As Mother's Day is just over two weeks away now for our UK friends on Sunday 6th March, we thought we'd pull together some ideas to inspire you for the perfect gift for your fabulous mum.

This is always a really poignant time of year for me; as I'm sure many of you were, I was first taught to sew by my mum. She was a brilliant seamstress and I remember her patiently sitting next to me as I struggled to get to grips, first with a needle and thread, and then when I was older, with the sewing machine!

For the perfect Mother's Day gift we've got lots of lovely sewing and stitch kits, which are suitable for both those who've never sewn before, and experienced sewists alike!

We've recently added to our own label kits; firstly we've made a panelled cushion cover Marden Monochrome Cushion Cover in a mix of Nani Iro double gauze fabrics Joy Flower and Mountain Views, with Robert Kaufman's Yarn Dyed Essex Linen in Black for the back.

Secondly we've our Bepton Blue Scarf, the kit for which includes fat quarters of Nani Iro's Freeway, Joy Flower and Robert Kaufman's Woven Spot, we've included extra fabric designed to give the maker flexibility when choosing the size and positioning of the front panel pieces.

Merchant and Mills are always a firm favourite, both with us, and with you! 

All of their products are so beautifully packaged that you're guaranteed to find a lovely gift for your mum whatever your budget. Whether it be a pack of their Glass Headed Pins, a Sewing Pattern (which we'll wrap with gingham ribbon free of charge in the run up to Mother's Day), the Rapid Repair Kit, Workbook, a collection of 6 patterns designed to create a stylish multi-layered wardrobe, or the Leather Needle Wallet to name but a few.

The stitch kits by Nancy Nicholson are always hugely popular, we've recently added two new designs to the range, namely Teapot and Birdie 1; which sit alongside Cat and Lovebirds.

Finally, you can't go wrong with fabric, why not give one of our Fat Quarter Bundles, each of which contain a lovingly selected range of our designer and organic fabrics, perfect for patchwork, quilting and small projects.

Whatever you decide on we're sure your gift  will Make Your Mother's Day!

We're huge fans of Nancy Nicholson's work here at The Draper's Daughter and are really pleased that many of you seem to be too!

Most of the original kits that we stocked have now sold out and we're really pleased to have added two of Nancy's new designs to the range.

Choose from Teapot, printed in shades of teal, turquoise, pinks and a pop of green or Birdie 1 with its pops of neon!

Printed onto a cotton/linen fabric panel, which clearly shows you were to stitch, these kits are suitable for both novices and those who have embroidered before alike.

They make an ideal gift or perhaps an "on-the-go" sewing project for yourself!

These Knicker Making Kits make a fabulously fun gift for Valentine's Day.

The Polka Dots are a really popular style and spot on in red! Or why not choose the contemporary floral print Gypsy, shown bottom left, in the photo above; or we've the modern bird print available in both Grey and Blue. Whichever style you decide on they're sure to delight your sewing Valentine!

And for wrapping your Valentine's Day gift look no further than our British Made Traditional Baker's Twine! It's ideal for crafting too if you've feeling particularly creative. Choose from Red or the recently added Burgundy colourway.

To kick start 2016 we've just added some beautiful new fabrics by Japanese designer Naomi Ito for Kokka Fabrics.

We're big fans of Naomi's here at The Draper's Daughter, and love the abstract painterly quality to her work; a garment in any of the Nani Iro fabrics is sure to make you stand out from the crowd.

This new collection includes three designs in 100% cotton double gauze. This lovely lightweight fabric is made from two layers of fine fabric held together at regular intervals in a grid of tiny stitches so small they're almost invisible. This breathable fabric is cool in the summer and warm in winter.

The image above shows, from left to right, Birdseye News, Joy Flower Respect, Sazanami Pocho Hoko, this design was made using a Japanese  "salt-shrinking' process called Enshuku which creates a lovely crinkled effect, and lastly we have Jewel Song Pocho Asagiri.

Finally, we've Spectacle in the colourway Good Morning, shown above, which is printed on a lightweight cotton/linen canvas.  

 We're sure you'll agree that these fabrics are all perfect for getting your Summer wardrobe under way, whichever fabric you decide on, happy sewing!

We've take our Envelope Cushion Covers a stage further with this make and introduced top-stitched pieced panels on the front to give a more designed look. It's also a great way to use up those smaller fabric off-cuts too!

For the front of our make we've mixed together our Organic Cotton Cross-weaves in Lt Blue and Natural, a remnant of Nani Iro's Mountain Views in Grey together with a piece of Liberty Manning from our stash. For the back pieces we've used Robert Kaufman's 8oz Washed Indigo Denim on the reverse side.

• Cushion insert, for the purposes of this tutorial we've chosen to make a cover for an insert measuring 40cm X 40cm, but feel free to make whatever size you prefer
• Assorted fabrics of a similar weight for the front panels; and for the two back panels, 2 pieces each measuring 42cm X 30cm.
• Matching Cotton Thread, for our make we've used our Organic Cotton Thread in Beige
• Dressmakers Scissors
• Tape Measure
• Sewing Pins
• Sewing Gauge (not essential, but it makes turning a hem so much easier and quicker!)
• Bamboo Point Turner

To make :

Pre-wash your fabrics before starting.

Next you will need to decide on the sizing of your front panels; for ours we've split the cover in half through the centre and then divided each of these halves further roughly into one third and two third pieces, as above, giving us the following measurements:

• 2 larger pieces =  22cm X 28cm (20cm X 26cm when finished)
• 2 smaller pieces = 22cm X 16cm (20cm X 14cm when finished)

Cut out your front panel pieces, and then you'll need to cut the two back panel pieces measuring 42cm X 30cm.

Starting with the front panels, pin the right sides together for each of the two sides. Stitch with a 1cm seam allowance. Press the seams open and finish with a zig zag stitch.

We've then top-stitched either side of this seam, as shown above, but this is optional.

Next, pin together the right sides of the two stitched side panels, stitch with a 1cm seam allowance. Again, press the seams open and finish with a zig zag stitch. And if desired finish with top-stitching either side of this seam too.

With the front of the cushion cover finished, each of the back panels need to be hemmed along one of the 42cm sides. To do this first turn a 1cm hem, pinning as you go (as shown below) and press into place; turn this hem again and iron to create a double fold hem.

Top stitch this folded hem on the right side of the fabric, close to the turned edge.

Next place the front panel piece right side up on your work surface. Then lay one of the back pieces right side down onto the front panel, with the unfinished 42cm side lined up with the outer edge of the front cushion piece, as shown above. 

Then take the second back panel piece and again place it right side down onto the other fabric pieces, as with the other back piece, the unfinished 42cm side lined up with the outer edge of the front cushion piece. See our "How to Make an Envelope Cushion Cover Tutorial" for images to illustrate.

Pin these back pieces in place. Then stitch round all four sides of the cushion cover with a 1cm seam allowance, at each corner sink the needle down, lift the foot and pivot the fabric 90 degrees.

Trim the seams to 5mm, and trim the corners, as shown above, to ensure a neat finish. We finished our seams with a zig zag stitch, but again this isn't essential.

Turn your cover inside out, give it a good press and there you have it, your own bespoke cushion cover!