Posh Pillowcases

For the past six days I have been in Overland Park, Kansas, helping our daughter Jill - the one who returned to the US in July after living for more than three years in Sydney, Australia - get settled in their new home. Having sold their possessions in Australia, most of the week was spent accepting deliveries of newly purchased furnishings. Also, several contractors were in and out of the house, painting, and making flooring and countertop updates.

Celina is very happy with the colors in her new bedroom. I'd venture to say that her room won't look this sparse for very long.

After a few restless nights, 11 month-old Tay adjusted to his new sleeping quarters and was happy to be in a real crib again.

Anticipating that I will be visiting fairly frequently - it's a 3-1/2 hour drive from my house to theirs - one of the bedrooms, with an attached 3/4 bath, has been designated "Nana's Room." I was consulted about the color and furnishings. So before going, I decided to make decorative pillowcases for the bed.

Back in February, I saw Janet's crocheted-edge pillowcases on her Quiltsalott blog. She made hers following a tutorial by "You Go Girl." In four blog posts, "You Go Girl" provides instructions for making a pillowcase and edging it. The pillowcase is made with a pocket, using a different fabric that covers the end of the pillow. After sewing a pillowcase, yarn is used to hand sew a blanket stitch around the edge at half-inch intervals.

A row of single crochet through the blanket stitches gives a base for double crocheted scallops. That's all there is to it! Just three times around the edge and your posh pillowcase is finished.

After 30-plus years of not holding a crochet hook in my hand, I was happy to discover the rhythm of crocheting again. Now I'm excited to make more posh pillowcases! I'm waiting for my local yarn shop to get in an order of ecru-colored yarn so I can select fabric to match it. Then, I'd like to add a bit of embroidery to the next pair.

If you're interested in a few of the specifics about my pillowcases.... These are sewn with two fabrics. The floral focus print is from the "Lindsey" collection by Karen Montgomery for Timeless Treasures. The coordinating back and interior pocket print is from the "Breeze" collection by Wendy Slotboom for "In the Beginning." I crocheted with a K hook, using Sirdar Snuggly, Baby Bamboo in the color "Waterbaby."

"You Go Girl" instructions are here. I followed her excellent tutorial, except... for her admonition to eat chocolate during the process. Though I like chocolate, I was in the mood for animal crackers and spice drops, both of which are good with a cuppa!

Here's the finished product on the bed in "Nana's Room."

My posh pillows were so well-received by Jill that she asked me to make a window valance, and a square decorative pillow for the white bench on the other side of the room. Can you guess what I'll be sewing this week?!

During my June giveaway I asked for jokes as comment/entries. Amy give me this one:

What do hospital gowns and insurance have in common?

They both make you think you're covered when you're not.