Tutorial Tuesday

Happy Tuesday, everyone! Today's tutorial is a little homage to the 80's, the 1980's, that is. A time when we would make mixtapes for each other and drink something called, Tab. I bought this Rock 'N Roll embroidery pattern pack from Sublime Stitching a while back, and the cassette has been calling my name ever since. Since I have this new fancy cell phone that needed a case, I figured it couldn't hurt to reminisce about the 80's every time I answer the phone. 

This is a quick and easy tutorial, with no sewing machine involved.  It's completely hand-stitched and protects that expensive little telephone. Because we are stitching on felt, there is no need to use an embroidery hoop, as the fabric maintains its shape while stitching. To make your own cell phone case, you will need the following:

-two pieces of felt cut to 3x5-inch pieces (you may have to adjust sizing to fit your device)

-embroidery pattern 

-embroidery floss

-wax paper 

-a fine tip permanent marker

-a pair of tweezers

-scissors

I am going to show you how I transfer embroidery patterns to felt or dark fabrics. This isn't the only way, and it might not be the right way, but it works for me, and I think it will work for you, too. If you want something a little more sophisticated, visit Sublime Stitching for the How-To on using transfer paper or Future Girl for her tutorial on using tear-away stabilizer. 

Step 1: Transfer the pattern to the wax paper using the fine tip marker.

Step 2: Using a running stitch, attach the wax paper to one piece of felt. This doesn't have to be a beautiful stitch, because you will be removing it later. 

Step 3: Embroider your pattern making sure to pull all the way through the layers of felt and wax paper. Don't make them too tight, but you don't want loose stitches, either. Sometimes your stitch might break the paper, and that's okay. Your stitches are creating the perforations that will make it easy to remove the paper once complete. 

Step 4: Once your embroidery is complete, remove the running stitch and carefully, begin tearing away the wax paper. Use the tweezers to pull the paper out of smaller stitched areas.

Step 5: Take the second piece of felt, and place it directly underneath the piece you just stitched, wrong sides together. Pull the needle and thread in between the pieces of felt in order to hide the knot, and use a blanket stitch to connect the two pieces of felt along three sides. 

Step 6: Slip your phone into the case and enjoy!

Now if only I had a boom box to enjoy real cassettes with...

Hope you enjoy and have a great Tuesday!