I absolutely love throw pillows! Not only are they comfy, but they can totally transform a room by adding color and texture. The more the merrier if you ask me when it comes to pillows, and my doggies definitely agree with this statement. That’s why it’s important for all my pillows to have covers on them so I can wash them! Sometimes while shopping, it can be hard to find pillows with removable covers for washing. This can be really frustrating! Especially to someone like me with limited sewing skills. But not anymore! Today I’m sharing how easy it is to make these DIY envelope pillow covers!
Let me describe what I mean by “limited” sewing skills. I was forced to take a home economics class for one semester in junior high school. In class we learned how to make no bake oatmeal cookies, cinnamon apples and a hand sewn pillow. That is all that I remember from that class, and I always took art in high school, so I never really learned how to sew. Sure, I could sew a button and mend hems by hand, but that’s as far as I got. When I was older my mother got out her sewing machine and we played with it a little bit, but she did most of the work. I always wished I could sew, but never made the effort to learn how to.
A few years ago my parents gave me a sewing machine for Christmas. I was excited about receiving it, but it still sat in my spare room for over a year before I actually cranked it up. I eventually taught myself how to sew hems and simple projects, and even became ambitious enough to try making my own pillows. I was pretty successful, but since I didn’t know how to sew zippers once my pillows were covered, the only way to remove the fabric was with a pair of scissors!
That is why I was so excited to find out about DIY envelope pillow covers. These suckers are so easy to make! I made 6 of these in one afternoon and was amazed at how professional they looked. They are pretty cheap to make, too, depending on the fabric you choose. These are great because they allow you to use your existing pillows and can extend the life of your pillows through various seasons.
Do you want to know the secret to making these awesome pillows? Of course I’ll share it with you! All you need is your desired fabric, a pair of scissors, sewing machine and straight pins. Let’s get started!
You will start by measuring your pillow. If it has a pillow cover you can remove it and measure it. I cheated and looked at the tags on my pillow inserts since they had printed measurements! Once you know the measurements, it’s time to break out the scissors! You will need 3 pieces of fabric for these pillow covers.
1. The first panel of fabric is easy since all you do is add 1 in to the width and height of your pillow measurement. For example, if your pillow is 20×20, you will cut a piece of fabric 21×21. Easy!
2. The next two pieces of fabric overlap to create the envelope in the back, and they will be the same size. First, take the width of your first panel of fabric, divide it in in half, then add 3 inches. This will be the width of your fabric. The height will be the same as your first panel of fabric. So for my pillow, 21 divided in half is 10.5, then add 3 in, so my width was 13.5 in. I cut out two pieces of fabric 21×13.5 for my back panels.
3. For the next step, hem one side of each back panel for the length of the pillow. These are the two sides that will be overlapping. You want a nice, smooth hem since one of these will be seen on the back of the pillow.
You are so close to being done now!
4. Now it’s time to pin the back panels of fabric to the front panel of fabric. Line up the fabric so that one back panel is square with the left side of the front panel, and the other back panel is square with the right side of the front panel. The hemmed sides should be in the center. This will make the two back panels overlap to create the envelope. Make sure all right sides of fabric are facing inward before securing with pins.
5. Now sew around the edges of the entire pillow.
That’s it! You’re done! Turn the cover right side out and stuff your pillow in it. I just love my new pillow covers. They bring the right touch of fall to my living room area.
I am in LOVE with these houndstooth pillow covers. I purchased this fabric from Joann’s Fabrics on clearance, and the warm colors are perfect for fall.
So, what do you think of my new easy DIY envelope pillow covers for fall? My doggies are happy with the new pillow covers, too. I am so happy it will easy to remove these for washing! I hope you will trying sewing one of these and realize how easy they are to make. If you do, please let me know!
[…] week on the DIY envelope pillow covers that are so easy to make? If not, be sure to check it out here! I made these pillow covers recently to bring my living room into the fall season. I love the […]