Handmade items with a "summer at the beach" attitude
Ten years ago I bought a cottage at the beach on Cape Cod. It was a little fixer-upper, and I have spent countless hours painting and sewing and making all kinds of curtains, linens, quilts, etc to outfit the cottage. As I designed and sewed, people started asking me to make them things for their cottages and homes . And Cottage Expressions was born.
I try to make my products pretty and useful. Many can be personalized. Each one is handmade completely by me - the pattern, the sewing, the embroidering and the packaging.
If you are interested, I'm happy to share the steps I use to create flatware pockets:
First I buy the fabric so that all the pockets are made from the same bolt of material and will look identical. I machine wash and dry the fabric before sewing so that I am sure that a customer can wash and dry them without worrying about shrinkage.
Next I iron the fabric and cut out the pieces. Then I iron the pocket shape so that the top hems are fixed and I can accurately mark where the pocket can be embroidered. Then I embroider using one of two embroidery machines I have.
Finally, I sew the top seams adding decorative stitching or trim. Then I French seam the side seams so that there are no raw edges.
It's a process, but the end result is a unique table item that can be used and enjoyed for years.
Thanks so much to those customers who have shared their stories of how the products they bought from me are being used and who they gave them to and why!