Sunday, January 31, 2010

Valentine Bean Bags - and a tutorial

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Craft level: simple
Skill level: beginner
Fun level: very

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I've been making bean bags since...well...for a long time - and lately I've been seeing a lot of them during my morning blog surfs. I had some scraps left over from a recent project (I'll show you in a couple of weeks) and decided to put together a few Valentine bean bags. While I was at it, I thought I'd throw in a little tutorial.

Materials needed:
- 2 squares of fabric (mine are 6"x 6")
- fabric scraps for applique
- fusible webbing (fabric iron-on stuff)
- filler (I used plastic pellets because one of these is going to my toddler nephew and I want it to be washable, but you can also use rice or beans)

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Here we go:
Iron the fusible webbing to the back of a scrap of fabric. This will be your cut-out applique.
Trace your template and cut it out. (I used a heart shape that I created in Microsoft Word by turning on the drawing tool bar and making a heart. There are all kinds of shapes in there; stars, arrows, voice bubbles, etc.)
Peel off the back and iron it on to your top square.

Stitch around your applique shape to secure edges. I like to use a wide zig-zag stitch.

Pin squares right sides together, stitch around the square leaving a 3" opening (Trust me, leave a large opening! It's easier to fill this way.)

Trim the corners so that when it's turned right-side out your corners will be pretty! (I use a chopstick to poke into the corners once I've turned it to make them look good.)

Turn. Press. Stitch 1/8" from the edge (don't stitch over your hole for the filling!).

Fill it with plastic pellets, rice, or beans. (I roll up a piece of paper and place it into the hole to make a funnel. For the 6"x 6" square I used 1 cup (8 oz.) of filler.)
Stitch the opening closed.

Easy, huh?

Have fun!

:o) ♥

(PS: This bean bag is for you, Carrie.)

8 comments:

sharyncarlson said...

Super cute! I love the fabric you used.

Lizzie said...

These are really lovely. Thank you for the little tutorial - it's nice to be shown how you achieve something. I like the contrasting topstitching - it adds just the right pizazz to the project!
You could fill these with lavender or dried rose petals, to make those little cushions to put in your undies drawer.

helena said...

they look great - love the hint of red in the fabric and then used in the stitching. noticed the use of a chalkboard for staging the shoot - very nice

Maria Ontiveros said...

Very cute and excellent tutorial filming!!! You did a great job with your photos.
Rinda (the non-sewer)

humel said...

Oh, so cute :-) Can't wait to see the other project! x

Ruth said...

They are quite lovely. Looking forward to seeing the next project.

Unknown said...

Yay! I love these bean bags and I'm so happy you made one for me. :D

Mom said...

Love these! Another craft idea for me to steal!!! xo

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