DIY $7 Sweater Pillows

by Catherine

$5-10

2-4 Hours

Medium

Now that the weather is getting cooler, we’ve been looking for subtle ways to add cozyness to our home. These Pottery Barn pillows have been on our radar… but come on, $70 for a pillow cover? We nixed that idea and decided to make our own out of something else: sweaters!

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Here’s how to do it.

1. Figure out what size pillows you want to use. We had a few extra euro size pillows (26×26) that I wanted to use for this project, so we kept this in mind during our sweater search.

2. Find old/discounted sweaters that look cozy (or, if you want to use new ones, go for it!). We found several white/ivory sweaters at thrift stores for $7 each, and happened to buy them on a day when they were an extra 25% off – woo! We tried to find sweaters that were mens’ L/XL to fit over my 26″ pillows, but would have tried to get smaller ones for smaller pillows.

3. Fit, Measure, and Sew. Before doing any cutting, we slipped the sweater over the pillow to see if it fit, and determine where to sew.

Before sewing, we turned the sweater inside out (very important!) We used a sewing machine to sew a straight line across the top of the sweater, just below the neck hole, and up the sides, just outside of the arm holes. Go over the seams at least twice to make sure they're strong.

We decided to leave the bottom open so it could be easily slipped on and off the pillow (this worked especially well because the sweater we were working with was gathered at the bottom). If you prefer to have it closed up, you could add buttons or Velcro or snaps!

4. Cut. Once the neck and arm holes were sewn (inside out), we cut off the extra fabric and turned it right side out.

5. Slip the cover onto your pillow and be happy you didn’t spend $70 at Pottery Barn!

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Frequently asked questions

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2 questions

Ann on Nov 22, 2015
after you cut the arms off and around neck you turn the sweater right side out? I am thinkinging and than may sew the arms and neck wrong side in and stitch ?

2
Donna Cherry on Dec 13, 2015
What if you used a man's extra large sweater, cut the pieces put the bottom ribbing one on each side and made an envelope sweater using that as the finished edge in the back?

1

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2 of 44 comments

Jam6574670 on Jan 11, 2017
I love this! And I love the idea to make dog sweaters too! Can't wait to try it.

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Laura Saloom on Jan 26, 2019

Use the sleeves for wine bottle holders to give as gifts. You don’t have to sew the bottom just measure the length of the bottle and cut sleeve to length. You can sew or turn under the raw cut edge. Tie a ribbon around the neck and you are all set!

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