Contrast Mitered Flange Pillow – our latest instructional PDF

Let me introduce to you the latest instructional PDF we've added to our website, the Contrast Mitered Flange pillow.  This pillow is easy to make once you understand the process.  The instructions include photos with step by step directions for you to follow along with as you sew. This contrast mitered flange pillow is [...]

I cut up my son’s high school letterman jacket and turned it into an upholstered chair.

If you have grown children, you know they leave some things behind when they move into their new places, right?  Trophies, books, papers, and clothing like letterman jackets.  Sound familiar?  I bet it does!  And what do you do with all this stuff? Here's what I did with our son, Justin's Cross Country High School [...]

It’s been an eventful 2017 at Designs by Donna!

I hope your year has been a good one too and that 2018 brings you good health and much joy! At Designs by Donna my mission is: To use my passion, gifts, and abilities to bring joy and beauty into the lives of others through exquisite design, teaching, and sharing.

Difficult Fabrics – Silk Velvet Banding on Drapery Lead Edge

Working with difficult fabrics can be challenging and stressful unless you first determine your course of action.  This is the second edition of working with difficult fabrics.  I'll show you how I used upholstery weight silk velvet to make  narrow bands on  silk taffeta panels.  Now these are two fabrics that couldn't be more incompatible. [...]

What’s your learning style?

If there's one thing I've figured out from teaching it's that each person has a different way of learning.  Some prefer reading to learn a new technique.  Others prefer hands on in order to learn to do something.  And still others want to watch the instructor give a demonstration and explain how to do something. [...]

By |2018-03-07T12:34:13-05:00April 9th, 2017|Uncategorized|

Fabric Check-In Process

Fabric arriving at Designs by Donna is checked in and inspected as soon as it arrives.  Doing so may avoid delays with the project if any flaws, inconsistencies in the repeat, or wrong yardage amounts are found upon inspection.  And the same is true for drapery hardware received. Check-in fabric and hardware as soon as it arrives. [...]

Mistakes and how I turned a big one into a success

Mistakes.  We all make them, don't we?  Well, I know I do.  Some are big and some are small.  But I've found one thing to be true.  It's what we do after we make a mistake that turns it into either  a success or a failure. Here's how I turned a big, expensive mistake into a [...]

By |2018-03-07T12:34:13-05:00January 24th, 2017|Uncategorized|

Patchwork chair seats – the challenges, fun, & following my gut.

Patchwork chair seats and following your gut.  You may be wondering how these can possibly be related.  Well, really, they aren't.  Except that because I followed my gut I created these one of a kind chair seats for the sample room here at Designs by Donna.  And I really like them much better than my original [...]

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