Fat Quarter Feature Pillowcase Tutorial

Yeahy! Finally a tutorial!

It felt so great this morning to carve out time to get this tutorial together for you. I have had the fabrics sitting waiting for what feels like a long time and with Halloween over and Christmas fast approaching I wanted these bad boys stitched up and on my bed!



This tutorial is based on the amazing cuffed pillowcase guest tutorial over on Bugs and Fishes by Susie of Flower Press - it is my go-to pillowcase tutorial, it is quick, simple and gives fantastic results and she even gives different sizes for different countries! You have to check it out.

My tutorial is an adaptation, out of necessity really, based on the fact that I really never have yardage in my stash, just fat quarters. So that meant I never had enough fabric for the dimensions of the pillowcase, yeah I have lots of sheeting perfect for the back but I want something really nice on the the front. So I altered the tutorial to make it fat quarter friendly, this way you can now show of those large print fq's you didn't want to cut up before, there is no wastage and you get a professional looking pillowcase too! I have also included so very helpful tips on what to do if you have directional fabrics and if you want to make a matching pair for a double bed so that they end up as opposites of each other which I think looks much nicer on the bed, I do love a bit of symmetry!

(I am working with a UK sized fat quarter cut of 20" x 22" aprox)

FQ Front 20" x 21"
Cuff 20" x 16"
Back 20" x 36 1/2"

Cut the three pieces, you many need to trim your fq to size and cut off the selvedges. If your fat quarter is slightly small and nearer 19" than 20" then simply adjust the measurement on the two other pieces to match, all that will happen is you will have a slightly snugger fit on your pillowcase.

Fold the cuff fabric in half along the length with the right sides facing out and press. Place the folded cuff onto the fq front piece on the right hand edge with the raw edges aligned and pin. Take care to have the fq facing the right way up if using a directional print, if making a pair for your bed then pin one cuff of the right and one on the left side.



Sew the seam using a 1/2" seam allowance and finish with a zig zag or overlocker. Press the cuff away from the front piece and topstitch 1/4" away from the seam on the cuff.



On your back piece turn one 20" edge over by 1/2" and press, then another 1/2" and press again. Top stitch to hold in place, this will be your edge on the flap. if you are using a directional print for the back you will need to turn the appropriate edge over - for the front with the cuff on the right you will need to press under and topstitch the left hand side of the backing (left hand side as you are looking at the fabric right way up) and for the front with the cuff on the left you will need to press under and topstitch the right hand side of the backing.



Lay your front down onto the backing, with the right sides facing and the cuff at the end with the flap edge you just stitched and align with the raw edges of the other unsewn end.



Now fold the excess backing over the front, you are aiming for a neat tight fold against the cuff.



Pin along the three raw edges and stitch the seam at 1/2".



Finish the seam using your preferred method.

Turn the right way out and enjoy!!