Do-it-yourself projects for making lampshades, bordered rugs, padded headboards, bed skirts, shower curtains, table cloths, seat covers,shades & swags, sewn or not.
One way to both personalize your home and stay within a limited budget is to craft decorating items by hand. There are many benefits to creating your own home décor, including an expanded range of fabric and design options, as well as the opportunity to express your unique sense of creativity. The two books described here will help any home crafter find confidence in developing skills and expressing style, with or without sewing skills
Home Décor Sewing 101: A Beginner's Guide to Sewing for the Home
This book is a wonderful reference for someone who has a sewing machine but is not comfortable using it, and would like to learn enough about sewing to create a few basic home accessories. Included are instructions on getting familiar with the machine and its parts, as well as how to thread it and make the first stitch (scrap fabric is recommended.)
The Basics
Next is a list of basic supplies that may be needed, much like keeping a kitchen pantry stocked, and techniques on selecting and working with fabric. There are even instructions on hand sewing, which is a necessary and unavoidable task of many sewing projects. Once a home decorator gains some basic sewing machine knowledge, learning to sew curtains or table cloths becomes a fun, rather than daunting, task.
Do-It-Yourself Projects Included
Included in the book are instructions for 20 home decorating projects, including napkins, tablecloths, curtains and swags, duvets, shower curtains, bed covers, pillows and shams. No more overpriced store purchases, and finally a way to get the exact mix of color and design you prefer.
No-Sew Fabric Décor: Transform Your Home Without Sewing a Stitch
After all that instruction, if you still find yourself unable to face a sewing machine, fear not. It is possible to create practically any home décor project without ever going near a machine. Be forewarned, however. No sewing does not equate with no effort, much to many crafters' dismay. Irons, fusible web, tape and fray preventer are just a few of the products and techniques to learn that will be necessary substitutions for a traditional sewing machine.
Sew Projects
For many crafters, the learning curve is well worth it. The number of homemade decorating items you can create without actually sewing is surprising. Instructions are included in this guide for lampshades, bordered rugs, padded headboards, bed skirts, shower curtains, table cloths, seat covers, shades, swags and more. The options are limited only by imagination and energy. Inspiration for personal home design is provided merely by flipping through the pages.
Whether a new sewer or non sewer, these two books will help inspire and instruct on easy, home-crafted projects that will improve and personalize your home.
Sew Fabric Décor, Pamela J. Hastings, 160 pp., Creative Publishing International 2004, 978-1589231535, $21.95
Home Décor Sewing 101, Creative Publishing International, 176 pp., 2004, 978-1589231429, $16.47
