DIY Reindeer Pillow - Pier 1 Knock-Off

Courtney
by Courtney
7 Materials
$10
2 Hours
Medium
Do you ever look in those nicely printed Pottery Barn or Pier 1 magazines and imagine all of the awesome stuff in your home? Yeah, if only we all had an unlimited budget, right?

When Christmas rolls around, pillows are always on my radar. I love pillows. And I love Christmas pillows.

Who wants to spend $40 on a pillow?

If you’re like me and have 40 pillows in your house, $40 a pillow is way too much. So, option B is to make your own!

I made this entire pillow for only $6.00. I repeat. SIX DOLLARS. (That’s a vanilla latte from Starbucks.)

Here it goes, follow along closely!

You'll need:
Fabric (found at Jo Ann Fabrics in Petoskey, MI for roughly $3.00 - SALE)
Felt (less than $3.00 at Jo Ann Fabrics)
Sewing pins
Scissors
Sewing machine
Needle and thread
Pillow insert

Find (or draw) a pattern you like - I wanted a reindeer head. Put the pattern into Word and make it really large.
Trace the image on to a piece of white paper.  Make sure your screen is really bright.
Cut out the image and pin it to the red felt (purchased at Jo Ann Fabrics for under $3.00).
Cut out the reindeer.
Cut your pillow fabric to the desired size.  I used a pillow case I already had as a guide.
Be sure to leave enough room around the edges to fold it over when you sew to make a clean edge. (Disclaimer: I did not measure.  I'm not looking for perfection - but you certainly can!)
I ended up cutting three pieces.  One for the front and two for the back.  I decided to make an envelope back (two pieces are overlapping to close the pillow).
Fold all of your edges over and pin them (with the front side of the pillow case facing down).  I did about an inch on all sides (see photo below).  Once you sew them, it will leave you with a clean edge.
Once finished, they will look something like this. Notice the two back pieces are roughly 3/4 and 1/4 of the front piece (to make the envelope back). If you are not familiar with this concept, do a quick Google or YouTube search.
Pin the reindeer on the front piece of the pillow and begin sewing. I did simple, small stitches all around the edge - by hand.
Done with the front!
Attach one of the back pieces to the front piece (facing each other). Pin and sew them together.
Pin the second piece. Sew.
When the three pieces of fabric overlapped (and because the fabric is so thick) I had to hand sew a few spots.  Otherwise, my machine worked great.


Turn the pillow right side out - and it's done!
I used a pillow insert I already had. It's great to be able to change the cover on my pillows with the seasons!
Suggested materials:
  • Fabric   (Jo Ann Fabrics)
  • Felt   (Jo Ann Fabrics)
  • Sewing pins   (Jo Ann Fabrics)
See all materials
Courtney
Want more details about this and other DIY projects? Check out my blog post!
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