Pillow Covers – St. Patricks Day
A fun way to practice different skills without committing to a whole quilt is to make pillow covers. It’s one of my favorite ways to try out new techniques, sample blocks, and create something fun in a short amount of time.
Pillow covers can be as simple or complicated as you want. They are a fun way to add a little holiday flair or seasonal touch to your home decor. My living room throw pillows are roughly 16 inches, so I make my pillow covers around 18 inches. They end up with a nice, snug fit and look extra full.
For these St. Patrick’s Day pillow covers, I had purchased a sweet holiday-themed mini-bundle of fat quarters and chose to work with two totally different designs and techniques.
The first is made up completely of hexagons in a variety of prints. I love a good hexie pattern, but I knew I just didn’t have the time to commit to a whole quilt top, especially since I was going to be using the Y-seam technique. To make it, I cut some hexies from each print, laid them out until I liked the look, and got to sewing.
The second I wanted to be a bit more fun and really showcase that fun St. Patty’s gnome theme. Off to the web I went in search of the perfect companions that I could then adapt into an applique pattern. I haven’t done much applique, but after a little time at YouTube University, I was able to get it sorted out.
Using the coloring pages I had found, I traced the designs onto fusible interfacing, cut them out, and adhered them to scraps of coordinating fabric. After each piece of fabric was cut, I laid them out and fused them onto the white background. After all of the pieces were attached, I used a small straight stitch to carefully outline each section and add detail where I thought it worked best.
After completing the pillow fronts, they needed some quilting. I added the batting and a piece of scrap backing (it doesn’t get seen, it’s inside the pillow) and quilted it on my HandiQuilter Sweet 16.
For the hexie top, I used a shamrock pattern, and for the applique, I left the white area unquilted.
After getting the top quilted, I added an envelope-style back & stuffed the pillows in.
So cute!!