Border OptionsHugging border, circle, square, or rectangle — with a 3mm satin stitch.
Backing OptionsAvailable with iron-on, sew-on, or velcro backing.
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This charming pillow features stippling, ruffles, and adorable kitties, perfect for adding a touch of love to your home decor on Valentine's Day. The light density stitching offers a delicate and cozy feel. Step-by-step instructions are included.
This project is so cute when finished! Use software to set up the design for one hooping, and to add quilting. If you do not have embroidery software but a machine that is capable, setup and adding stipple quilting may be done at the machine. If you have neither software or a machine capable, the project may still be done with multiple hoopings and then free motion quilting done after the embroidery. Just use the design setup as shown in the software as a guide for hooping or machine setup.
Step 1:
Read through the instructions thoroughly before beginning and assemble all the materials needed to complete the project. If you vary the size of the pillow, be sure to adjust the material quantities. Press the fabrics well with spray starch.
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Step 2:
Measure the pillow and add ½” all around for seam allowances. Write these measurements down to be used in setting up the stitching file and cutting fabrics.
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Step 3:
In embroidery software, Import “Be My Valentine.” Center it in the hoop. Next import the cats and position them as shown. If it is available in the software you have, stippling may be added around the cats—for this project that part was done at the machine. Save the file and then export for stitching.
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Step 4:
Prepare the hoop for the fabric. Cut a piece of the white Kona cotton larger than the hoop and hoop the fabric with one layer of poly mesh stabilizer. Load the design on the machine, select the hoop size, and rotate the design for stitching.
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Step 5:
Stitch the design—do not color sort—following the color sequence.
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Step 6:
After the main parts of the design stitch, remove the hoop from the machine but do not remove the design from the hoop. Lightly use the temporary spray adhesive to hold the two pieces of batting together and to the back of the embroidery stabilizer.
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Step 7:
Place the hoop back on the machine and stitch the stippling to quilt the layers together. If the stippling was added in the software, just stitch. If using the machine to add the stippling, follow the instructions in the machine manual to add it. If doing free motion stitching, remove the fabric from the hoop and add the stitching.
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Step 8:
After the stippling is completed, remove the fabric from the hoop. From the center of the design, measure, mark, and cut the fabric to the pillow size, adding the seam allowances. Use a French curve to round out the corners. Pin all the layers together making sure the fabric is smooth. Thread the sewing machine with white thread. Baste around the drawn line.
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Step 9:
Cut around the basted line. Use a tape measure on it’s edge to measure around the outside of the pillow—this measurement is used to figure out how much fabric to cut for the ruffles.
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Step 10:
Cut two pieces of the heart print fabric about 2/3 the width of the pillow, and round the edges. Turn under the straight cut edges about 1”, and then again. Stitch down these edges which form the middle area for pillow insertion.
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Step 11:
Use the remaining heart fabric to cut 2.5” bias strips to measure 2.5-3 times the length around the pillow in step 9 (for the project pillow 160” were cut). Piece the strips together at the sewing machine, press each seam flat,
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Step 12:
and then open, and then trim the seam to about ¼”. Press the entire strip and then bring the long cut edges together and pin. Baste the long edges together.
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Step 13:
Make a decision here. Do you want the ruffle to have a soft or a crisp edge? I wanted a crisp edge, so I pressed the ruffle flat and then used the ruffling attachment for the machine to pleat and gather the ruffle.
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Step 14:
To attach the ruffle to the pillow front, roll under the short cut end twice and pin the ruffle to the pillow, matching the cut edges. Pin the riffle around the pillow, easing more of the ruffle into the corners. When reaching the beginning of the ruffle, round off the end, pin in place, and trim away the excess ruffle; save the ruffle for another small project.
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Step 15:
Baste the ruffle to the pillow front, using the ruffle stitching line as a guide. Now it is time to complete the pillow.
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Step 16:
With right sides together, place the pillow back sections over the top, matching cut edges. Sew the back to the front using the basting line as a stitching guide; sew around again.
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Step 17:
Turn the pillow right side out, pulling gently on the ruffles to pull out the corners and seams.
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Step 18:
Because the corners of the pillow cover were rounded and the pillow form corners are square, tuck in the corners of the pillow. Stuff the pillow into the cover through the opening at the back.
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Step 19:
Congratulations on completing this Sweet Kitty Valentine pillow.
Ramona Baird has been in the embroidery industry for over 23 years. She and her husband owned a commercial and retail embroidery store in Arizona for many years. She is an experienced digitizer having been mentored by award-winners Pat Williams and Lindee Goodall. Ramona is a contributor to “Creative Machine Embroidery” magazine having 5 covers to her credit. Ramona has worked for Wilcom America and served many years as Education Director for the American Sewing Guild. With a degree in fashion design, she is able to design and execute patterns which Pat Williams says are “out of the box” in creativity and application. Ramona likes to challenge the boundaries of embroidery and bring new and exciting designs, ideas, and projects to EmbroideryDesigns.com. She wants embroiderers of all levels to increase their skills and enjoyment in using their embroidery machine for gift-making and personal pleasure.
