Janome TB12 Sewing Machine
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How To Make A Photo Pillow 

When it comes to birthdays, holidays, and anniversaries, without fail, I am always at a loss as to what I should give my loved ones.  For those that don’t do gift cards, coming up with creative gift ideas can be an endlessly daunting experience, but photo pillows are an easy way to show off your creativity as well as let someone know how much you care. 

Things you will need:  a thin, cottony fabric, iron-on transfer paper, cotton stuffing, a needle and thread, and an amazing picture; computer or scanner and printer compatible with iron-on transfer paper, iron, and scissors.  Be sure your picture is a decent size file or you may end up with a fuzzy picture when printed, especially if you are stretching or enlarging it. 

Place the transfer paper into the printer right side up to print your picture.  Once it is printed, you can trim around the edges of the picture, leaving about ¼ inch of white around the edges.  Take note:  the image will be reversed, so avoid using writing in the original picture. 

Next, prepare the fabric you will be using.  Many throw pillows are 12”x12” but you can make it any size you want.  You can either fold the fabric in half equally or cut out the shape twice, but make sure both pieces of fabric are the same size.  Iron them crisp and flat on an ironing board or other clean, flat surface; once they are cooled, place the transfer paper face down onto the fabric wherever you want to put it, in the middle, in a corner, etc.  Seal the paper onto the fabric with a hot iron, making sure to get all edges.  Beware, if you don’t iron enough, the image will begin to peel off.  Let that cool. 

Once you have completed the image transfer, lay the pieces of fabric on top of each other, right sides in.  Hand or machine stitch the edges closed leaving about a ¼ - ½  inch seam allowance and an opening at one end.  Pull the fabric right side out through the opening you left.  Fill the pillow with the cotton stuffing until stiff.  To finish, fold the seam of the opening in and hand sew the opening closed.  Add a bow and voila:  Happy Birthday, Grandma!