11/12/2019

Stitch It and Gift It Blog Hop Pocket Pillow Tote

Carla announced her Stitch It and Gift It Blog Hop on one of her blog posts a few months back. It's fun joining Carla on her blog hops and this one fit right in to what I was working on at the time. I hope you have been following the blog hop and enjoying it. Thank you, CARLA!

If you are a list keeper, Spoonflower has a free Hand-Made Holiday To-Do List that can be printed to keep track of projects to make and who you will recieve them. I am finding lists are very helpful for me this time of the year.



So, I'm here to share with you The Pocket Pillow Book Totes I have been making for gifts. These are easy to make. The hardest part is deciding how to coordinate the fabrics!

I'll go through how I make my totes, but I've written an instruction sheet to share with you. Grab it HERE.

FIRST, before I give the instruction rundown, I'll give the list of the other bloggers participating in the Stitch It and Gift It Blog Hop right now.


Monday, November 11th


Tuesday, November 12th

Wednesday, November 13th


Thursday, November 14th


Friday, November 15th

OK! Here we go!
Besides your cutting mat, rotary cutter, pins, and sewing machine, you will need:

1/2 yard main print
1/2 yard coordinating fabric for pocket
14” pillow form
Thread

Follow these steps: 

1. From main print, cut one 14-1/2” x 14-1/2” square and two rectangles 10” x 14-1/2”.



  
2. From coordinating fabric, cut one 14-1/2” x 14-1/2” square and one 6” x 14-1/2” rectangle.

3. Fold and press the 6” x 14-1/2” rectangle in half, open it, fold the edges to the middle, press in half to form a strip that is about 1-1/2” x 14-1/2”. Stitch along both folded edges.
Fold the coordinating 14-1/2" x 14-1/2" fabric in half with wrong sides together. Press and top stitch 1/4" from folded edge. 

4. Hem the two 10” x 14-1/2” rectangles along one 14-1/2” edge of each piece by folding one edge 1/4" and again 1/4" for the hem, pressing and pinning. (If using directional fabrics, hem the top edge of one piece and the bottom edge of the other.)

Now you are ready to put the layers together and sew the pillow!


Place the main 14-1/2” x 14-1/2” piece, right side up on table. 
Find the top center of this piece. Mark 3-1/2" to the left and to the right of the center. 


Pin the 1-1/2” x 14-1/2” handle in place on the top of the main print, with the outer edge of each handle touching that 3-1/2” mark from the center.

Align the pocket with the bottom of main print, matching raw edges.


Place the 14-1/2" raw edge of one hemmed rectangle along the top edge, over the handles, aligning all raw edges.  Re-pin the handle so the pins are now on the outside.

Place the raw edge of the lower hemmed rectangle along the bottom edge, aligning raw edges. The two folded 10" x 14-1/2" pieces will overlap about 3". Pin around all four edges.
Stitch around all edges with a 1/2” seam allowance. Reinforce the handle edges by re-stitching that portion of the seam allowance.



Clip the corners.

Turn right side out through the back opening, push corners out. Insert pillow form. I have an easy way to turn the corners of pillows out and very seldom do I have to use something to poke them out! CLICK HERE for a short instruction. 



What a great gift for a child. They can tote their pillow and book to the sitter's, grandma's, on a trip, to bed. These would be great for donating to a children's charity as well with a book in the pocket. Let me know if you make one or more and how you gifted it. 

Happy Thanksgiving!


42 comments:

Farm Quilter said...

As a retired teacher, this is the perfect gift for any child!! Thanks for the instructions too!!

Ronelle said...

What a great idea! Thank you very much for sharing the pattern with us, Nancy.

Sarah said...

I love this little book tote thank you!

Susie said...

What a great idea. My To Do list is getting ever longer with ideas for gifts!!! I just love these Blog Hops for this. Thanks for sharing and the tutorial sheet too. Hugs, Susie xx

Elizabeth Coughlin said...

What a great idea, and so well made! Thanks so much for the instructions. I'm sure everyone you give those pillows to will love them.

Dorian said...

These are fun gifts to give. Thanks for the tutorial! You did a lovely job on them.

Carla said...

