This Week at Sedbi Design Studio: Small Paris Pillow, Fabric Wallet & A Buttonhole Beauty Makeover

This week at Sedbi Design Studio I made a small pillow for a friend who likes to travel, using the same vintage Paris postcard fabric transfer image I put on the rustic poet's notebook a few months back. I think the five tassels sewn on the diagonal lend the piece a certain elan. 

Small Paris Pillow (front)
photo by Nita Lou Bryant

Small Paris Pillow (back)
photo by Nita Lou Bryant

After that, I embarked upon a whole new  project: sewing a fabric wallet. Have I mentioned that I seldom sew from a pattern? It seems to work out better for me (eventually) if I just figure out how to do something on my own. Some people might see this as doing things the hard way, but to me it makes sewing a lot more satisfying--and fun.

What I had is mind was something simple:  a slim fabric case to hold a few credit or identification cards and some cash. I practiced constructing the card-case piece and attaching it to the lining before sewing the lining to the piece of fabric that would become the wallet's outside. The photos below show some of the steps in the process:

Personally, I'm a sucker for before-and-after photos. So here's my version of a buttonhole beauty makeover (see photos, below.)

"before" photo of buttonhole
photo by Nita Lou Bryant

buttonhole "after" shot
photo by Nita Lou Bryant

                                                                          

As you see, all I did was add a soupçon of decorative stitching around the buttonhole. (Oops, sorry! I forgot we were no longer in France.) And, unlike some of the makeovers we read about in beauty magazines,  this is something you can try at home.

Below is a peek inside the wallet, empty and then full:

Sedbi Design Studio fabric wallet (empty)
photo by Nita Lou Bryant

Sedbi Design Studio fabric wallet (with cards & cash)
photo by Nita Lou Bryant

Finally,  photos of the finished wallet, closed and open. I used a simple wooden button for that fancy buttonhole:

Sedbi Design Studio fabric wallet (closed)
photo by Nita Lou Bryant

Sedbi Design Studio fabric wallet (open)
photo by Nita Lou Bryant

Sedbi Design Studio fabric wallet (with cash)
photo by Nita Lou Bry

I'm really happy with how my wallet design turned out. Except I've already decided that next time I want to incorporate a key hook into the design.  So stay tuned...

Happy sewing, everyone!