Hello! Frances here!

Today I wanted to share with you a quick-to-sew idea for a Christmas gift. We’re going to make these plant pot covers which are a perfect way to add a handmade touch and make your gift extra special. This is great way to cover an ugly plant pot and put some fabric scraps to good use. I’ve also made one to throw my small sewing notions in, to keep them organised when I need them so if you don’t have any pot plants, maybe you’ll make another one as a little storage pot for your sewing table!

You don’t need much in the way of supplies, gather together your basic sewing kit and sewing machine, then you’ll need:

• quilting weight fabrics. You’ll need two colours, one is for the outer of the pot cover, the other is the lining which you’ll see in the photo is turned down to form a contrast border to the top edge.
• Bias binding
• Fusible interfacing (you can substitute wadding or sew-in foam)
• A pair of compasses and pencil (for drawing a circle)

To begin, we need to decide how large to cut our fabric.

For this pot cover I measured the circumference at the widest point of the pot and jotted down that measurement.

Then I measure the height of my pot, including the drip tray and jot down that measurement.

We want to add 2″ to the height so we can fold the top down and show the contrast fabric lining.

We also need to add seam allowances. I have added 1/2″ seam allowances everywhere.

So for this pot:
Circumference = 22.5″ + 1/2″ + 1/2″ seam allowance = 23.5″ total

Height = 6″ + 2″ extra for turn down + 1/2″ + 1/2″ seam allowances = 9″ total

So I need to cut a rectangle from both my outer and lining fabrics that measures 23.5″ x 9″

Next we need to draft the circle for the base.

Take the circumference measurement minus seam allowances that you took earlier. Mine was 22.5″. Now we need to do a little school maths to find the radius: Divide your circumference measurement by 3.14 (pi), and then divide that by 2. So for example:

22.5″ /3.14=7″

then,

7″/2=3.5″

This gives me the radius of my circle as 3.5″. We need to add seam allowances to this, so add an extra 1/2″ (or whatever seam allowance you are adding).
Use this measurement to set your compasses and draw a circle with this radius onto both your lining fabric and outer fabric.

Fuse some interfacing to the wrong side of the outer fabric rectangle and circle. This is to give your outer fabric some structure. You’ll find this is essential especially for larger pot sizes. If your fabric is a heavier weight you could skip this step. A less stable fabric without stabiliser will just have a slouchier look on the finished pot.

There are options here – you might be making your pot from a quilted offcut – in that case, you won’t need to add any extra interfacing as the quilted fabric will be sturdy enough to stand up on its own.

If you don’t have interfacing you can substitute a thin foam such as Bosal foam. I have used this in bag making and it would also be a good option here. If you are using it, then machine baste it on all edges to the wrong side of the outer fabric.

Let’s get sewing.

Sew the short sides of your main outer fabric together to form a tube using the seam allowances you added (for me that’s 1/2″). Repeat with the lining fabric and press all seams open as shown in the photo on the right.

Next, place the lining inside the outer tube, wrong sides together and line up your side seams. Align the edges and hold in place with some pins.

Now we’re going to neaten that top edge with binding.

Take a length of double fold bias binding and pop it over the raw edges of the fabric to enclose them. Take it to the machine and sew through all the layers being sure to catch the binding on the underside as shown in the photo.

As you approach the point where you started stitching, fold under the end of the bias tape to hide the raw edges and sew over it.

Now baste together the bottom edge of the tube. This’ll make it much easier to set in the base.

The next job is to baste together the circles for the base. Place them wrong sides together and sew a machine basting stitch around the perimeter with a scant seam allowance.

Next we’re going to sew the base circle into the tube. Some registration points will really help with this – your side seam is the first one. Flatten your tube and mark a point on the bottom edge that is opposite the side seam. Then re-fold and mark the quarter points.

Take your base circle and fold it into quarters, finger press and then pencil mark at the edges.

Take the tube and the circle, outer sides together, and align the pencil marks and pin in place. Now use lots of pins and pin in-between easing as required to distribute any fullness as you can see in the photo.

Take it to the machine and sew in place. You can use an overlocker, or overcast stitch on your machine to finish these raw edges if you want to.

Turn your pot cover right side out, fold over the top edge to make the border, and pop in your plant! It’s all done and looks fantastic.

The same construction works for any size cylindrical pot. I’ve made them in all sizes and find them so useful around the house. I have one for all my sewing notions that lives next to my machine. It’s perfect for keeping everything tidy. Maybe you have a sewing friend who would love one?

Merry Christmas everyone!

Frances
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