Throw pillows are an excellent way to freshen up a living room or bedroom or anywhere else you want to use them. By changing the throw pillows in a room you can completely and inexpensively change its look without having to paint the walls or purchase expensive (and often heavy) furniture, etc.
You can completely change the style of a room with your placement and choice of throw pillows. We encourage you to experiment with different colors, shapes, sizes, textures, and patterns of throw pillows and find out exactly what you like (and what you don’t).
If you are one of those many people who like to change the way the house looks every week, month, season or year then you’re going to love throw pillows (If you don’t already). Throw pillows are easily stored, and are pretty small so you can accumulate a collection of them and alternate looks throughout the year.
Remember, there are thousands of different pillows so there is something for everybody, whether you like vibrant colors and wild patterns or if you like something more tranquil there are plenty of pillows out there for you.
If you are considering changing the style or color scheme of a room, before you paint the walls and buy all new furniture, I suggest getting throw pillows in the color and style you want to convert to. This will give you a taste of how the colors and style you are considering will work together. This can prevent expensive decorating mistakes or assure you that your choices are correct.
We’ll be here for you during all of your decorating (and redecorating efforts) with tons of tips to make finding the perfect look as fun and easy as possible!
If you are anything like me then the idea of breaking out the sewing machine or needle and thread doesn’t get you jumping for joy. That’s why when I saw this No Sew throw pillow idea I had to write an article about it.
• You can buy fabric to make these or even use old t-shirts, pillow cases, etc.
• You can make these pillows in any shape you want.
These pillows have a more funky than traditional appeal, so these pillows aren’t right for everyone, but they are fun and easy to make. If you go for a little bit of a funkier style than chances are you’ll like these. Teenagers and college students seem to really go for them.
Even if you don’t plan on making these you might want to check out the videos, just the fact that you don’t have to sew makes these videos cool enough to watch.
Round Pillow:
Square/Rectangle Pillow
I recommend stuffing these pillows with a throw pillow insert instead of poly-fil or cotton stuffing. If you stuff these pillows with poly-fil or cotton then the pillows are likely to “leak” stuffing when you wash them.
Happy pillow making!
While browsing throw pillow articles and videos I ran across these cute strawberry throw pillows. They are so adorable and would be great in a girl’s room, especially if she likes strawberries or Strawberry Shortcake! (Some teenage girls, and older absolutely love these pillows.)
They are pretty simple to make, however, they involve a lot more pieces than just a normal simple pillow. I don’t recommend tackling this as your first pillow making/sewing project.
Here’s what you will need:
• Red and Green cloth – You can recycle your old Tees, cotton table cloth, etc or… buy new…
• Pillow Stuffing
• Green thread
• Fabric glue
• White Felt
Make Felt Doll Pillows
If you have a little girl, or are a little girl, then there may be a doll around who needs some throw pillows. I found a cute tutorial made by a little girl – she’s teaching how to make throw pillows for her dolls. Before I show you her video I want to give you some information.
• Felt is not normally a good fabric for throw pillows but it is great (and cheap for doll pillows.)
• The little girl in this video uses staples for her throw pillows. That is a great idea for kids who are making throw pillows. However, it doesn’t give the most professional result. Feel free to use a needle and thread.
• You should use the basic information in this video and build on it, change things, and use data from other articles to make your ideal doll throw pillows (and other throw pillows for that matter.)
Without further ado, here’s the video. Enjoy!!
I am into going green and recycling…but I want to make sure that any recycling I do still has style… I don’t go for the recycled, but ugly look (That kind of defeats the whole purpose of throw pillows.) You can recycle your old T-shirts and make some really nice throw pillows.
The great thing about using your old T-shirts is that they should already reflect your style. If you have a funky style, or rocker style, or girlie style then this is most likely reflected in your old T-shirts so choosing a design that will match your house and style should be pretty easy.
Some things to keep in mind when choosing which T-shirt you are going to use for your pillow:
• Fabric. Make sure the T-Shirt’s fabric is suitable for a pillow. Personally, I like softer pillows, so I would choose a T-shirt with a softer material. If you like a more coarse material then go with that.
