Make a Pillow

Pillows are simple and cheap to assemble, and a great way to learn and practice some basic sewing and crafting skills. So why waste money on store-bought pillows when you can simply make your own? Square and rectangular pillows are the easiest to make. The directions below will guide you through the process, but once you get familiar with it you can improvise to make new creations, all cheaper than anything you could buy at the store.

Steps

Prepare the Fabric

  1. Find your Buy Fabrics Online. Almost any fabric can work, but consider the purpose of the pillow you want. If you are going to be using it rest on at night, pick a fabric that feels good against your face. If your pillow will be decorative, pick a fabric that matches your other furniture.
  2. Cut the fabric into two squares or rectangles of equal size. A simple pillow is basically two pieces of fabric stitched together and filled with a soft stuffing. Your two pieces should be slightly bigger than you want your pillow to be long and wide.
    • Add a one and a half-inch Make Fabric Seam Binding allowance on all sides. A seam allowance is the amount of fabric that extends beyond the stitching.
    • If your fabric is prone to fray, hem the edges of your fabric with a straight or zig zag stitch.

Stitch the Pillow

  1. Measure the sides of your fabric pieces and determine how much thread you will use. Make sure you don't run out of thread in the middle.
  2. Place the two pieces together right-side-in. After stitching them together you are going to be turning the pillow inside-out, so make sure you place together the sides that you want facing out in the end.
  3. Stitch together three sides of the pillow pieces. You can do this either by hand or with a sewing machine. The slip stitch is the best choice. Again, leave a half-inch seam allowance.
  4. Turn the pillow right-side-out. You should now see the sides of the fabric that you want facing out, formed into a pocket that you will fill with stuffing.
  5. Iron your pillow flat. If your pillow has wrinkles when you stuff it, getting them out will be nearly impossible.
  6. Prepare the opening. Tuck a half-inch of fabric at the open edge inside the pillow and iron it flat. You are now ready to stuff and finish your pillow.

Stuff and Close

  1. Stuff the pillow. Take your stuffing and push it into the open side of your pillow. Try to keep the stuffing evenly distributed as you go. Don't stop until your pillow is full and has no obvious areas of slack in its body. Store-bought cotton filler works best, but anything from down feathers to scrap fabric can work.
  2. Stitch the opening together with tiny whip stitches. A whip stitch involves passing your needle from one side to the other, while overcasting the thread along the outer part of the seam.
    • You can also use the blind stitch here to create a neater look.



Tips

  • Instead of leaving the whole last edge of the pillow not sewn, then sewing it after stuffing it, leave only 1/4 of the last edge open. That way there won't be such a big end seam.
  • Make sure you don't put too much stuffing in. Then your pillow may be too dense or unable to close—or worse, burst as soon as someone squeezes it.
  • Cotton and synthetic stuffings can be obtained from most fabric or craft stores.
  • Make sure you stitch in a fairly, or precise straight line, otherwise the finish result won't look as good, and not neat enough.

Things You'll Need

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