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Hearts and Roses Bow Pillow Hearts, flowers, and roses are true signatures of the romantic at heart, and that includes most stitchers and embroiderers. We express our love of special people through the gifts we make for them, and this pillow is certainly worthy of giving for any one of several gift occasions. It is almost a law in the South that Mother’s Day, Valentine’s Day, weddings and anniversaries are not complete without hearts and roses, but this lovely creation is also a wonderful idea for a housewarming or birthday. The best part is that it is so easy to make! Machine embroidery, a touch of tatting, and a quilted panel decorate the front, and the back buttons for easy insertion and removal of the pillow form. Elegant silk dupioni and traditional garden flower colors make this lovely project hard to resist! • 1 yard white silk dupioni (MP #F-SILK white) • 4-1/4 yards of 7/16” tatted edging (MP #T-03 white) • Mettler 60wt white cotton sewing thread (MP #N-MET white) • Schmetz #70/10 universal machine needle for construction (MP #N-UNIV/70) • Schmetz #75/11 machine embroidery needle (MP #N-EMB/75) • Thin batting, 16” x 20” • One 12” x 16” pillow form, purchased or self-made • Two 1/2” pearl buttons • Sulky® Tear-Easy stabilizer for machine embroidery and buttonholes (MP #N-TEAR) • Optional: Sulky® KK2000 temporary spray adhesive (MP #N-KK) Cutting and Preparation Cut the following pieces from silk dupioni; refer to the cutting diagram: - One front, 17” x 21” - One front panel, 13” x 17” - Two backs, 17” x 13” CONSTRUCTION Seam allowances are 1/4” unless otherwise noted. Front Panel 1. This design is composed of several smaller motifs. Choose the following motifs from the CD: Heart Knot (mp1415), Bow Tails (mp1416), and Heart Bow Loop (mp1417). Make two templates for the bow loops and tails, make one template for the bow knot. 2. The embroidered bow will be centered on the front panel piece. Fold the panel piece vertically and horizontally and lightly finger press to crease the center lines. Place the templates onto the fabric to create the bow as shown in the photograph. Mark the placement lines for each motif. Stabilize, hoop, and embroider the design; refer to figure 1. (HINT: If it seems confusing to have several markings, mark the bow knot first and embroider it. Mark the loops and embroider them next. Mark and embroider the tails last.) 3. Remove the stabilizer and rinse away any markings on the embroidered panel. Let the panel dry and press well from the wrong side on a padded surface. 4. The front panel and batting are stippled as one layer. Place the embroidered panel over the batting; smooth the fabric over the batting and pin well to prevent the fabric from crawling during stippling. Optional: Spray one side of the batting with temporary spray adhesive and “stick” the batting to the wrong side of the embroidered fabric panel rather than pinning. 5. Stipple over the entire surface of the front panel, working around the embroideries and inside the bow loops (fig. 1). (If stippling instructions are required, please refer to Heirloom Quilts by Machine by Martha Pullen, or another book on machine quilting.)
7. Using the tip of the iron, press the 1/4” seam allowance flat along each edge of the panel. Turn the seam allowance to the wrong side and press just along the creased edge. 8. Set the panel aside until referred to later in the instructions. Assembly 1. On one long edge of each pillow back piece, press under 1” and 1” again to form facings; refer to figure 2.
3. On the remaining back piece, fold and mark the center as before. Stitch two buttons through the facing layers with each button centered 2” from the center mark (fig. 2). 4. Button the back pieces together and baste the raw edges together. Measure and mark 2” from the raw edges along the fold of the upper layer facing. Topstitch the facing in place very close to the folded edge (fig. 3).
6. Press the pillow well with the seam along the outer edges. Butt the edge of the tatting to the creased edge of the pillow and zigzag (1.5L; 1.5W) the two edges together; refer to figure 4. Let the beginning end extend about 1” beyond one corner edge of the pillow; fold a small miter at each corner to keep the tatting from cupping. To end, cut the tatting to extend 1” beyond the beginning edge. Turn the upper end under to lie in a miter over the lower end and stitch along the fold with a tiny zigzag (1.0L; 1.0W). Trim away the excess ends. 7. Repeat step 6 to attach tatting to the pressed edges of the front panel (fig. 4).
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