AccuStars and Stripes Pillow for the 4th of July!

UPDATE 5 July 11!!  Winners below!!!

When my blogging buddy Madame Samm asked me to post on her blog, I was just thrilled and came up with a pillow kit and complete tutorial just for Sew WE Quilt @ Stash Manicure followers.  I hope you're going to love it!

I will be giving away two of these AccuStars and Stripes Pillow kits (int'l. addresses welcome) to two lucky winners on July 4th, 2011!  Show me the love by giving me a follow and commenting about your favorite summer activity to do with your family on my newly re-designed blog at http://www.rocknquilts.blogspot.com .

Since this is Stash Manicure, I raided my stash when designing this pillow!  If you win one of the two newly designed AccuStars and Stripes Pillow kits in our give-away, you will receive the fabric, cording and instructions, along with your choice of monogram in gold, metallic Madeira embroidery thread!


AccuStars and Stripes Pillow for the Fourth of July
...an original design created by Mary Ann @ RocknQuilts

I set up my AccuQuilt cutter and picked out fabrics from my stash on hand:  gold, blue with stars and red with stars.  I had to go to the local quilt shop (where I work) to pick up the white striped material and cording, sew that must mean I need to do more shopping for my stash, right guys & gals?!?  

I just bought this AccuQuilt star die for my AccuQuilt Go! cutter and have been 'dying' to try it out! heehee 

Since Independence Day for the USA is coming up on July 4th, I decided to create a decorative 12"x12" pillow using this die to commemorate the event.

I always highlight my AccuQuilt dies with permanent marker sew I can see them easily.  Do you also do that?

I put two layers of gold fabric through the cutter (the kits in my give-away will include the pre-cut stars!)

and then....

using fabric glue, I chose a pleasing placement for my six AccuStars - five on the blue and one on the red.

(What's your favorite fabric glue to use?)

My Brother 4000D embroidery machine does 60 degree angles (your kit will include this already prepared for you!  Just let me know what three initials you prefer!)

and I increased the density so the metallic gold thread really 'pops'.

Now cut-away the excess stabilizer from behind the machine embroidered "USA"

(this will already be done for you two lucky kit winners!)

I chose a blanket stitch with metallic Madeira embroidery thread in the top and Madeira white embroidery bobbin thread in the bobbin.  

After several stops & turns, I sprayed with Mary Ellen's Best Press starch - I LOVE this starch because it never leaves behind flakes and because it relaxes the fabric and takes away puckers.

Along with my German-made Rowenta iron, my pillow is ready to put together now!

I've chosen a straight stitch middle with J foot for my Brother Innovis 4000D embroidery machine

After cutting out two 11" squares of muslin (included in my kit give-away!), I sewed around all corners and left a six inch opening on one side sew I can stuff with fluff!

Clipping the corners will make for clean edges after turning.

Stuff the fluff!  

(No fluff provided in the kits, so hopefully you have some in your stash!)

Now our front, back and muslin form are ready for the white, striped cording.

This is my wonder machine - the Pfaff Quilt Expression 4.0!  LOVE my QE4!!

(QE2)

(QE4)

I've measured around each side of my 12" block and cut a 3" strip of white striped fabric for my rather enormous, snazzy-lookin' 1 1/2" cording which I cut to 53" to give me enough to go around each corner.  

Rather nautical, isn't it?

(To keep cording from unraveling, be sure to keep the ends taped.)

After sewing my cord binding together, I snip and press my now one piece of binding.

Almost exactly on!

This is why I've chosen the name "RocknQuilts" for my blog - I like my stuff to 'rock'!

This sticky note is to display how the fabric will eventually encase the cording.

Here we go!

(For best results, snip twice around corners.  They will be rounded with such thick cording.)

Pinning works best, but remember to stop and not run over them.  Make sure the cording is sewn down onto the wrong right side of the fabric (learned this the 'hard' way - definitely was not a 'rocking' moment, but learning moments are good, too!)

(Switch to the zipper foot attachment so you can get as close to the cord as possible and use a left straight stitch if your machine has that available.)

Here's the little Brother Ltd. Ed. Project Runway 2000 we'll be using in the quilt shop where I work for next week's Kids Kamp.  Please visit here for an extremely cute chalkboard tote tute I created just for my class

and for YOU - the readers of Sew WE Quilt @ Stash Manicure:

Xtreme Cuteness

To join the cord ends, fold over the left end to create a "sleeve" and 'stuff' the right, open end into it.  You will be sewing over this opening next.

Right sides together :-)

(Blind zipper foot attached.)

Sometimes I don't pin, but with this thick cording, I highly recommend it!

When finished sewing, clip the corners and turn right-side-out!  Almost done!!

Stuff your pillow form into the opening and hand-sew it shut, then...

Ta-Dah!!!  

Happy Fourth of July to my fellow Americans!

Happy Canada Day to all those Canadian buddies out there!

and

happiness to all from all lands!!

If you win one of the two AccuStar Pillow kits and are from outside the USA, please let me know how you would like your pillow monogrammed with three letters in gold thread.

As my 'thank you' for reading along, I would like to tell you that besides the two pillow kits I'm giving away from RocknQuilts at http://www.rocknquilts.blogspot.com, 

one of the two winners will also receive.....

a brand new Stars AccuQuilt die!!!

Now, how can you win?!?  

1.  Please leave a comment here for Madame Samm  and be a follower if you are not already. This blog is great for  reading  posts from sewists and quilters across blogland!!

2.  Follow Mary Ann at her newly re-designed blog.

3.  Finally, please leave a comment at http://www.rocknquilts.blogspot.com about which summer holiday you love best and tell us a bit about how you celebrate it!

4.  And, for an extra chance, create a new post on your blog about this give-away, then come back to Mary Ann's blog and leave a comment about it with the link to your blog post!

Good luck to all!  

**If you don't win and really want to create this pillow, then what?!?  No fear - don't worry - that's not a problem!  Please contact me via my blog and I will be happy to create an AccuStars and Stripes Pillow kit just for you, including your own personalized three-letter monogram in gold, metallic thread for only $20 USD plus postage.  I am a PayPal certified blogger.**

WINNERS!!!

Click HERE.