She honored me a couple months ago by asking if I'd make a ringbearer pillow for their wedding. How could I say no? I love her and I love to make pillows!
She asked me to make it of burlap and lace, with a simple white satin bow, one with a finished size of 7x7 inches or slightly larger because the little ringbearer is only three years old. I can't wait to meet him. He can't wait to put on his special suit and do a special job carrying a special pillow for his special nanny.
It started with gathering materials. See the darling miniature blue sewing machine? I found it an antiques store and paid $20 for it as my inspiration piece for my new craft room. Little did I realize it is not only decorative, it is heavy enough to serve as a weight for holding down slippery fabrics on the table.
Finished size: almost 8" square
If you are thinking of making one this size, you need:
-2pcs @ 10 inches square (to account for the loft of the stuffing plus 1" seam allowances)-a coordinating lining fabric (so your stuffing won't come out--and believe me, if you're involved in your child's wedding, your stuffing will come out in more ways than one)
- sewing scissors, pinking shears (because burlap will fray terribly and shed, and you will want to change your shirt afterwards), pins, hand needle (thick), and matching threads and tape measure. (I like my petite, locking one from Home Depot. Great for one-handed measuring.) Extra sewing machine needles.
(Breaking your last needle might be one of those aforementioned cases when your personal stuffing tries to come out.) Iron, spray starch (if you choose lace that has petals needed to be pressed open).
-18" of lace (I chose one to complement the bride's gown. Come to think of it, this measurement about equals her waist.)
-narrow satin ribbon for a bow
-preferably a small weight to keep the fabrics in place
Cut your lining 1/4" smaller than the burlap all the way around. Then pin it to the burlap. (There is no right or wrong side to the burlap.) Leave a space for your hand to put the stuffing through. You'll have to really push and shove that stuffing in.
Because my memory is shorter than the perimeter of an 8" inch pillow, I put TWO pairs of pins beside the opening. This tells me to STOP SEWING HERE. It's too easy to zone out and zoom right on past a single pin and then too hard to rip out stitches.
I learned that:1. Burlap sheds a lot
2. It makes me itch when it gets into my clothes.
3. It sheds a lot.
4. It makes me itch when it gets into my clothes.
After the 3.5 sides are sewn, turn the whole thing inside out, and push the corners out good and smooth . Then stuff the pillow till it's as puffy as you want it. Then hand sew it closed.
(For the record, this was the practice pillow before I realized how much the burlap frays and how the stuffing comes out of an unlined burlap pillow. Having learned my lesson, I made a second pillow.)
I had to press open some of these petals gingerly so as not to disturb the pearls. One of them was so stubborn I had to stitch it open. (When the other petals see that you mean business, they will cooperate. Kind of like raising more than one child. This son of mine getting married is the third-born, and most compliant.)
Tie a ribbon and tack it securely in place. (We may or may not attach fake wedding rings. The best man will have the real ones.) Also tack a few places along the back. I left space between "tacks" for the ringbearer to slip his little hands through, but forgot to take a picture.)
Voila! A burlap and lace ringbearer pillow. My precious almost-daughter absolutely loves it! That's all that matters, right? Her smiles and hugs make it worth it all. She is so grateful for the least little thing you do for her. That's one of the first things we noticed about her: grateful, grateful, grateful.
No wonder my son doesn't mind sacrificing for her.
No wonder he wants to promise to be hers forever with the exchange of rings from a little pillow.
2 comments:
I love, love, love this pillow! It's darling!
Thanks, Carrie.
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