A sight for tired eyes, our handmade sleep masks are stylish and useful—and make thoughtful gifts for everyone on your list, from your frequent-flyer friend to your always-on-the-go partner. Lucky for you, they're also a cinch to create: Just choose the materials (pick soft fabrics in patterns that will suit the recipients' tastes), put them together, and sew it all up. You can make a few in a single sitting, then rest easy—you've just shortened your holiday to-do list, beautifully.
What You'll Need
Materials
- Cotton flannel
- Cotton batting
- Cotton or silk fabric
- Fabric scissors
- Sewing supplies
- Elastic
- Bias tape
- Sleep masks template
Instructions
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Download and print template; cut out. Trace onto flannel, batting, and front fabric; cut out with fabric scissors. Mark the 2 spots on front fabric where elastic should go, as indicated on template.
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Layer pieces in order, from back to front—flannel, batting, front fabric—with right sides of flannel and fabric both facing out.
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Pin elastic at marked points on front fabric, lining up with edge of mask.
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Unfold one side of bias tape and align unfolded edge with edge of mask. Fold over 1/4 inch of one end. Then pin tape all around, overlapping ends of tape by 1/4 inch.
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Using top crease as a guide, stitch in that crease all around mask, as shown.
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Flip mask so flannel side (back of mask) is facing up. Fold tape over raw edge of mask and pin all around.
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Hand-sew binding to flannel using a slip stitch. (See our how-to.)