposed preference for leafy forest floors, which doesn’t sound that far from the state of this flower bed, littered as it is with, uh, nature’s mulch.

No go with the oriental poppies, but the Iceland poppies I planted in the winter were some of the first signs of spring color. Gotta love those big, rumply petals.

Hopefully spring’s springing wherever you are too! If you’re itching to stitch some flowers, look for my pattern in the Summer 2012 issue of Stitch!

Join me at Sew Many Quilts in May

Click to watch the preview video for my class at Sew Many Quilts

I’ll be teaching my Peacocks on Parade quilt pattern at Sew Many Quilts in Tracy, CA, in May, and shop owner Colette has started putting together YouTube videos to show what the classes are all about. Isn’t that a great idea?!

If you’re nearby, I hope you’ll sign up to join us at the class on May 19! I’m really looking forward to seeing how other quilters interpret the pattern.

Springtime Stitch projects

With spring’s creeping up on us (it’s almost March? Seriously?), the Spring 2012 issue of Stitch has crept onto newsstands. Meanwhile, my Hexagon Pouf Ottoman, made for the Alfresco feature, remains firmly indoors despite its hardy skin of outdoor canvas. It’s not that it’s too cold to venture out (this is California, after all); it’s more that I haven’t quite got my bum in gear to clear the garden of the weeds and other assorted debris of winter, so the backyard isn’t the loveliest of places to sit, nor to photograph project samples.

I liked the idea of making a fabric footstool that was a little less bloblike than what I was seeing in shops, so I pulled the structural inspiration from the hexagon print. The quilter in me naturally inclined to piecing the top from triangles of striped fabric, while the shaping is probably my first foray into darts—all the dressmaking books that’ve crossed my work desk taught me something after all.

The other pattern of mine you’ll find in the spring Stitch is for this pair of Bird Collage Tea Towels, made with fused broderie perse and some free-motion embroidered details. You may have to zoom in to get a good look, but I was pleasantly surprised at the branch’s bark-like texture, made by just sewing back and forth. I used a finer thread in the bobbin that was a bit lighter than the top threads, and the occasional dots of bobbin thread add some extra color depth too. Now I’m wondering how it would look with a brown variegated thread…hmm…

Both of these projects are quick and fun, and as usual there’s a lot of other great stuff in the magazine too (I want to make the placemats on the cover!). Check it out.