Pillow with an Oversize Flower Made From Fabric Scraps

After 5 years, I'm finally decorating my living room. Oh, I have a sofa, loveseat, coffee table, end tables and all that stuff. What I need is the finishing touches. My living room still looks pretty much like it did when we first moved in. So far, all I've done are throw pillows. I'm still working on a hanging light, curtains and some floor pillows. And I need wall art. But today, I'll show you my flower pillow. I decided to make pillow covers instead of buying new pillows because, a) my family (i.e.kids and dog) are hard on my pillows and b) why buy it when you can make it? and c) why would I spend $40 for a gorgeous pillow cover that my kids are going to beat each other senseless with?

 

 It is pretty awesome, right?

I went through my fabric stash and found a piece of muslin just big enough to cover my pillow. Then I found an old red tablecloth that has a tear and a stain on it that would be perfect for the flower.  I figured out how big I wanted my flower to be, then using a dinner plate, I traced out a circle on the front section of my pillow. Using a drinking glass, I traced and cut out lots and lots of circles out of the tablecloth for the flower petals. I used my rotary cutter to cut all those circles in half. Now, the real fun begins....

I lined up my petals with the outer edge of the dinner plate circle and pinned them down. Don't worry if the petals don't come out exactly even - they probably won't. And I am not going to take the time to figure out measurements so they will...partially because I HATE math, partially because I will then have to do this for every row and I am far too lazy to do that. And I truly hate math.

As you can see, they did not come out perfectly; I overlapped some so it wouldn't be quite so off.

Then, just sew the petals down. I used my sewing machine. You could also use fabric glue, but I want them to stay on while my kids are pounding each other with the pillow. After you finish this row, do another 5 - 6 rows the same way as the first, just don't line it up the exactly with the first row. Stagger the petals as I have below.

 When you get to this point, when you pin and sew (or glue) your petals, pinch them in the center so they have a little dimension. I found it was easier to pinch each petal and sew it down, one at a time, rather than pinching and pinning them down all at once, then sewing. The pins need to go sideways in order to keep the pleat in place and that's really tough (and painful) to do with a sewing machine.

For the very center, I cut out four whole circles, quarter-folded them, then stitched them in by hand to make the center of my flower.

I made a simple envelope pillow cover so I could easily slip it on and off for washing. Plus, I didn't have to sew any buttonholes or zippers. All you have to do is fold over the sides, pin and sew! Just make sure your flower is centered and on the INSIDE when you sew. It's a real pain to rip the seams out and start again. Not that I would know that from personal experience. Turn right side out and voila! Pillow cover!

 

Stuff your pillow inside and admire your handiwork. 

 Now, three days after I finished this, I noticed it had sticky stuff on it. THREE DAYS. Seriously? And it just magically appeared. In the dead of night. So, I washed it. Like an idiot, I tossed it in on the regular cycle, then in the dryer. It was a mess. I had to iron it and it now looks like a carnation. I still like it. Not as much as before, but hey, live and learn. Next time (and I'm sure there will be a next time), I will put it in on the delicate cycle and lay it flat to dry! 

Until the next project, 
Chris :)