• Design. Look at the T-shirt’s design before you begin and imagine it as a pillow. Some designs look great on shirts, but bad on pillows and in living rooms or on beds. Don’t forget, you can use plain colored T-shirts as well as patterned ones.
• Size. If you want a big pillow, then don’t use a small shirt. Measure, measure, measure!
• Placement. Know roughly where you are going to put your pillow when you are done with it so that you can choose a fabric and design that will look good in that area. For example, if you want to mix it up in the living room and you already have a bunch of plain pillows you might want to make a couple patterned ones. Or if you want a blend of textures make some softer pillows and some pillows with a more coarse texture.
Here is a great video that will walk you through each step of making a throw pillow out of a T-shirt. (She is making the pillow case envelope style. You can change the way you make your pillow based on how you want to stuff or seal your pillow.)
The convenient pizza cutter like cutting tool she uses is called a rotary knife or cutter. You can buy them online or at a craft store like Michael’s.
I hope your T-shirt throw pillows come out perfect!
There are different kinds of throw pillow covers, there are zippered covers, and buttoned covers, but easiest of all there is the envelope cover. The great thing about the envelope cover is that it looks as good as the other types of covers but is easier to make.
Here is a very simple tutorial I found that will walk you through making an envelope throw pillow cover step by step. It is very informative and easy to understand.
If you don’t want to use a sewing machine, don’t have one, or don’t know how to you can sew an envelope throw pillow cover by hand. Do exactly what the tutorial says, but instead of using a sewing machine in the sewing steps, sew everything by hand. Unless you are a SUPER fast sewing expert, sewing by hand will take longer than with a machine, but you’ll still get a nice product.
Good Luck!!
If you want to build up your set of throw pillows without spending a fortune or if you want to freshen up your existing set of throw pillows without having to buy a whole new set, then throw pillow covers are probably the thing for you. They’re cheap, and very easy to store. So you can buy or make lots of them and change the look of the place as often as you want.
Building Up Your Set of Throw Pillows
An excellent way to build up a set of throw pillows is to go to garage sales, thrift stores, etc. If you’re shopping at places like these you can find throw pillows at CHEAP prices! Recently a family member found throw pillows at a garage sale. She bought four for only $8 bucks, yup $8 bucks!!! (That’s $2 per pillow!) The average retail throw pillow is upwards of $20.
When shopping garage sales you aren’t necessarily going to find the highest quality, newest, most fashionable, perfect throw pillows. (Sometimes you’ll find the perfect pillows if you do CELEBRATE your good fortune!) But the fashion, quality, etc of the pillow doesn’t matter. If it isn’t perfect you are going to make it perfect, with a throw pillow cover.
Now, before you set out to the nearest goodwill, or garage sale there are some things to look for in your throw pillow purchases and some things to avoid:
(The exception to this is if it’s the perfect pillow, and you are willing to remove all current stuffing and then stuff with new filling.)
Once you’ve acquired your new throw pillow(s) it’s time to make them perfect.
If you really can’t handle the idea of a used pillow, or are just looking for another option you can also buy a pillow form or pillow insert. These are both different names for plain covered, or uncovered pillows (like your bed pillow without a pillow case.) You can then cover these with the perfect throw pillow cover.
Freshen Up Your Existing Set of Throw Pillows
If you already have a full set of throw pillows and you just want to freshen up the look a great (and cost effective) way to do it is with throw pillow covers. You can either buy them or make them yourself.
If you are one of the many people out there who like to continually change the look of your home then this is definitely the way to go. You can buy or make 10, 20, 30 pillow covers and change the look of your pillows as often as you want. This way you can constantly mix it up without having to buy whole new pillows every time you get the urge to redecorate.
Keep your eye out for reversible throw pillow covers. These are great as you get double the design power with one cover.
There are some additional perks to throw pillow covers: they are simple to wash and take little space to store.
