experienced sewers help needed please!

Psykicpup

tanith wrote: »

Sewing a pillow is one of the easy ones... not sure about the material but what you suggest will be fine... strong linen thread will do the job...

You don't have to be perfect with the stitching as you will be covering it with a 'pretty pillow case'.

Cut your material to size and then machine stitch three sides with the right side outside with a 1/4 inch seam.. turn it inside out and stitch the same three sides again with a little wider turn so that when you then turn it inside out all the edges will be hidden by the new seam.. stuff with the feathers you already have.. I'd just put the end of the old pillow inside the new one and carefully transfer them... then just double stitch the open end... VOILA!!:T

Thanks Tanith -0 That sounds easier than the french seam I was considering but would keep the feathers in equally as well!

Psykicpup

csarina wrote: »

Make sure when you buy the fabric, its featherproof, in other words that the feathers will not work their way through the tickiing in time. Do an internet search......John Lewis used to sell it........

Thanks csarina - thats exactly what I meant by different types - will make sure I check before I buy - although anything would be better that the hole I had this morning lol

Psykicpup

Charlton_King wrote: »

Experienced sewers? Rats!

:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:
You know when I typed that this morning it didnt look right but I couldnt figure out what it was

GavB79

Now I understand why they call them seamstresses, I certainly read that the wrong way

champys

tanith wrote: »

Just wonder if anyone has a good method for cleaning a feather pillow , I use one I have had for ages but I just air it outside on a nice sunny day , I don't know if they can be washed?

tanith - feather pillows are perfectly washable, I wash mine regularly, simply in the washing machine. No more than one at the time, not to squash them too much. They do take a long time to dry though, so I tend to do it in summer on a hot day. I have never owned a dryer but would give that a try if I had one.

I wash the smaller size down duvets in the machine as well. The large ones go in the bath.

CountryWife_2

Psykicpup, a tip i learnt a while ago was that when you sew the final edge on the outside to seal the pillow, just run a candle or some wax along the stitching to seal it, this will prevent the feathers from working their way out of the stitching holes

tanith

Psykicpup wrote: »

Thanks Tanith -0 That sounds easier than the french seam I was considering but would keep the feathers in equally as well!

Psykicpup what I described actually is a French Seam... this tutorial has pictures and describes it much better than me...

http://www.sewneau.com/how.to/french.seam.html

moanymoany

My gran had a feather bed. It was simply a gigantic pillow. I remember her making a new case for it. She made a bag the required size. French seams and she used strong ticking. Outside, she got all the feathers to one end of the old mattress and cut along the edge. She then carefully put that end into the bottom of the new bag. She then held closed the open end keeping hold of the still sewn end of the old. We then gently shook the feathers to the bottom of the bag and then gradually pulled the old bag out.

Gran then sewed the new end. I remember her shaking her feather bed every day when she made her bed. The feathers did prickle and gran put a blanket on top of the bed, before the sheet. She always kept the feathers from poultry she plucked. She never bought an 'oven ready' bird.

champys

moanymoany wrote: »

My gran had a feather bed. It was simply a gigantic pillow. I remember her shaking her feather bed every day when she made her bed. The feathers did prickle and gran put a blanket on top of the bed, before the sheet. She always kept the feathers from poultry she plucked. She never bought an 'oven ready' bird.

Yes I remember sleeping on a feather bed when staying with my aunt when I was little - I used to love that, because you would make a dent in it exactly your size and that felt lovely, really snug. I guess if we used feather beds today we'd worry about it not being very good for your back? Shaking them up was quite a heavy job, though. Not good for your back either!

full-time-mum

tanith wrote: »

Just wonder if anyone has a good method for cleaning a feather pillow , I use one I have had for ages but I just air it outside on a nice sunny day , I don't know if they can be washed?

I had my feather duvet professionally washed. It cost around £20.

I think that the important thing is getting it dry which may be a little more tricky with a pillow. To be on the safe side, I put my quilt in the airing cupboard for a couple of days, giving it a good old shake from time to time.