Tuesday, August 31, 2010

The method of making round cushion with Canadian smocking part 1


graph of round cushion


Join the sides






Materials needed

Satin cloth 70 cm x 176 cm
2 big cloth covered buttons

I could not get buttons of the size I wanted. I got plastic disks having 5 cm diameter cut from school badge maker, made two holes using hot nails, passed a thick thread through the holes and tied a knot. I then covered them with sponge sheet and fabric.

Design used -- leaf design
Size of the square used --3cm x 3cm

Mark the graph as shown in the figure leaving 1 cm all around for seams. Squares should come in the center and the parallel lines on the sides. You can do the smocking by just drawing the squares in the middle.I prefer to draw lines at the sides also. We can use these lines as guide lines while pleating. Finish the edges by Zigzag stitches. This stops the edges from fraying and hindering our work while smocking. The squares that are marked along the length (176 cm) should always be of an even number. This decides the circumference of the cushion. The squares marked along the width depend upon the design and thickness of the cushion we want. The length of the parallel line decides the diameter of the cushion.

Join the shorter edges together matching the graph as shown in the figure to form a tube. Do the smocking by joining two points together. This forms a cover for a round cushion

Measure the circumference and width of the smocked tube. Stitch inner cushion of the same size of the smocked piece as illustrated in the figures.
Cover the inner cushion with smocked cover as shown in the figures.

I have used the smocked piece to make a cushion cover and not to make a cushion. By doing so we can smock as many covers as we want and can store them in a small place.We can change them whenever we want by untying the knot that holds the the pleats on one side. Long thread can be used while stitching the pleats and then the extra thread remains after tying cab be pushed in side the opening.By doing so we need not stitch the pleats again. Washing covers is easier than washing cushions.
There is another method in which poly fill is directly filled in the smocked cover and openings are covered with cloth covered buttons.

Continued in newer posts.............

Photobucket

23 comments:

  1. mam 1 more question i want to know that how you stich the button and how you covered the button with satin cloth

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  2. Thanks a lot for the procedure mam....Sunday for a long time I was searching for this procedure in your blog,...once again thanks....
    Regards,
    Preetarajan

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  3. Hi Vani,all your smocking tutorials are very nice.By the way I wanted to bring it to your notice that when I click on your blog it also opens a site which is 'widego'It happened in 'sadalas blogspot' also and she rectified it.

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  4. Thank you vani its wonderful , i will try it and i will give you feed back.
    I nead more tutorials for smocked cushions and different stitches , would you help please .Thank u once again

    SAHAR

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  5. Dear mam,


    verynice work mam, now, when ever iam having
    doubt in stitching iused read tutor . really it is helping mea lot. you are my net teacher.
    nazee

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  6. The best blog, I've ever come across for people who'd like to learn a lot of things abt. stitching. Wonderful!

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  7. Mam.. .thanks a lot for your tutorials. Its very easy to follow. You are really great.

    I hv tried out the above cushion. But the leaf design is not coming out.
    Could you pls tell me is the above graph is for leaf design. Bcoz the graph which you hv showed in the square cushion(leaf design) is different when compared to this.

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  8. vani mam can u help me to make makcrame handbag

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  9. amma this is a wonderful tutorial.. although i got some designs and instruction... but i really dont want to try it because i dont know where to start it exactly... but your tutorial gave a clear picture... thank you so much....

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  10. Thanks to you, I've felt able to make several cushions for friends and family, which have been received with delight. Many times I've looked elsewhere on the net, but I always come back to your clear, concise tutorials. Thank you again!

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  11. hello mam i love your work.if possible could you plz show these designs step by step.is the graph of these designs availabe

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  12. Please see in the list the method of making round cushion part 2 In the month of August.

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  13. Hi Vaniji, I have seen your embroidery session while I was surfing on net. I liked it as I got much information about it. THANK YOU.

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  14. Nice mam.
    But still I can not judge how much cloth do I require to make a cushion . I think you have given 40x40 cushions dimensions as 66x173 cm . but if want to change final size of cushion can you help me to estimate this.

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  15. Hi prashanth waghulde please write your comments under the respective post so that I will be able to answer .

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  16. I agree Vani. I've always admired hand work & 'fancy'work. I've been lucky enuf to have saved a few pcs from past family members. With all the time, love & tallent that women from our past have put into so many items I can't stand to see any of it lost or trashed. Even if I find pieces stained or torn (@our local thrift store&yrd sales) I buy all I can get & always find a way to honor the work, either as a piece of framed art or including all usable parts as embellishments in my projects. Crazy quilting's a great way to use even the tiniest saveable bits.
    You are very lucky indeed to have such beauty, made by your great grandma, saved & passed on as the cherished items they are. Thanks for sharing! :D
    Read More

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  17. Hello mam
    I m beginner
    I want to make it .plz send me step by step procedure

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  18. hallo mam ...thank u for evry cusion graphs

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  19. Hello mam... Your tutorials are really nice ,but this particular graph is wrong ,plz chk the 4th and 5th rows, Actually i tried with above graph and i couldnt get the leaf design... And i came to know this graph is a braid pattern of smocking ... Plz correct mam

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  20. You are correct Lavanya.By mistake I have posted wrong graph.I have corrected it.I could not correct it as I was busy looking my mother who was suffering from dementia.Only today after a gap of 2 years,I am writing in my blog.


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