(Sewing Machine – Unnecessary)
One of the unfortunate drawbacks to throw pillows is that buying them can get quite expensive, especially if you like to have a LOT of throw pillows. However, the price shouldn’t stop you from having the throw pillows of your dreams. There are many more ways to build up your throw pillow collection than the traditional buy it from the retail store route. (They’ll help keep you from breaking the bank too.)
Here I am only going to go over one of them (though there are definitely more to come, especially for those out there who are less of the “do it yourself” or “arty” types.) This, as you probably figured out from the title, is about how to make your own throw pillows.
At the mention of making your own throw pillows people react very differently. Some people jump up and get excited for their next project and then start planning all the pillows they are going to make for their friends and family. Others run from the very idea of any kind of “do it yourself” project.
The great thing about this method of making your own pillows is that it is easy and simple and doesn’t require any special sewing skill or even a sewing machine. All it requires is needle and thread, fabric and some stuffing material. So those of you who are shaking at the very thought of making your own pillow, rest assured, we’ve got your back and are going to make it as easy as possible. (Just in case you really don’t go for the make your own throw pillow idea, we’ve got plenty of other money saving tips in store for you)
Now, I spent some time scouring the internet to find a video that would break down the steps of making a pillow by hand. This one is great, it is easy to understand and keeps everything simple. I hope you enjoy it. I’ll see you on the other side with a little more information.
a) Make one pillow out of cotton or some other machine washable material and stuff it with your filler, and then seal it up.(Make sure this pillow fits inside the second pillow)
b) Then make a fancy pillow case, out of your nice material. (Make sure that you leave one side open when you are sewing this pillow.) Put your first pillow inside your second pillow, and then seal the first pillow up (or just follow step 3)
c) If you know how to install a zipper then it would be a good idea to seal your second pillow with a zipper. If you don’t, and you don’t want to learn, then you can take your pillow to a tailor and they can put in a zipper for you. (Make sure you spend less on getting a zipper installed than you would by just buying a pillow at retail prices.)
Good luck on all your pillow making!!!
The Why
Some reasons for cleaning your throw pillows are extremely obvious, such as: they are covered in spots, the dogs lay on them, they smell bad, the baby drools on them, etc, etc. However, there are also some less obvious reasons.
Through everyday exposure to air and life on earth in general bacteria, mold, dust mites, etc tend to accumulate in our pillows. (I know it’s gross…) This is a much more significant concern for your head pillows (the ones you sleep on every night.) However, it is still a concern for those decorative throw pillows you throw on your bed, couch or anywhere else, especially if your throw pillows get heavy use.
Your throw pillows are probably getting heavy use if: you throw parties, have kids, or spend a lot of time on the couch in general. As a result your throw pillows have plenty of opportunity to collect dust, mold, and general grime. The more people that handle your pillows then the more bacteria, etc they can collect.
If someone in your household gets sick then upon their recovery wash any pillows they were exposed to and the pillow on their bed and it is likely that any bacteria they had has spread to the pillow. (And if you are washing some of your throw pillows, especially the easy kind, then you might as well wash them all.)
The When
All throw pillows should be washed on a regular basis, but a regular basis can mean a lot of different things. There are several different factors that determine how often you should wash your pillows. Here are the factors:
1. Heaviness of Use
If your throw pillows sit on the couch in the family or sitting room and are seldom used then you don’t need to wash the pillows very often. However, if the pillows are in a high traffic area you should was them much more frequently.
2. Fabric & Stuffing Types
As with clothes, different fabrics handle washing in different ways. If you have a more delicate material then chances are it won’t handle washing as well. Keep pillows like these out of high traffic areas, to avoid the necessity of frequent washing. In addition, some fabrics are very tough and let little in, such as the fabric used on outdoor cushions. Some outdoor cushions need to be cleaned as infrequently as 2-3 years.
3. Surface Dirt
Every so often you may spill something on your pillows, or in some other way expose it to dirt, or other impurities. In these cases a full washing may be necessary as soon as possible. A complete washing isn’t always necessary however, sometimes a spot clean will be sufficient.
