Helping you create a home by hand.

Star Fruit Cushion Finished and Progress on Other Projects

Earlier this week, I tackled re-stuffing the Star Fruit Cushion.

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This tool, called a locking clamp (<-affiliate link) made the process a little easier than the first time I tried stuffing it.

The locking clamp allows you to get small pieces of stuffing into the corners.

Even so, it took three hours and a few unladylike words before I decided that done was better than perfect and started to sew the opening closed. It’s by no means perfect. It didn’t seem to matter how many times I stuffed those points of the star, they just didn’t want to stay stuffed and it’s a little lumpy in places it shouldn’t be lumpy. By the end of the three hours, I was good and sick of the cushion so I set it aside for a couple of days.

Yesterday afternoon, I put the finishing touch on the cushion with the addition of a dark green button to the top of the cushion.

And a lime green button to the bottom of the cushion.

The Star Fruit Cushion was an interesting project. The sewing itself was fairly straight forward but I found stuffing it frustrating beyond words and now that I’ve completed one, it goes on my list of done that, don’t need to do it again!

On a more satisfying note, yesterday I also completed zigzagging around all the letters on the four new travel laundry bags.

If you’d like an easy project to make before your next trip check out my Travel Laundry Bags Tutorial.

Now I just have to sew up the seams, make the casing at the top and insert the cords.

As well, one more paper-pieced coffee mug block got made.

And on a somewhat related note, this is why I usually don’t wear nail polish.

At 1:00 yesterday afternoon, I decided to treat myself to a manicure so that my nails would look pretty for the step-by-step photo tutorial of the making of the doll for a pattern that I’m getting ready to release for sale. I sat at the salon a good twenty minutes with the fan on them to make sure they were dry and then there was the 10 minute walk back to our daughter’s apartment.

By 3:00 pm, I had nicked the polish on the left middle finger getting my keys of out my purse, I messed up the polish on my right ring finger opening a container of fabric, I’m not sure where the nick on my right index finger came from but I scraped half the polish off my right thumb while wrestling with sewing the buttons on the Star Fruit Cushion.

A hand model, I would never make.  But at least I did a little something to pamper myself and the massage that was part of the manicure was amazingly relaxing.

 

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5 Comments

  • wendy
    August 24, 2012 5:39 pm

    your star pillow looks great, what an accomplishment! That tool looks like some kind of scary medical implement!!

    I can’t keep a manicure nice either, but have you heard of the gel that they apply to your nails? It stays on for 3 weeks, even I struggled to chip it!

  • julie beswick-valentine
    August 24, 2012 10:03 am

    I’m jealous – a real manicure. It would be a waste on me nail varnish and farming just dont go together – big sigh.

    Your pincushion has come out really well, pretty too.

  • Sandra :)
    August 23, 2012 11:20 pm

    I’ve never had a manicure but I’ve had the occasional massage – I bet it feels heavenly to have a hand massage! Is that standard with a manicure, or is it just some places (sheesh I’m such a hillbilly, lol)? My poor hands would probably love a little TLC like that!

    Your cushion looks great, and I do know that “don’t need to do THAT again” feeling 😀 Love your PP’d block too – you learned well, grasshopper!!!

  • Karen C
    August 24, 2012 12:16 am

    I don’t nail polish is as tough as it used to be.

  • Leslie Sorenson
    August 23, 2012 9:12 pm

    I totally get your comments about a manicure. I am sitting here with a botched up nail from my manicure yesterday.

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