Throw Pillows: AT Projects #5 and #6

In March I began an overhaul on the colors in the living room. I loved the look I had going, but it was very dark and didn't fit my springtime mood. I went to JoAnns for some inspiration and stumbled upon this gorgeous print.



I pulled out the beautiful cerulean blue and made two pillows and a lampshade. Then I made a big move and pulled out the coral to make my new curtain panels. I picked yellow for our rectangular pillow for a pop of color. That's where I got stuck. I had two more maroon pillows to cover and was out of ideas.

Then one day I got an email from an amazing design blog I follow on pillow tutorials. I fell in love with her gathered flower and ruffle pillows and knew they would be the perfect finishing touch for my couch. Because all the other pillows were patterned I decided to go with solid colors. After a quick trip to Joanns and many hours of sewing (more on that in a second) later, I had this.



And this.


Looooove, right? They came out beautifully and they look gorgeous on our couch. And I made them both for under $10. Honestly, I've been pillow shopping before and that is an impossible price to beat. I got 1/2 yard of the sage green at $4.99/yard, 1/2 yard of the yellow for $4.99 yard, and 1/4 yard of the goldenrod at $3.99 a yard. I bought a two pack of crystal buttons for $2.50 and I already had thread and of course my lovely hot glue gun at home.

I'm not sure if I've shared with you before, but when I redo my pillows I just reuse my inserts and sew pillowcases. This way they are easy to wash (very important in a house with two small children) and easy to change out each season or as my mood changes. 1/2 yard of fabric is plenty to make a 14x14 pillow with an overlapping back panel so you can easily slip the insert in or out.

See?


Anyway, these pillows should have taken me an hour tops, but I learned the hard way and spent 2.5 hours on them. Here's a few tips in case you decide to try them yourself.

1. You need a sharp, sturdy needle to sew the gathered flower together. You are layering at least 7 petals together and a blunt needle is going to take a lot of work (and possible injury to yourself) to finish it.

2. Make sure you when you sew your ruffles that you use a heavy duty thread. When it is time to break the thread and pull the fabric so it will ruffle if it's not heavy duty it will snap. Easily. Many times.

3. You have to wait to sew the pillowcase until your ruffles are sewn on. I mistakenly made the cover first then realized I couldn't stitch the ruffles on with my machine without sewing the pillowcase shut. So I improvised and I hand stitched them on either side and then used my glue gun to stick them on the rest of the way. That worked fine, but they won't be as sturdy that way.

If you attempt these pillows yourself I would love to see them. Happy crafting!