Oh, Nancy, I must make one. Love this. We are so into books right now and my little granddaughter will love it. Thanks for the tutorial and joining the hop.

Sharon Aurora said...

That is a wonderful gift idea.

KaHolly said...

I AM a lister! And I LOVE these! Thanks for the tute!

Needled Mom said...

That very clever, Nancy. It would make such a nice gift.

Melva said...

What a fun pillow. I may have to make one for our grands. :)
MelvaLovesScraps(at)NolanQualityCustoms(dot)com

Karla said...

So happy to find your site today! This will be a perfect gift for my grand daughter -- thanks for sharing!

Karrin Hurd said...

What a cute idea! Thanks so much for the instructions. Great idea for 2 of my grandchildren who will be going on a long road trip during the holidays

Kate @ Smiles From Kate said...

What a lovely gift for a child with a book tucked in. Great idea.

wendy said...

This is a great gift for a child. My grands would love them! Another thing to add to my list of projects. Thanks so much for sharing the pattern.

Jennifer Fulton Inquiring Quilter said...

I've seen these before and I think they make a perfect gift for a child. I love to encourage reading, don't you?

Danice G said...

How cute, and useful. Thank you for the tutorial also.

Alycia~Quiltygirl said...

What a fun gift!!! These are so cute and thanks for the tutorial!

Anonymous said...

This is such a well written tutorial with great photos!

The Joyful Quilter said...

OMG!! I am SEW excited! There are often not enough pillows to go around when my Quilt Bee meets. Thanks to you and your brilliant little project, I will no longer have to go without... I'll just make (and take) my own!!!

Carol Andrews said...

I love these pillow/tote bags. After reading your post, I have just added them to my “Have toMake” list for my great and grand children. What a sweet idea with a new book for each of them. What fun! Thank you. 😄 Carol

Magpie Sue said...

What a clever project! Perfect for young children when combined with a beloved book. :-)

Charlene McCain said...

This is the perfect gift for kids! Thank you so much for the tutorial. (And the Spoonflower To-Do List will come in very handy.)

Robin said...

A great pattern! The best part is the Handle. I always take a pillow to classes for either the seat or my back. Why haven't I thought of the handle? Thanks for common sense.

LJ said...

Thank you for the great tut. I've thought many times I should make these for my grands. Prefect!

Denise :) said...

This is wonderful!! My grandgirls would love this--pillow and book tote all in one! Thanks so much for sharing and the comprehensive tutorial!!!! :)

Sue D said...

So cute. Love this idea for the grandchildren.

Siouxzq64@gmail.com said...

What a great gift idea.

Scrapatches said...

Very cute pocket pillows and a wonderful gift idea. Thank you for the gift of your .pdf pattern ... :) Pat

teachpany said...

This is such a cute gift. I can imagine these with fabrics that coordinate with the book, too, like Hungry Caterpillar! Fun!

Susan said...

I always like book totes and making it into a pillow pocket totes is a great little extra step!

Carol Swift said...

I love your bag and definitely need to make some. Thank you so much for the pattern and for sharing the idea!

Sharon said...

Fabulous idea! Thanks for sharing your project.

Carol Andrews said...

Your bag is now on my to do list for grandchildren and great grandchildren? Thank you for sharing this sweet idea!

Brandy said...

Thank you for the tutorial, I am going to share this with my guild by linking to your page, there are many who are always on the lookout for gifts for the grandkids. And this is a great pattern!

Brandy

Susan said...

What a great project! I just pulled that daisy fabric from my stash for an upcoming baby quilt - time to use it up!

Michelle said...

Great gift! Thanks for sharing the tutorial.

Brenda @ Songbird Designs said...

This is such a great idea! Thanks so much for sharing your instructions!

tink's mom said...

This is such a good idea for a childs gift. I think I may have to see if I can find a book with some matching fabric for the newest member of the family. Thanks for a great idea.

Leah said...

Love these! Such a clever idea!

BarefootThunder said...

Thank you for the instructions. I am working on a Dr Seuss quilt for one of my granddaughters. I've already purchased books, this will be great to go with them.

Joy from Days Filled With Joy said...

Soo cute and a great tutorial!! Thanks for sharing! xx