So, for many months, I've had this project on my list of things to do. Our bedroom has needed updating for quite some time. For example, it was only about 4 months ago that I finally took the blankets that I bought at Ikea, down from my windows, and replaced them with actual curtains. It added an element of sophistication to the room to have real curtains. I've always liked our bed frame, and our night stands are the real deal from Pottery Barn (impressed much??). Tupperware drawers have been eliminated from our bedroom, as we are no longer students.
Anyhoo, at the end of last summer, I finally took our old duvet cover off our bed in order to motivate myself to make some new bedding. I think that duvet was my first major sewing project. It turned out fine, but the quality left a little something to be desired. Since then, we've lived with just a plain white comforter on our bed. BOOORING. This last week I finally pulled the trigger and started cutting fabric. And, after 3 days of driving myself crazy, here is our new comforter:
And, yes, I know the pillows don't match well. That's next on my list.
Well, after all my hard work, I decided to do a little tutorial for all those wishing to make their own duvet cover. So, here goes:
Step 1: Stop! Don't do it! You'll drive yourself crazy! It's not worth it! Take this advice--save yourself money, time, and your family relationships--Don't do it!
Step 2: Should you ignore that fabulous advice in step one, continue on as such. Go to fabric store, and fall in love with an overpriced piece of home decor fabric. Purchase 2 yards, without knowing exactly how you will us it, and take home. Let set on the floor of your bedroom for 4 months.
Step 3: After 4 months has passed, finally decide to get to work. Find an hour in your very hectic life where you can ditch the kids to go to the fabric store. Furiously race around the store carrying large bolts of fabrics, while you try to match reds. (Don't worry---in the end you will get home and realize that you failed) When your free hour is up just buy whatever is in your hands. At check out, come to the realization that you've spent as much (or more) money on fabric as you would have spent on store bought bedding. Give an exasperated sigh.
Step 4: Set up the appropriate atmosphere for quality sewing.
A. Start your project on laundry day, so that you have the dryer buzzer screaming at you every 45 minutes
B. It's best to have 3 children who absolutely need something every 10 minutes. If children aren't available, 3 very needy monkeys would work. Or goats.
C. Be sure that the youngest child/monkey/goat refuses to take a nap longer that 40 minutes.
Step 5: Place main piece of fabric on bed and guesstimate how much to cut off. In fact, pretty much everything from here on out is guessing.
Just start cutting. Then sewing. Then cutting. Then sewing. Ooops! You sewed that piece together wrong....unpick it, and try again.
Step 6: Ignore your children/monkeys/goats. When one of them comes to you, feeling neglected, and asks to snuggle, tell her to go find her blanket and snuggle with that. An hour later, you will find her like this:
...snuggling with a chair, instead. (it's so sad!!)
Step 7: Cut, sew, cut, sew, burn yourself on the iron, cut, sew, unpick the seam, sew it together the right way....etc, you get the idea. Try your hand at sewing corners, and mess them up. Try to fix them, and mess them up worse. Wonder if this is what evil seamstresses are banished to do for eternity in Hell. Decide right then that you will never want to go to Evil Seamstress Hell.
Step 8: Once you feel like you are done with the top piece, throw it on your bed, only to find that you are a few inches short on the sides. [Exasperated sigh, again.]
Step 9: For the opening, try buttons. When you find that your sewing machine isn't designed to sew button holes larger than an inch, and your buttons are 1 and 1/4 inches, try sewing them anyway. After 5 failures, go ahead and rip a 3 inch gash into your fabric with your seam ripper.
Step 10: Give up on the buttons and just use snaps. Snaps that don't snap very well.
Step 11: Now you are ready to sew on the back (a queen sized flat sheet...because you wanted to spend MORE money on this project!!). When your children/monkeys/goats want to walk all over your project you have spread out so nicely on the floor so you can pin it together, yell at them to get out of the room until they cry. Do monkeys or goats cry?
Step 12: After you have everything sewn together, you're basically done! I prefer to add some way to keep the comforter from sliding around inside the cover, so I add 1" snaps (that do work!!) at the four corners. Spend an hour hand sewing them on wrong. Pull out that seam ripper!!! Spend another hour sewing them on the right way.
Step13: Put your comforter together and put it one your bed. Shake your head, and wonder to yourself, why you drive yourself crazy doing such silly/huge projects. See Step 1--don't say I didn't warn you!
Or, maybe he was about to pinch his butt, I dunno....
