For my first ENGI 210 project, I chose the open-ended assignment and created a decorative pillow for my dorm’s living room. Originally, I had made a lampshade to cover the harsh light in the room. While effective at making the living room less asylum adjacent, it did not look pretty up close. I love making new clothes using my sewing machine, but my hand-sewing experience is very limited. I struggled with keeping my stitches neat, and the thinness of the fabric made every mistake visible through the light. Learning from my first try, I decided to use a thicker fabric for my second piece.

I sourced my new fabrics from one of my favorite stores in Houston, the Texas Art Asylum. They have everything, from loose screws to Jaws on VHS. I purchased fabric scraps by the pound and said hello to the resident cat, Shuug.

I began by cutting two 13″ squares out of the base fabric and an apple applique (say that ten times fast), which I ironed flat. Next, I hand-sewed the applique onto a square using an elongated chain stitch. I added additional details in fabric using a blanket stitch. I embroidered the face of the apple using a backstitch, a chain stitch, and a french knot. The final detail was adding an ivory ribbon, whose edges I finished using a lighter.

With Professor Bisesti’s permission, I used the sewing machine to attach the two squares right-sides together, using a 3/8″ seam allowance and leaving a gap in the bottom. Threading the bobbin of the industrial machine was quite the learning curve. I turned my pillow inside out through the hole in the bottom and stuffed it with a combination of fabric scraps and batting. Lastly, I used a ladder stitch to hand-sew the gap closed.

Cost breakdown:

Fabric, ribbon, and thread: $4 (sourced by the pound from a resale shop)

Quilt batting: $1.44 for approximately 12″ x 24″ (https://www.michaels.com/product/polyfil-extraloft-quilt-batting-45-x-60-10737880)

Needle: $0.31 per needle (https://www.michaels.com/product/16-embroidery-hand-needles-size-39-D011234S)

Juki sewing machine: around $2,000 retail, but since the lifespan is about 10-20 years, the cost for 20 minutes of use is almost negligible

Labor: $37.50 for 2.5 hours at $15 per hour

Total Cost = $43.25

Conclusion:

My embroidery skills greatly improved through this project! I’m excited to work with other engineers to create the fabric elements of their projects. So many designs involve sewing, such as any wearable object or chair design. I’m also excited to add embroidery to my own clothes and maybe try out the new embroidery machine in the OEDK.

– Eva