Another day, another pillow . . .

I am now the proud creator of 2 pillows! Using the same snowflake patterned cotton that I made my first pillow out of, I sewed an identical pillow today.

Before constructing this latest pillow, I ventured online for some advice on how to finish up the pillow (so that it wouldn't have a strange lumpy corner). This search led me to some good news and some bad news. The good news is that I already knew how to "properly" finish up a pillow. The bad news is that no one online had any genuinely helpful suggestions on how to improve my pillow finishing technique. I watched several YouTube videos and perused about a dozen other sites with written instructions. Most people recommended sewing up the last bit of the pillow with the sewing machine, a technique which I initially abandoned for hand sewing (with mixed results). I did notice, however, these sewing experts would demonstrate the technique, but never zoom in the camera close enough to show you the finished product. They would just sort of hold the pillow up the air with a flourish. Thank you for providing vague information, internet! My favorite video pictured a man doing a terrible job of hand stitching his pillow, which was accompanied by hundreds of comments from other viewers reiterating how horrible his sewing was. Did he never go back to check how people responded to his clip?

Nevertheless, my search was not completely fruitless. I learned an important term about fabric. Instead of saying the "front" of the fabric (which I think is pretty universally understood as the side with the pattern or the side that looks normal), that is officially referred to as the "right" side of the fabric. And the back is called the left side? No, it's called the "wrong" side of the fabric. Poor wrong side, not only does nobody want to look at you, but you'll never have the correct answer!

Anyway, back to the pillow at hand . . . or at needle. Since I was using the same navy blue thread that I had used on the first pillow, I had left everything threaded and grooved and inserted into the sewing machine. My fingers were crossed that I could simply turn the machine back on and sew away. Wrong! As wrong as the wrong side of the fabric. The result was a giant knot on the back of the fabric which stemmed from the innards of the sewing machine. It took me a few minutes to get everything untangled enough to cut away, and a few more minutes to coax the bobbin thread move at all. Luckily, my gentle persuasion unsnarled everything without requiring my to rethread anything. When I tried to sew again, the machine produced smooth, perfect stitches without protest. I don't know what I did wrong, or right, for that matter, but I'm just glad it was working.

There was a useful technique I did pick up from one of the videos, though. As I sewed down each length of the pillow, when I got to a corner, I learned how to change directions correctly. Once I reached the point where I wanted to turn, I twisted the hand crank (pick circle on the side of the machine) to move the needle all the down. Then, I was able to lift the press foot (the foot-looking metal piece that holds the fabric flat underneath the needle) and twist the fabric around into the new direction. The needle held the fabric firmly in place so that I didn't end up with a weird gap in the corner. Like last time, I didn't completely sew up the fourth side of the pillow. I left a small gap, which I used to turn the pillowcase inside out (or "right side out," as an official seamstress would say).

While stuffing the pillow through the small hole (which I apparently made smaller and more difficult this time), I noticed that it was a lot more boring this time. I think at this point I have met my quota of sewing projects which require stuffing. 2 days later, when the pillow was completely stuffed, I noticed that the sides looked a bit straighter on this pillow than on the first one. The corners seem pointier (in a good way), which I will attribute to my new corner making technique.

I decided to use only the sewing machine in sealing up the final gap in the pillow. I tried my best to be more careful in keeping everything straight and flat, which is not easy when dealing with a rounded, puffy object. While it's still not perfect, the hole seems to be more evenly closed and blends in better with the rest of the edges.

In the flush of victory, I would like to give a big shout out to my Australian "in-laws," who deserve many thanks for my wonderful sewing machine. Perhaps when I've got a few weeks to kill, I'll stuff and sew a pillow in the shape of Australia as a tribute.

And sew, another day ends.