Learn to Sew Part 1: Made to travel neck pillow and eye mask
This pattern will teach you:
- How to print and assemble PDF sewing patterns
- How to cut out a sewing pattern on fabric
- Get to grips with your sewing machine with a quick and easy project
- Practice sewing around curves
Get prepared for your summer travels with this soft and comfy neck pillow and eye mask.
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You will need...
- fat quarter flannel
- fat quarter cuddle fleece
- size 20 Kam Snap & setting tool (optional - you can skip this if you're a beginner)
- 5x9" scrap of quilt wadding
- 0.5m of 10mm-wide elastic
- bag of toy filling
- 15" piece of 10mm-wide elastic
What is a Fat Quarter?
Fabric is usually sold from a roll and the shop will cut you a length of fabric in increments of a quarter of a metre or a quarter of a yard. If you only want a small piece of fabric, this means you will get a long thin strip. Some shops (particularly quilting shops) will instead let you have a "fat quarter", where they cut a half yard horizontally and then cut that in half vertically so that you have a more useful piece of fabric.
Before You Begin
Download and print your pattern templates. The pattern pieces are bigger than standard A4 paper, so you will need to print out multiple sheets and tape them together.
Cutting Out
From the flannel, cut:
1 eye mask template
1 neck pillow template
Two 4” squares for the hanging tag
From the cuddle fleece, cut:
1 eye mask template
1 neck pillow template
From quilt wadding scrap, cut:
1 eye mask template
Expert Guide: How to Cut Out a Paper Pattern for Sewing
Pattern Notes
Seam allowance is ½” unless otherwised stated.
Finished size of neck pillow approximately 11x11½” and eye mask 4x8”
Make the Eye Mask
Take the elastic and align each end with the markings on the RS of the flannel eye mask piece, making sure there are no twists in it. Baste the ends in place with a 1/8” seam allowance.
Place the flannel and cuddle fleece RST, and the wadding and fleece WST.
Stitch all the way around with a ¼” seam allowance, leaving a 2-3” gap at the top for turning.
Clip the outer curves and notch the inner curve at the nose. (See Pic A)
Turn RS out and press, making sure the seam allowance from the turning gap is pressed to the inside, then top-stitch all the way around 1/8” from the edge.
New Words?
Basting: A loose temporary stitch to hold the pieces in place, which will be removed later.
Clip and notch: Trimming away small triangles of fabric from the inside of a curve to remove bulk in the seam.
RS: Right side. This is the side of the fabric which will face outwards.
Seam Allowance: The amount of fabric around the edge of a pattern piece which will form the seam.
WS: Wrong side. This will be the inside/hidden side of your fabric.
RST/WST: Right sides together/wrong sides together.
Make the Pillow
This starts with making a hanging tab with a snap. This part is optional - you can skip to the next section if you prefer!
Take one of the hanging tags and fold in half, matching edges. Using a ¼” seam allowance, stitch up the long open edge and across one short edge.
Turn the hanging tag RS out and press, then top-stitch all the way around 1/8” from
the edge.
Insert one side of the Kam Snap in the centre of the tab, ½” from the short stitched end.
Repeat with the remaining hanging tag piece and the second half of the Kam Snap.
Align the centre of the open end of the tab with the centre top of the RS of the flannel neck pillow piece (See Pic B.). It can be easier to match the centres by folding each piece in half and matching the folds.
Baste the tab in place with a ¼” seam allowance.
Place the cuddle fleece neck pillow piece RST with the flannel piece. Stitch all around, leaving a 3-4” turning gap on one side of the hanging tab. (See Pic C.)
Clip and notch the curves. (See Pic D.)
Turn RS out and stuff the pillow until it’s comfortably soft and squishy, then ladderstitch or whip-stitch the turning gap closed by hand.
Beginner's Guide to Sewing
This pattern is part of our Learn to Sew series! Join us with a new tutorial each week to build your sewing skills and discover the magic of making your own clothes.