Tag Archives: sewing pillows

Lounging Around

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I’m STILL working on my vintage sign and yes, it’s taking FOREVER!  But it’s not because, as the title suggests, I’m lounging around.  I promise you’ll get the good, the bad, and the ugly details on all of it very soon.

But for today, I thought I’d show you a quick little project I’ve had on the back burner.

As some of you know, several years ago, I had my own business; a workroom sewing home decor.  I loved working with clients and the challenge of many of the projects that I was hired to do.  My favorite was working with interior designers who had a unique vision for a space and needed custom draperies, pillows and other items to achieve the look.  It was a ton of fun collaborating with such creative people.

The story I want to share, however, occurred while picking up an order from one of my favorite wholesale suppliers.  While roaming their store, I noticed this cushion stashed in a corner.

(Sorry… it’s an old photo.)  It measures 24 inches square and is 5 inches deep… well made and complete fluffiness!

No one in the shop seemed to know where it had come from or even how much they were selling it for.  Most likely a cancelled and forgotten order, for a few bucks it found a new life with me.

But once I got it home, I wasn’t sure what I was going to do with my new find.  It was much too large for a standard accent pillow, too cushy to build into an ottoman… decisions, decisions.

And then I found this retro, graphic fabric.

A gold and robin egg blue overlapping circular print; I like its masculine vibe.  It’s soft, durable and ideal for a floor pillow.  Bonus points that it’s the perfect colors for our family room.  I cut the fabric to size and made welting to complete the look.

The family has enjoyed having something to lounge on during movie night and homework time.  In fact, I had no idea how much use this cushion would get when I came across it. Sometime you just never know what you need until you have it.

Have you ever rescued an item that you weren’t sure what you were going to do with it… you just knew you would regret NOT getting it?  Is there something you’ve brought home that you didn’t know how much you would use it until you owned it?  Do you have a project that feels like it is never ending?

Egg-ceptional Seating

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Oh puns… they’re really not my thing, but sometimes you just can’t resist.

Anyhoo… a few weeks ago, Tess decided to help me out with a little research for the chair she wants in her room.  I mentioned before that she has her heart set on an egg chair like this one:

So she shared her list of options with me.  Her first choice was this one:

Once I stopped laughing, she agreed that even by Walmart’s pricing, it’s a “smidge” out of our price range.  The girl’s got taste, though.  She found this one too.

Better, but still over a grand.  Plus, neither of these come in a color that works in her room.  Even if we did have this kind of money to blow, mama don’t want to have to reupholster a brand new chair.

Her third choice and more in the neighborhood was this one.

It’s still more than I want to spend…. which ends up being a good thing.  As I prepped this photo for the post, I realized that this is a listing for THE STAND.  It’s $300 for the stand for the chair, folks… not the chair itself.  OOPS!!  We didn’t catch that earlier.

Not to worry… We also talked about seeing if we could find something a little less egg shaped and a little more affordable.

We all really liked these Pottery Barn chairs… especially the white, furry one.

However, my biggest concerns with having light faux fur were that:

  1. We have two housemates that like to wipe their doggy essence on things.  This wouldn’t look pretty for long.
  2. The room gets warm in the summer making a furry place to sit all the less appealing.

But then we were at JoAnn’s and Tess spotted this one.  At half off, it was $30 bucks and it was SOLD!

Tessa was so excited to get it home, she didn’t even mind that it wasn’t egg-shaped or furry.  The purple is a bit darker than the rest of the room, but we decided with pillows, it’ll work for now.

So that we didn’t have to abandon the furry option all together, I made a white furry pillow instead.  And I am thankful we went with such a small piece.  I have limited experience with furry fabrics and this one shed up a storm.  IT. WAS. EVERYWHERE.  All over the clerk at JoAnn’s that cut the fabric.  All over the clerk that rang me up.  All over me.  All over the workroom floor.  I keep finding white strands of fur in the weirdest places.  You’d think we have a cat.

But the faux fur is SO worth it.  It’s perfect for the chair and the space.

I also picked up this gray beaded number from Marshall’s to round out the look.

My girl is loving the new spot to sit and we’re loving that it didn’t cost thousands of dollars.  Sheesh!  For that kind of money, the chair better cook and clean for me too.

So… what’s the craziest thing you’ve wanted, but almost died over the price?  Were you able to come up with a crazy cheap alternative?  Do you have experience working with fur?  Wait… scratch that last one.  I may not want to know.

Project Notes: Diamonds Are A Girl’s Best Friend

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Last week I found myself with a few extra minutes and so I dropped into our local Marshall’s.  There are a few things that I am currently on the hunt for, but when I saw this pillow I knew I had to get it.  It’s a little cutesy, but it was just too perfect to pass up.

Awesome, right?!  I really like the saying and it’s the right colors for our home.

But then I got it home, added it to the window seat and I’m kinda feeling like the blue pillows are looking out of place now.

They’re a transplant from the family room so back they’ll go.

And off to JoAnn’s I went.  I was looking for a new chocolate colored fabric for 20″ pillow forms that I already have.  This is what I found.

I like that the diamond design repeats the pattern in the window seat cushions.

Adding new pillows is one of the easiest updates to do.  I cut 4 – 20″ squares, paying close attention to capture the pattern exactly the same in each square.  Pattern matching is important to creating a quality look and especially so with a design like this.  If the pattern is off, your eye will catch it immediately.

I then pinned the fabric (right sides together) and stitched the perimeter leaving a 8″ gap to wrestle the form into the cover.  Also, before turning my new covers right-side out and adding the pillow forms, I snipped the corners to keep them from getting bulky.

Once the forms are inserted into the pillow covers, it’s just a matter of whip stitching them closed.

I was really happy with how these came out and even more so when I added them to the window seat.

I know it’s a small difference, but it was an easy change to make and I like the continuity in the final look.

Also, because I made sure to line up the pattern when I was cutting the fabric, the seams came out nicely too.

And the absolute best part is finishing a project and getting these pillow forms out of our guest room closet.  Yay for less clutter and better design!

Update:  I am linking up this post to “Organize & Decorate Everything”.  Leanne has a ton of great contributors that share their projects in her Link Party.  To see be inspired, check it out here.

Feature Story: Houndstooth Pouf

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One of my primary goals with this blog is to share home pieces that have a unique history behind them.  But not just in my home… I’m interested in hearing about stories from your home as well.

So when I saw this Houndstooth Pouf, by Beth from Sunshine on the Inside, I knew it was something I wanted to feature and share with you.

Beth created this beautiful Houndstooth Pouf for her son’s room and not only did she use incredible fabric (I LOVE the Houndstooth!) the really story is in what she used to fill it.

Instead of using standard stuffing, she filled it with clothing items that hold special meaning.  I think we all have those t-shirts, jackets, and things that we no longer wear, but we can’t part with because of their significance.  They remind us of an important point in life.  Beth was able to find a new home for those things… filler for the Pouf.

Now she not only has more closet space, but she’s added a functional and beautiful piece to her home.  So cute! I definitely want to try this.

Thank you to Beth for allowing me to share her great idea with you.  Please check out her amazing blog, Sunshine on the Inside.  She is extremely creative and has done some really neat things with chalkboard paint.

And if you have a piece in your home with an interesting story, please submit it for my new section “Feature Story”.  I would love to know about it and share it here!