The glorious satin pillocases.

My boyfriend and I decided that we would post-pone our Valentine's day to  the 18th because it was a weekend. We both work evening shifts from Monday to Friday, and he works afternoons too, so doing anything remotely romantic on the actual day was impossible. I know it is now way past the 18th ... but ... I have no excuse. Laziness. It gets the best of us all sometimes.

Before I started this blog, I had made a pair of yellow satin pillowcases for myself. I'd been on this huge anti-aging spin and read a lot about satin pillowcases being better for your hair and skin because they don't cause sleep lines and don't pull your hair. So I made a pair to match my bedding. They are amazing. They are the softest, most comfortable pillowcases I have ever had the pleasure of using. When I was in Mexico, I missed them greatly. My face missed the satiny smoothness. Coming back to them was glorious. I'm not exaggerating, but I'm probably going overboard on the rave. They are worth it. If you don't have a pair, make them. Or buy them, but they can get expensive.The first time my boyfriend slept over, he raved about them too. I think it's contagious. They're that awesome.

All this was back in January. So why didn't I make a post about them sooner then? Because I was making a pair for him too and wanted to do one comprehensive blog, which I couldn't do until I had given them to him. He reads my blog. So now that he has them on his bed, I can finally get around to blogging about them.

This is one of his. I forgot to take pictures before I handed them over, so I asked him to afterwards. He had the hardest time getting a picture that showed the colour. I think this one turned out pretty well. It's got the pillow in it so you can see how big they are! I didn't do that on purpose. I had never sewn a french-seam before, which is what pillowcases use apparently, and didn't know how much extra fabric to leave... so I left to much. But at least if we upgrade to a king bed ever, they'll fit king pillows. And with a total of four pillowcases that size (my two and his two), it'll be perfect for such a massive bed!

You can kind of see a fold line where the pillow ends inside the case. On mine, I folded that inwards and stitched. I had been following a pattern where the top part was folded so you could see the other side of the fabric, something I didn't realize. The satin fabric I bought for both sets of pillowcases is not reversible. So I stopped following the pattern and kind of left it as is, with a stitch line running along where the fold line is above. I didn't do that for my boyfriend's set, thinking it was a mistake on mine. One that added a nice detail, but still a mistake. I later asked him if he wanted the stitch line or not. He said he kind of liked it with the stitching. When I asked for the pillowcases back to add it in, he said no. He didn't want to give them up. They're totally addictive and totally worth it, and very hard to go without after having used them.

A close up of the opening of the pillowcase. I don't know what it's called, I can't remember, but it's the seam that you fold over and stitch in place, and then fold again and stitch again. A rolled hem? Maybe? I can't remember. But it's an effective way of managing fraying.

The other side of the rolled hem(?). I'm getting better at stitching a straight line! :D  Very proud of myself for that. Still not perfect, but it's getting there slowly.

I also did a non-sewing project as part of his gift. This was more crafty. I made a 52 Reasons Why I Love You deck of cards. Only I made them look old first. I rubbed them with sandpaper, shuffled them a billion times, dipped them in tea, sprinkled them with coffee grounds while wet (twice by the way, once on the front and again on the back), then I took a candle to them. I glued the paper with the reasons on them, after having rubbed them with more coffee grinds.

I bought a hole punch and punched two holes in every card, then tied them with string. 

 Some sample pages. Some ended up more burned than others, which was a nice variation. I also fired some when they were still slightly damp, and the pattern from the flame was different than when the cards were dry. All in all, I think it looks like it was made a hundred years ago and survived until now.

The sweetheart that he is, he made me a card. Not just any card. A pop-up card. I didn't even know you COULD make those! It's adorable. I love it! I don't have a picture, for some reason, but it's a heart-shaped card that says "Will you be my Valentine?", only the 'be' is a pop-up bumble bee! I knew there was a reason I love him. 52 Reasons really, well, 53 after the card. :D