Saturday, June 5, 2010

DIY ruffles cushion cover


.:Made from T-shirt scraps:.



My raw material was these small (approx 25x 25 cm) jersey squares. I chose hot pink for this project, since it'll go well with my decor. And who can resist a girly ruffles pillow in hot pink! But two old xxl tshirts in any color should do.
Obviously, it was a bit of a maths problem figuring out how to make use of these small pieces of fabric. I started by sewing 2 squares together (x2 for the other side of the cushion) to obtain the base for my cushion cover (40cm x 25 cm) and got cracking for the fun part, ruffles. Here's a step by step for making ruffles...


(1) Start by cutting strips, 1 inch large. It's better to scale up or down depending on the size of your cover, etc. For the length of each strip, the basic rule is that the length of the strip should be twice the length of your ruffle.



(2) Set the tension on your sewing machine to lowest. I used white thread so you can see the stiches, but of course use a matching thread color. Stitch down the middle being careful to leave reasonable amount of thread at one end so you can pull. I find that sewing by machine yields a better looking ruffle, which won't disintegrate. But in any case, it should be fine if you use a needle+thread.


(3) Pull on the bottom thread (4) Spread the ruffles along the length of the strip


(5) Pin the first row, leaving a bit extra fabric over the edges (6) Set the tension back to normal, sew over the middle of the ruffle, closest you can to the stitches holding the ruffle.

(7) Repeat until you have enough rows and then you can assemble your cushion cover. I simply sewed it like a pillow case, without any buttons or zippers.

VoilĂ !!!

P.s: I am no expert at sewing (self-taught). However, I'd advise you to practise making a ruffle or two beforehand. As for fraying, I haven't washed yet, but I'm confident it should stay put. Do sew the rows as close as possible though. Oh, this isn't the first or best tutorial on ruffles cushion covers, still hope you like it:) Don't hesitate to ask if you have any question.

Monday, May 31, 2010

Peri Meter Mag

Peri Meter is the first online design magazine 100% Mauritius. It's about Graphic Design, Illustration, Product Design, Animation... Read about them [here].
You can also download Peri Meter.

(Photo Credit: www.perimetermag.com)

Friday, May 21, 2010

Flour + Water


I wanted to show you some food sculptures by the chefs& their teams from some of our best resorts, which were in competition for the "Fete du Pain" circa 2010.

All images are by Jason Chan.

Thursday, April 15, 2010

Playing with paint

Repainting things white is strangely addictive. I discovered this when I decided to try out my new paint on small wooden objects before tackling bigger stuffs like..shelves..chairs ...and all wood surfaces I could think of.

Mauvilac in Snow white Mat emulsion

In the process, I also learnt what NOT to do. Silly stuffs you pro's already know. 1) Do not dilute paint too much 2) Beware of coat thickness which can be troublesome when re-assembling pieces (especially when dealing with drawers)

Point-in-fact, the poor little one almost had no lid. Once I was finished, I had to sand, again, but it would still not close properly.


Now, with fevicryl, which is a great acrylic paint for fabric, I use to stencil on bags etc, but which I used on a paper canvas I had since forever & just wasn't inspired to do anything good with.

...some of my fevicryl pots are new. Collecting them is also addictive. haha


Friday, April 2, 2010

Eggs are beautiful

Via Casa Bella

Casa Bella featured a fabulous post on easter eggs. It's funny that I used to find them ugly. In fact, I never liked painting them(even back in kindergarden, when you were "forced" to do easter eggs), however, I've had a change of heart seeing these...