Category: diy

diy, fabric project, tutorials, Uncategorized

Re-cover Your Portable Ironing Board

Deb Gehringer

A few years ago I upcycled a plywood board that was used for delivering an irrigation pump. Not only was it the perfect size for a portable ironing board, it only needed two small holes plugged to ready it for its next purpose.

A new re-cover was long over due, so I got supplies ready and chose some pretty fabric for the top. Since winter is on the way, I decided to use a stylish pink, orange and white fabric to help brighten my space on darker days. Of course, this lovely print will do all year around.

The next step was to sew an approximate half inch seam along each edge.

Next, I removed the staples and took off the old top. I expected to see stained batting, but since I’ve stopped using a leaky iron it was still like new; I didn’t have to replace it (I did add an extra layer though).

After pressing my cover, my husband stapled on the batting then the fabric cover. After several staples and about ten minutes, I had a finished ironing board.

It’s so cheery!

To date, I have re-covered this board four times and each time it gives my sewing room a refreshed look. And it’s functional too. 😉

For more information on my exact process, here’s the blog post tutorial.

Note: I am not endorsed by any product I have photographed in this post; they are items I like, use and wanted to share information on.

diy, quilting, Uncategorized

Make Your Own Precuts from Scraps

Deb Gehringer

I am certainly not one to waste fabric. As a person who loves fabric and knows all too well how expensive it is, I like to save what I can, even really small pieces. If you’re not one for waste either, here’s an easy tip on how you can get the most out of your fabric and money.

Le Pavot by Sandy Gervais for Moda Fabric

We know that most quilting projects will leave us with left over scraps, maybe from trimming away corners or just from the initial cutting. If you don’t want to throw away perfectly good fabric, why not cut it for future use by making your own precuts?

Here’s an example of my latest ‘made myself precuts.’ The quilt pattern I’m currently making requires several flying geese units that leave a lot of cut-away corners. Because the units are pretty large, the cut-away corner triangles (approximately 2″ x 4″) are big enough to allow me to cut out one 1 ½” square from each piece.

After cutting out the 1 ½” squares, there’s barely any fabric left leaving minimal waste. Easy and economical, right?

For me, the biggest challenge with doing this is deciding when to cut the fabric. Because I’m usually excited to keep on sewing the project at hand (it’s hard to take extra time to cut scraps) but I usually do it as I go along so I don’t forget what they’re for, and I know it’ll save time later. It’s personal preference whether you cut as you go, or later on.

Keep in mind that you can make a variety of sizes of your own precuts based on the size of scraps you have left over from your quilting projects. Anything goes…

Since I have been doing this for quite a while, I have saved myself a lot of time and fabric – it’s definitely a win-win situation!

diy, tutorials, Uncategorized

DIY Quilt Ladder Tutorial

Deb Gehringer

Don’t you just love those beautiful leaning ladders for displaying quilts? I know I do, but I didn’t want to pay upwards of $200 for one. I knew my husband and I could do a DIY for a LOT less, and we did, we made ours for under $20!

Here’s what we had to buy:
(4) ¾″ × 1 ½″ × 6′ Select Pine boards = $3.83 each
Total cost of $15.32 (+ tax)

1 box (of 25) 1 ½″ construction wood screws
Total cost of $2.17 (+ tax)

We purchased the boards and wood screws at Home Depot. Any big box hardware store should carry all other supplies and tools.

I should note that that was our price was less than $20 because we had the additional necessary items on hand: paint brush/foam brush, wood stain, polycrylic protective finish, paint, primer, a variety of sandpaper and the tools. If you don’t have these items, it will cost more, but nowhere near what a retailer is asking.

I was so happy with the first one, I asked my husband to help out again and we made a second one. I finished them differently; the first one I stained and the second one I painted white. That way, I can move them around the house and always have a fresh, new look.

This was a fun project for both of us. It was really rewarding to make something for our home that not only is attractive, but useful, too. I also found that working with wood was relaxing and rather enjoyable. 🙂

The time spent on each ladder varied. Estimated time on construction was about 2 ½ hours and it took about 3 – 3 ½ hours to sand, stain and apply polyurethane. It was much more time consuming to paint. I applied one coat of primer and four coats of paint, which took several hours, but was worth it. I love both results.

IMGP8215.jpg

Finished ladder measures 6′ H × 19″ W × 1 ½″ D.

If you’d like to make your own, click here for my downloadable PDF DIY Quilt Ladder Tutorial. The tutorial is easy-to-follow with step-by-step instructions and plenty of photos.

Here’s to creating and saving a ton of money at the same time!