Mermaid Craft: Pillow

Cast your minds back to June 2nd. This was the day I announced my act of wildness was to do some sewing in the garden. Today, I'm going to tell you how I made my project: the pillow.



A friend of mine had tagged me in a post about aquatic themed pillows and I cannot tell you how much I wanted them! Sadly, it was not something I could justify spending money on presently. But it did remind me that I not only have a beautiful, aquatic-themed fabric but also the stuffing to make my own pillow. And make my own, I did!

Feeling brave, I did not follow a method found online I did it all off my own brain. From what I've learned through sewing other things I knew it needed to be inside out, my shape was not complicated, and I was feeling confident. So I went for it!

All in all, it was pretty easy. After sewing the first edged, I decided it would be prudent to sew back along it - the last thing I wanted was for the stuffing to seep between my stitches! The trickiest bit was sewing the gap left to use for stuffing. I left a small a gap as possible in the hopes that it would not leave an obvious patch. With hindsight, it would have been better to sew in a zip for a tidier finish - but hey ho! That's what hindsight is for. Next time I can add a zip. I would also need to buy a zip.



YOU WILL NEED
  • Needle
  • Thread
  • Pins
  • Pretty fabric
  • Long ruler and/or cutting mat
  • Scissors
  • Pencil
  • Stuffing
  • Something long to help with stuffing - kebab skewer perhaps




METHOD

  1. Pick your fabric and lay it pattern down on your cutting mat. Decide on the size of your pillow and mark it onto your fabric. I went 13'x13' but you can make it any size you want.
  2. Using the ruler, extend these lines so you have something to follow when cutting.
  3. Cut out your square - this is the first side of your pillow!
  4. Repeat steps 1-3 to make the second side of your pillow. If it's easier, you can use the first side as a measuring guide.
  5. Place the pieces of fabric pattern side together and line them up the best you can. Don't worry if they are slightly different sizes, any excess is going to be on the inside of the pillow. Pin them together. On the fourth side, don't pin it all the way - this will serve as a reminder to leave a gap!
  6. Get a nice long thread and start sewing! Keep your stitches as neat as possible, straight and not too spaced out. When you reach the end of you edge, flip it over and sew back the way you came.  Use this as a chance to fill in any gaps and strengthen your existing stitches. Tie a knot at the end.
  7. Repeat for sides 2 and 3.
  8. For the fourth side, sew up to the end of the pins and turn back at that point.
  9. Your pillow should be 90% sewn together now. At this point, turn it the right way round, using the gap you left.
  10. Now to stuff! I tore my stuffing into smaller pieces to fit it through the gap and make it easier to reach the corners. This is where my kebab skewer came in handy too! I used it to smush (technical term) the stuffing into the nooks I couldn't reach with my hands alone.
  11. When you've achieved optimal squishiness (also a technical term), it's time to sew up the gap. Fold in the edges so the messy ends will still be on the inside, even though the stitches won't be.
  12. Sew with small and close stitches to negate the need to stitch back on yourself. That way your knot won't be in the middle of your pillow. That or start in the corner and sew your way back to it, whichever you feel is more necessary for your skills.
  13. And you're done! Decorate your sofa or favourite chair with your new, favourite pillow!







I am looking forward to making more pillows. I am currently mid-way through converting an old band t-shirt into a pillow - I ran out of stuffing! In addition to pillows, I have been experimenting with other patterns which I shall be blogging about in the near future. In the mean time, if anyone has any craft ideas let me know!

Will you be trying to make a pillow? Would you like me to make it for you?(!) What is your favourite craft you've made? Lemme know, below!




Listening to: 90s Smash Hits

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Recycla-cools: EcoBricks

Image
You know how you see something once and then several times over that day you see that same thing over and over? Well, that happened to me recently. I was scrolling through Instagram and someone mentioned EcoBricks . It came up a couple more times and then my co-worker messaged me, asking about them! It was a sign from the universe, my next post was going to be about EcoBricks after doing some much needed research. EcoBrick wall. Photo from cobute 🌍 WHAT IS AN ECOBRICK?!  I think the website puts it best: An EcoBrick is a reusable building block created by packing clean and dry used plastic into a plastic bottle to a set density. Essentially, plastic bottles are stuffed with non-recyclable plastics to create a sturdy building block with almost limitless uses. Much like the water bottle houses I covered recently. EcoBrick is a global organisation which is trying to give our essentially value-less trash value. By packing it into a bottle, it has been removed fr...
Read more

Final Friday Top Five!

Image
It occurs to me that I should be thinking about Christmas... But I don't have the brain for it, so it can be Not Christmas for just a little bit longer. So have a Top Five! Final Friday Top Five Disney Sidekicks From Movies In/On/Around Water Yes, that specific. Do you know how few Disney films are based around water? So some real liberties have been taken. Starting with... 5. Ray (The Princess & The Frog) Picture from Disney Wiki Bear with me on this one. So he's in The Princess & The Frog , which has an actual water-y sidekick - Louis the Alligator. But Ray lives in the Bayou which is a swampy habitat. While I like the trumpet playing gator, I like Ray better. He is voiced by Jim Cummings , who voices everyone! From Scar's singing voice to modern Winnie the Pooh, if the film is animated this guy is likely to be in it. Plus, he sings My Belle Evangeline which is not only beautiful but the song my sister walked down the aisle to. It ma...
Read more

Marine Creature of the Month JUNE

Image
I was hoping to have the next Sharks at 7 & 3/4 s filmed and edited by now, but the boy ran off half way through filming and then told me he doesn't want to do it because it was too stressful! So that is still in the works right now. Instead, have a #MCotM! Manta Ray via GIPHY Kingdom: Animalia Class: Chordata Conservation Status: Vunerable (VU) Found: International waters Diet: Zooplankton Weight: Up to 1,350kg (2,980lbs) Size: From 5.5m (18ft) to 7m (23ft) Habitat: Temperate, subtropical and tropical waters; pelagic waters. Manta rays, known online as majestic flap flaps (!), are huge and beautiful creatures. Just look at it flap along - look at it! Fangirling aside, they are incredible. There are two species of manta ray: M. birostris (the larger of the two) and M. alfredi (named after Prince Alfred). They are both very similar in appearance, with a few key differences. As already mentioned, M. birostris are larger, but they are also darker...
Read more