Pardon My French(ie): A Finish!

Happy Sunday, y'all! I hope your weekend has been fun and restful! The weather is beautiful in my little corner of KY today, but I couldn't help but stop and share this pillow I finished yesterday. My little cousin, Ella, is having a birthday next weekend and I realized, like I normally do, that time had slipped away and the party was nearly here and I was present-less!

Cue this pillow! Ella is French Bulldog crazy, especially since they got their own not long ago. So it only seemed proper to make her a little something with a Frenchie on it to celebrate her birthday. In fact, it looks like HER Frenchie! :)

I drew out my plan on a piece of paper the size of the pillow, making sure everything fit how I wanted. The overall layout was inspired by a picture of a Boston Terrier I found with a simple Google search. Then I used Heat n' Bond to applique the face onto the background fabric, straight stitching around the edges.

Like most of the fonts I've used in the past, I drew the letters out by hand. These were inspired by some scrapbooking stickers I saw, modified a bit to fit better in the space I had for her name.

I finished things up with an envelope backing and...IT ACTUALLY FIT! Y'all, this is the first time I've made a pillow cover that fits the pillow form! I was so ecstatic! I just did a quick search for tutorials on Pinterest beforehand and it paid off. :)

I still need to stick a little label somewhere if I can remember to, then it is ready to make a road trip this weekend! Thanks for reading y'all!

Finish It Up Friday: Birthday Edition!

Pika-CHU!

What, two blog posts in a row?! That's right!! I finished up a little present for Mr. LBC this week since his birthday is Saturday. He's a huge gamer nerd and, like many of our generation, he still loves the Pokemon franchise. I think I hear the Pokemon theme song at least once per day in our house, my husband belting it out off key to the amusement of Elvis and LBC. While I was perusing Etsy for possible gifts, I stumbled across this awesome store that had this cool piece of geometric artwork of Pikachu, probably the most popular character in the entire series. As soon as I saw it, I saw a sewing project!

Fun doodles! It was like a puzzle in reverse. :)

So I got to brainstorming! I drew a rough sketch on a piece of paper and traced it onto some Heat n' Bond. I was a big dumb-dumb and forgot to mirror the image, but no harm in the end.

Stitching away!

After bonding it to the material, I laid out the pieces the way I wanted onto a big scrap of gray fabric and ironed them on. Then it was time to stitch all those shapes down!

This was the point I squealed in excitement because it actually looked like what I wanted!

Simple line of quilting to outline Pikachu.

I did a super simple line of quilting around the shape to let the design shine. Then I made a simple backing with some leftover flannel scraps I had.

Hullo little leopard pillow, do you like your new cover?

As you can see, I still haven't figured out the backing. Lol. I told my husband I can't keep the pillow from pooping out the back, which he got a kick out of. I MUST look up a tutorial so I get it right next time! Fun bit of info: That leopard pillow is actually from my childhood bedroom! I'm so glad to be able to make it useful again. :)

Mr. LBC loves that I called him a Pokemon Master. Lol. The things we do for love! Hahahaha

I also added a simple label, which Mr. LBC liked.

Linking up with NTT and Finish It Up Friday!

Finish It Up Friday: Follow Your Arrow Wherever It Points

Happy Friday y'all! Hope your week has gone well, mine hasn't been too shabby. I got to work a little bit on that lonely arrow block on Wednesday and Thursday night. I'm sad I didn't get better pictures, but by the time I was finished, daylight was long gone. This pillow is inspired by a song by Kacey Musgraves called Follow Your Arrow. The video and song are kind of silly, but I love the line I quilted onto the pillow.

This started out as a gift from my Mom. I use the word gift loosely because she was actually going to toss out this old throw pillow from her and Dad's bedroom. It got a mysterious, ugly orange stain on it and wasn't useful to her anymore. She knows I like refashioning and reusing stuff when I can, so she offered it to me before throwing it away. I gladly accepted and it sat in the closet forever until the lonely arrow block was made. I feel like the size and shape of the pillow fit the block perfectly!

I wanted to try some new quilting on this, but wasn't sure what. I looked online and found a darling little bird that I decided to try. I had to pick out the little head once because it was lopsided, but after fixing it, I think he turned out pretty well. :)

As you can see, I'm about a 1/4 inch too small on the back. :( It doesn't bother me enough to rip everything out and fix it since it is just going to be sitting on my couch with me and Little Black Cat. I'm just learning my lesson for next time so I can improve!

Linking up with Needle and Thread Thursday and Finish It Up Friday!