Valentines Pillow

Okay, well, my sisters and I joked about making a pillow for every holiday but now it seems to be coming to pass. I loved my fall and winter pillows  so much that I had to try a Valentines one.

I couldn’t really find a example online that I loved for inspiration so I came up with my own. Looking all over the web has made me feel like hearts are kinda cheesy so I was going for a whimsical look. I did my best to make an uncheesy pillow.

Here is how to make it with a 16×16 pillow form-

Supplies

1. Fabric scraps for your hearts. Make sure that the fabric is bold enough to stand out on your background material. This was a bit of a challenge for me.

2. Appliqué material: I use Heat’ n Bond but there are a few other types. I’d get about 1/4 yard for this project.

3. Material for the pillow front, cut to 17″ x 17″ square. Look for something like lightweight canvas or even a muslin will work.

4. Material for the back. Cut 1 rectangle 17″x 14″ and cut 1 rectangle 17″x 10″.

5. 16″ x 16″ pillow form. If you choose to use a different size pillow you’ll just have to adjust the measurements of the pillow front and back.

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Step 1: Trace or draw your heart shapes onto your appliqué material. Roughly cut out the hearts and iron them on to your desired material. This allows you to “fussy cut” each heart so that you can get the fabric pattern into the heart shape as desired. Iron the heart according to the directions on the appliqué material. (press & hold the iron over each heart for a few seconds) Repeat with all your hearts.

Step 2: Now with scissors cut out your hearts and peel off the paper backing. Arrange them on your pillow front material. I placed my fabric on top of my pillow so I could get a good idea of what it would look like and how far to stay away from the edges. Make sure to stay at least an 1.5″ away from the edges to leave room for sewing.

Step 3: Once your design is how you like it, iron over each heart to tack it in place. This will keep everything in place while you sew them on.

Step 4: Now you can sew along the inside edges of your hearts. A zig zag stitch or blanket stitch could work as well.

When I sew my hearts on I move my foot from heart to heart without cutting the strings so it goes faster. Afterward I’ll go back and cut the strings on the front and don’t even bother with the back side.

Step 5: To prepare your pillow back, fold one of the short edges of each pillow backing piece in 1/2″ and press, then again 1/2″ and press. Sew to hide any raw edges. These will be the edges of the envelope back. If you are confused about which edge to sew, lay out the pieces on the pillow front to give you and idea how it goes together.

Step 6: Lay the backing pieces right sides down onto the pillow front over lapping the centers. Make sure your right sides are facing towards the right sides of your pillow front and your outer edges match. Pin around the edges well.

Step 7: Sew a 1/4″ to 1/2″ inseam around the edges. Then clip your extra corner fabric off so the corners will turn nicely. Turn it inside out and stuff a 16″ pillow form in it.

Ta da! That’s it. Enjoy your pillow.