The White Farmhouse: I SHOULD be doing laundry....

...but instead I decided to get this project done. It's been needing to be done. I've got everything to do it, just never got around to doing it.

This is the old bedskirt in the master bedroom. *Note to self: Buy new sheets!

Now to strip down the bed and measure the box spring for the new skirt. Hey! No peeking under my bed! I really should clean under there one day.....

Hmmm.... I know I brought up pen and paper to write down the dimensions. Now I can only find the pen?! SYRINA! Dang it, now what am I going to do? Improvise!

That will work. And yes, I can read it in person better than I can in my pic.

This will work, an old bed sheet. Need something to attach the skirting to that lays on top of the box spring. Little wrinkled though.

This looks like a job for Karen the iron. I call her Karen cause she is a real hot head and will burn you badly when you are not paying attention. Now where did I put those measurements? Oh yeah! I remember now.

Now to hack up the sheet. Using a top edge of the sheet measure down the length of the bedskirt plus 1/2" for a seam allowance. The finished edge is going to be the top of the bedskirt. Now measure the opposite width plus 1" for seam allowances. Yes, it is so nice of you to notice my pedicure. It was part of the girls weekend. Save the cut off peices cause you might need them in the future for another project. One can never tell.

Now I am using another set of the same curtains. I plan on making valances for the windows too. Bedskirt first. These particular curtains don't have matching valances. So by using another set you have the same fabric for the window treatments.

Now to trudge back upstairs and measure the drop of the skirt. The drop is the length from the top of the boxspring to the floor plus 2" (1/2" for a seam allowance at the top and 1-1/2" hem). Now to find something good on TV. The little one is down for her nap. WOOHOO! Oh, Rose Red is on!! Stephen King ROCKS! Settle yourself down with one of the panels and a seam ripper and take out the hem and side seams on the panels. You want to start with one flat piece of fabric. Rip away!! Then cut away. One panel of mine did 4 sections 18" wide.

Next comes the pleats. My pleats are 5" wide . Hope that makes sense. Later I are going to add a detail to it. I started my pleats in the middle of the end of the bed. Then I measured halfway between the middle and the corner. That is where I put my pleat.

*Now I remember why I hate making pleats!*

Okay I cut 2-18"x18" sections and 1-6"x18" section. This will make one pleat. Mark on the top of the 18" pieces 3" from the edge and 5" down.

Sew the 2-18 x 18 pieces to either side of the 6 x 18 piece with a 1/2" seam allowance. Fold matching your marks you made. Sew down that line (5").

Open up the pleat and pin flat. You will have the 18" pieces folded back on themselves 2 1/2". Sew a staystitch along the top edge. Press flat.

I put enough pleats to do the bedskirt in 3 pieces, 1-end and 2 - sides. I left the pleats on the end incomplete. I also started the sides with incomplete sides. This just makes it easier instead of having one huge loooooong piece to do it in three smaller sections and then connect the pieces before attaching. Hopefully this pic will help to explain what I mean.

Now to sew the three pieces together. Next you want to sew the pleats to the flat piece that lays on top of the box spring. I did round my corners on the flat piece. Otherwise you will have the square corners hanging below the top of the box spring and possible showing. Also round corners are easier to go around than square corners. I used a small glass to trace the round.

Once that is done, put it back on the box spring. Take a moment to pat yourself on the back on your nice handiwork. Not too long though, we are not done. Boy, this is starting to sound like a tutorial on making a bedskirt the more that I write. Anywho... you will want to now pin your hem. I like the bedskirt just skimming the floor. Or..... you can cheat like me and just measure from the seam line down whatever your drop is. You have 3 options to hem the skirt. 1. You can machine stitch it. 2. You can blindstitch it by hand. 3. You can get some "Stitch Witchery" from the fabric store and iron in the hem.

I know it needs to be really pressed so the pleats stay right. I also need my husband here to help me "set" the mattress on top. I tried with the 2 kids and had no such luck.

At this point the normal person would put the skirt on their bed and enjoy. Just to make this more labor intensive I am adding covered button detail to it. Had to get some kind of handsewing in here.

You can pick up these at a fabric store or any store that sells sewing notions. I got mine from Walmart. Everything you need to do the covered buttons is in here except for a hammer. Sorry girls, you do need a hammer. I tried the high heels and you need that extra oomph. I use that big white disk in the package to trace out all the circles for the buttons. The instructions are on the back of the package.

These had to be the simplest covered buttons I have ever done. Took me about 5 minutes to do!

Remind you of anything?