Shabby Chic Flowerpot Cozy Celebrate the green revival with a shabby chic flowerpot cozy. Ruffles and ribbon help craft a greener future and make your favorite plant one-of-a-kind. This cute cozy makes a great gift for Earth Day, Easter, Mother's Day, or any special occasion. Read below for free project instructions! file:///z /source/elprojects/html/pr1664.html (1 of 11) [4/12/2011 1:00:48 PM]
Supplies Needed:: **Flowerpot - ours is has a 7 inch diameter outer pot cover with a 6 inch diameter pot inside (the cover is 5 inches high) **1/4 yard sturdy solid-colored fabric for top of outer shell - like denim or canvas (we used canvas) **1/4 yard print fabric for bottom of outer shell (we used quilter's cotton backed with medium-weight interfacing) **3/8 yard nylon fabric for inner lining (we used rip-stop nylon) **1/4 yard medium-weight fusible interfacing Supplies Continued: **Medium-weight cutaway stabilizer **Temporary spray adhesive **Air-erase pen (or other marking tool) **3/4 yard - 2 inch wide ruffle trim **1 1/4 yards of 1/4 inch wide ribbon (for trim and bow) **Tape measure and ruler Designs used: file:///z /source/elprojects/html/pr1664.html (2 of 11) [4/12/2011 1:00:48 PM]
Green Girl (Small) Autumn Leaf Border (Small) These designs are also available in the following design packs:: A Go Green Design Pack - Large, Medium, Small A Swept Up in Leaves Design Pack - Large, Medium, Small To begin, we will measure the pot. Measure the height of the pot and then add 1 1/2 inches for allowances (ours measures 5 inches high - 5 inches plus 1 1/2 inches equals 6 1/2 inches). Next, take the measurement of the diameter of the pot top and divide it by two (this represents the measurement for the bottom fabric). Add that number to the height measurement (the diameter of our pot top is 7 inches - 7 inches divided by two equals 3 1/2 inches. 3 1/2 inches plus 6 1/2 inches equals 10 inches). This is the total height measurement of the outer shell fabric. file:///z /source/elprojects/html/pr1664.html (3 of 11) [4/12/2011 1:00:48 PM]
Using a tape measure, measure the circumference of the pot at the top edge and then add 1 1/2 inches for allowances (ours measures 19 1/2 inches - 19 1/2 inches plus 1 1/2 inches equals 21 inches). This is the width measurement of the outer shell fabric for the top and bottom sections. To prepare the fabric for the top of the outer shell, cut a piece of the canvas using your width measurement (ours is 21 inches) by 5 1/2 inches high. Using an air erase pen (or other marking tool), measure and mark the center of each side of the fabric by measuring and dividing by two. Draw lines to connect the marks - where the lines meet is the exact center of the fabric. Create a paper template of the design by printing it at full size using embroidery software. If you don't have embroidery software, you can cut a piece of paper the shape and dimensions of the design to help with placement and centering. If you'd like a recommendation for an embroidery program that can make templates, consider Embird from www.embird.com. file:///z /source/elprojects/html/pr1664.html (4 of 11) [4/12/2011 1:00:48 PM]
Poke a hole in the first template and align it with the center point on the fabric - make sure the design fits well. There should be at least 1 inch of space between the outer edges of the design and the edges of the fabric. Poke holes in the centers of the remaining templates and align them with the horizontal line on the fabric alongside the first template. Position them with the edges of the designs about 1/2 inch apart. Mark the center point and the vertical axis lines. Remove the templates and draw lines to connect the axis points. Spray a piece of mediumweight cutaway stabilizer with temporary adhesive and smooth the fabric on top. Hoop the fabric and stabilizer together by aligning the marks on the hoop with the lines on the fabric. Attach the hoop to the machine and load the first design. Move the hoop so that the needle is aligned with the center point on the fabric and embroider the design. file:///z /source/elprojects/html/pr1664.html (5 of 11) [4/12/2011 1:00:48 PM]
When the design has finished, trim away the excess stabilizer on the back of the embroidery. Repeat the hooping and embroidering process for the remaining designs. To prepare the fabric for the bottom section of the outer shell, take your height measurement that you started with and subtract 5 1/2 inches (ours is 10 inches - 10 minus 5 1/2 inches equals 4 1/2 inches). Cut a piece of the print fabric using your width measurement (ours is 21 inches) by the height measurement you just calculated (ours is 4 1/2 inches). Choose a sturdy fabric for the bottom section, or, we used quilter's cotton backed with medium-weight fusible interfacing to give it support. Align the bottom section on top of the embroidered top section, right sides facing, with the bottom edges aligned. Pin in place and sew a 1/4 inch seam along the bottom edge only. file:///z /source/elprojects/html/pr1664.html (6 of 11) [4/12/2011 1:00:48 PM]
Press the back seam open and top stitch along each side of the seam. Align the straight edge of the ruffle trim along the entire top edge of the outer shell leaving 1/4 inch excess extending past the outer edges of the fabric - pin in place. Cut two lengths of ribbon the same length as the outer shell (we cut two 21 inch lengths). Pin the ribbon in place starting at the outer edges of the fabric (leave 1/4 inch excess at the edges of the fabric). Position the ribbon halfway between the bottom edges of the designs and the seam of the top and bottom sections of the outer shell. Allow about half of the ribbon to hang loose where they meet in the center of the fabric. Tack the ruffle trim in place by sewing a seam along the inner edge and the outer edge of the top band. Also, stitch the ribbon in place by sewing a seam directly down the middle - stop about one inch from the center of the fabric. file:///z /source/elprojects/html/pr1664.html (7 of 11) [4/12/2011 1:00:48 PM]
Tie a bow in the ribbon and trim off the excess. To assemble the outer shell, align the side and bottom together, pin in place, and sew a 1/4 inch seam along the raw side and bottom edges only. file:///z /source/elprojects/html/pr1664.html (8 of 11) [4/12/2011 1:00:48 PM]
Pinch the corners and pin them in place. Mark the center of the bottom seam by measuring and dividing by two. Take your pot top diameter measurement and divide by two (ours is 7 inches - 7 inches divided by 2 equals 3 1/2 inches). Take that measurement and mark out along each side of the center marks along the bottom seam. Then, draw lines perpendicular to the bottom seam at each mark that you just made. Sew a seam along each line. Trim off the corners leaving about 1/4 inch of excess at each seam. Turn the outer shell right side out. file:///z /source/elprojects/html/pr1664.html (9 of 11) [4/12/2011 1:00:48 PM]
To prepare the inner lining fabric, use your original height and width measurements to cut a piece of the nylon fabric (we cut ours 21 inches wide by 10 inches high). Assemble the inner lining just as you did the outer shell. Insert the outer shell inside the inner lining with the right sides facing, the side seam aligned, and the top edges aligned. Pin in place and sew a 1/2 inch seam along the top edge leaving a couple of inches open at the back. Turn the fabric right side out, insert the inner lining inside the outer shell, and turn the fabric of the opening in 1/2 inch and pin. To finish the cover, sew a 1/4 inch seam along the entire top edge. Your shabby chic flowerpot cozy is now complete! file:///z /source/elprojects/html/pr1664.html (10 of 11) [4/12/2011 1:00:48 PM]
Click here for a printable version of these project instructions. You'll need to have Adobe Acrobat Reader installed on your computer. If you don't have it, you can download a free copy by clicking on the icon above. file:///z /source/elprojects/html/pr1664.html (11 of 11) [4/12/2011 1:00:48 PM]