Skip to main content

How to sew a box (for my mommy)

Hey y'all ... this is a post mainly for my mom, but you may find it handy as well.

This is a tutorial on how to make a fabric box to cover another box.

1.)  Measure the box dimensions
Here - 9"wide(W) x 4.75"deep(D) x 4.25"high(H)






2.)  Add your seam allowances to the measurements.  I am using 1/4" seam allowances, so add 1/2" to all measurements (ie. 1/4" on both sides is 1/2" in total).  Get it?  Got it?  Good!
Here - 9.5"W x 5.25"D x 4.75"H

3.)  Iron your fabric and then cut your pieces.
Here -
Top (1 piece)  => 9.5W x 5.25D  (the beige colour)
Long Side (2 pieces) => 9.5W x 4.75H (the blue coloured ones)
Short Side (2 pieces) => 5.25D x 4.75W (the purple coloured ones)



4.)  Sew the 4 side pieces to the top.  So that it looks like the cross above but all sewn together.  This is where you need to really pay attention....
When you sew the side pieces to the top, do not sew in the seam allowances.  In other words, as my seam allowance is 1/4", start sewing the two pieces together 1/4" into the fabric and stop sewing 1/4" before the end of the fabric.
I personally like to use the markings on my sewing machine (or better yet, use a 1/4" foot!), but I've used some post-it notes here to show you what I mean and to show you how to use post-it notes as a guide.

Setting up the post-it notes




Sew the top to the side using your guides.  Do not sew into the seam allowances.




Sew the next side to the top (the purple to the beige).  Move the previously sewn side (the blue one) out of the seam allowance.

Make sure the previously sewn side (the blue) is out of the way

Sew the side to the top again avoiding sewing in the seam allowance.
Notice how the blue side has not been touched on the right seam allowance?

Both sides (blue and purple) sewn to the top fabric (beige) but are not sewn to each other.

The starting point for the seam is 1/4" down into the fabric
Do this for all 4 sides, making sure that you do not catch the previously sewn fabric in the next seam.

Still with me?  Let's keep going because you're nearly there!

5.)  Now, sew the sides together.  Put the two side seams together (blue and purple) and move the top fabric out of the way (the beige one).  To move it out of the way you end up folding it into a triangle.  Again, start sewing 1/4" into the fabric.  Better yet, try to find the start of the sewn seam (top-to-side seam) and start your side-to-side seam there.  Sew all the way to through the bottom.







Repeat for all 4 sides.

Until your sides look like this...



I'm going to send this to my mom for the first cut and see if she can understand it.  And then I'll make amendments after testing is out on her.  Hold tight for now!!!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Back from my hiatus

Have you ever struggled with your identity?  Like how you define yourself; how you think of yourself?  I do.  I have been.  I still am. Rather than simply stating "I am Ag May", I need to add labels.  I'm a mother.  I work but I'm on leave at the moment.  I'm a crafter, but I just make things not really create things.  I bake.  I cook.  And right now, I'm confused. I wonder if the lack of varied adult interaction has made me lose sight of how I define myself.  My wardrobe is probably a good metaphor... I've cleaned it out.  So now I'm left with 2 pairs of jeans; a pair of light coloured pants; a pair of tracksuit pants; a handful of t-shirts; and a handful of dresses.  Add to that a few jumpers and a couple of cardigans and that's my wardrobe.  No more "smart casual"; no more "office-wear"; no more "formal wear" or "going-out on the town wear".  I think I donated my personality to good will alongside my c...
2 comments
Read more

Monkey See; Monkey Do

I was just monkeying around the kitchen... I had some dough leftover from baking dinner rolls and cinnamon buns (yeah - it was alot of dough!) and I had seen this idea from the Pioneer Woman previously.  Cinnamon, butter, sugar and a dash of sweetened condensed milk - yes please!!!  Ok, so maybe, just maybe, I accidentally on purpose put some dough aside just so I could indulge in this .... well, indulgence. And what an indulgence - worse still, an easy indulgence as I already had the dough.  Caramelised cinnamon sugar with a bit of bread covered with sweetened condensed milk.  I don't think I really need to say more. And, in honour of Father's Day, we had special "WE heart DADDY" pancakes... ok ok - I ran out of time, energy and ideas this year.  (Note to self - try harder next year!) Don't mock the banana - at $12.99/kg this is a real treat.  Unfortunately Daddy was too slow and Little Miss M took it and ate it.  It might be Fat...
4 comments
Read more

To ice or not to ice?

That is the question... I have a new addiction (surprise, surprise!).  While I still favour Morning Tea and Afternoon Tea and all of its delights, I have recently been replacing the mandatory "tea and cake" with an Iced Tea or an Iced Coffee. These tea delights are so wonderfully refreshing on those hot summer days.  And it satisfies my "drink and sweet" craving in one shot - which saves me on baking time and calorie count (like I do that anyway!). Seriously, I could drink Iced Tea or Iced Coffee all day, but I have limited it to either Morning Tea or Afternoon Tea.  Got to keep it special!  (Hence the continued use of CAPITALS :) ). The best thing is that these drinks are so easy to make at home and, to my taste buds and stomach anyway, are a lot better than most of the ones that you can find in your local cafe.  I can control the strength, the milkiness, the sweetness to suit my picky palate. The other best thing is that I no longer feel the ...
1 comment
Read more