I just spent a fun morning sorting through my fabric stash and converting it into some cushy little throw pillows. They’re easy peasy – stitched up in a flash. Want to give them a try? Here’s what you’ll need:
Pillow forms in the size of your choice
To determine how much fabric you need, add 1″ to the height of the pillow form and multiply the width of the pillow form by 2 (to cover the front and back of the pillow). Finally, add 6 inches for the back overlap. In the example I used below, my pillow form was 12″ high by 16 inches wide so I cut my fabric 13 inches high by 38 inches wide. Be sure to purchase an extra inch or so of fabric to allow for shrinkage because you will definitely want to prewash prior to making your pillows – that way you can take them off and wash them and they’ll still fit your pillow forms when they come out of the dryer.
Cut your fabric. I folded my fabric in half so that I cut 13″ X 19″ with the fold right on the “0” mark of my cutting mat.
Open up the fabric and serge raw edges of the shorter sides of the fabric. If you do not have a serger, no problem! This is just an easy way for me to hem the edges. Instead, fold over 1/4″ twice to hide your raw edge.
Sew a straight stitch 1/4″ from edge to hem what will be the opening of your pillow case.
Next fold the fabric in half, hemmed edges together. Iron so that you can easily see the center crease. Lay the center crease on the cutting mat so that it matches up with the measurement that will be the center of your pillow case. For instance, if your pillow form is 16 inches wide, line up your center crease on the 8 inch mark.
Very carefully – being sure not to disturb your center crease – open up the fabric and find the left edge by folding it to match the 0 inch mark.
Now do the same for the right edge and line it up so that it is the full width of the pillow form (16″ in my case).
When you find your edges, you will create the overlap for the pillow case to slip into. This creates the envelope style opening. This is what it should look like. Pin in place
Serge or sew raw edges using a 1/4 to 1/2 inch seam allowance.
Slip pillow in!
Enjoy your new pillows – and don’t forget to iron out your middle crease like I did! 😉
It certainly is a fun morning when you can just sort through
material or make something. Lucky you.
Cushions are sweet.
Cheers, Anita.
I so need to learn how to sew. I have a machine, but that doesn’t count.
Carli used to swear she “couldn’t” sew, then next thing I knew she got so good that she started her own business sewing cloth diapers! So, be encouraged – you can totally do it. 🙂
Lisa, this is the perfect project to start you off. Easy and instant gratification. Time to break in that machine. 😉
These are lovely little pillow tams. Thanks for sharing your technique for making them.