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Cold Season Cuties (Tissue Holders)
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*sniffle*
Yup. It's that season. The sniffles are upon us, and a
tissue is something that's always nearby. Though I keep a
normal box at my desk, those little travel packets of
tissues are something I always keep on hand. They're
just not very... I dunno, fun to hang on to. Too much
tissue. Not enough character.
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Want your tissues to be something that
makes you smile when you reach for 'em? I'll show you
how. To make yourself a little tissue holder (in this
case, the bunny design), you'll need:
- A super awesome
tissue holder design
(I picked the
bunny, but there's a
robot and a
monster too!)
-
Printed or stitched dielines for your tissue
holder design
- White fabric (this is for the bunny,
but you can make any color you want)
- Stiff felt for the appendages (white
for my bunny ears)
- Tearaway stabilizer
- Scissors
- Tape
- Temporary spray adhesive
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OK, so let's start
with the templates, so we can cut our pieces out. One
template is a long and thin piece; you'll want to print
this twice, as we need two of them. Take your fabric,
and fold it along one edge. Line up one long edge of the
template to the fold, and cut it out. You should be
cutting through two layers, making a long rectangular
piece with a fold at one long edge and an open edge at
the other. We need this folded edge so we have a side
that won't fray. Repeat this, so you have two of these
pieces.
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Next there's a larger rectangle shape.
Place this on your fabric and cut it out too. No fancy
tricks on this one, just cut around the printed lines.
Also, you'll want to cut out any bunny/robot/monster
appendages here too. These you want to cut out of stiff
felt, so they hold their shape well. Place your template
over your felt and carefully cut them out.
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So... to recap. You
should have two long rectangles that are actually folded
in half, so one edge has a fold to it. You should have a
large rectangle, and you should have some felt
appendages, in my case, little white bunny ears.
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Hoop up your tearaway stabilizer, and let's get started...
Here's how the machine stitching is going to happen. First, a
dieline will stitch (my white on white dieline didn't show up very
well on camera, so I added a helpful little dotted outline in
Photoshop). Spray just the short edges of one of your long folded
rectangles with some temporary spray adhesive, and place it inside the dieline with the folded side
pointing up. Set your machine stitching again, and a tackdown will
sew, as will as my bunny's teeth (or whatever your character is).
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Once this has sewn, another dieline will stitch. This one will
just go around the edges and the top, so as not to tack down the
piece you just added. Spray the edges of your second long rectangle
with temporary spray adhesive,
and place this one with the fold pointing down. It should overlap
your other piece just a little bit. When you start your machine
sewing, it will stitch a tackdown for this piece next.
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Once the tackdown is done, your critter's eyes and features will
begin to sew. I, for instance, have a very happy looking bunny on my
hands now. Once the features are stitched, a final large rectangle
dieline will sew. After this, stop the machine.
Grab your
appendages, and place them facing inwards from where they should be
when they're done (For instance, my bunny's ears are going to be
pointing out the top of his head, so they should be folded inward on
the same side). Tape the appendages in place, making sure one edge
is laid over the seam. When all your pieces are in place, spray the
four corners of your large rectangle with temporary spray adhesive, and place it squarely on top
of everything, with the right side of the fabric facing down.
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Finally, one more dieline will sew, all
the way around your rectangle, finishing your new
tissue holder!
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Once everything is
done, tear your little bunny free from the stabilizer.
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Clip the corners of your tissue holder,
so it will flatten more easily once it's turned right side
out.
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To actually be able
to turn your holder right side out, you'll need to
remove some more stabilizer. Tear it away from the back
of your holder, so you can get to the gap in the middle.
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Turn your bunny
right side out. The poor thing looks like he's been
blindfolded by his own ears. Un-tape your appendages and
set him free.
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There we go... happy bunny!
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Happy bunny is
hungry. Let's feed him some tissues.
(No embroidery
bunnies were harmed in the making of this project.
Despite the fact it looks like I just blindfolded him
with his own ears and force fed him tissues ... er. Sorry,
bunny.)
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Your little holder
is ready and waiting to cure you of the insufferable
sniffles! OK, maybe not cure, but certainly give you a
laugh at least.
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Because really, who doesn’t think these
are so much more of a hoot than regular old tissue
packets? Nothing else about a cold tends to be very
entertaining, you might as well add some fun where you
can.
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Suggested designs for this tutorial:
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