Monday, February 14, 2011

Stenciled Pillow Covers

Pillow 13

When my husband and I bought our couch 3 years ago, we had something very specific in mind: we wanted one with all of the features of his parent's couch. We had been saving and planning for this couch for a while, but when we were looking around in different furniture stores we couldn't find one that had everything that we wanted. When we mentioned this to them, my father in law quickly offered to sell us theirs, as they were looking for a new couch as well.

Pillow 2

It seemed like the perfect solution! Though with used furniture there are often seems to be a price to pay.

Pillow 3

I didn't want to get rid of our big fluffy pillows or pay to get new ones, so I turned to Tiffany's Shut Up and Sew post about Envelope Pillow Covers and hoped for the best.

Pillow 30500x333

Since the pillows are pretty large I was worried that I'd be spending a lot of money on fabric to try to cover them all. Especially since I want these covers to be pretty durable with a 2 year old constantly diving on them and a baby on the way. So I decided it was time to jump on the drop cloth trend.

Pillow 31

I picked up a drop cloth from Lowes, which come in a creamy color. Since my wonderful couch is already a sea of beige, I wanted something much lighter, so I followed Miss Mustard Seed's notes on bleaching the drop cloth and got just what I was looking for. A light non-beige background all ready for some paint.

Pillow 16

I measured my fabric following Tiffany's instructions, and cut it up. Now for the fun part.

Pillow 17

I covered my table, laid out the front piece of fabric on the table, and covered it with this incredible Acacia Allover Stencil from Cutting Edge Stencils. I taped it lightly to the table (just a few pieces) so that it wouldn't shift at all as I rolled on my paint. (Does anyone else think it's incredibly ironic that I put a "dropcloth" under my dropcloth fabric, which I was painting on purpose? No? Just me? Okay.)

Pillow 18

I got DecoArt's SoSoft Fabric Paint in Prussian Blue and rolled it onto my sponge roller. I then turned to the drop cloth.

Pillow 19

I rolled the paint on in light layers. It took about 3 coats of paint to get the depth of color that I wanted, and I discovered that with the fabric paint I didn't need to blot off as much paint as if I was doing the walls. It's a bit thick and took more paint to get the coverage that I was looking for.

Pillow 21

The great thing about the allover stencils, like this one, are that Cutting Edge has a little extra bit of the pattern on the side,

Pillow 24

so that when you shift your stencil over to do the next side, it lines up perfectly, and is ready to go. So great, right?!

Pillow 26

The moment of truth...

Pillow 25

Perfect!!

Pillow 8

When the paint was dry, I took my fabric to my sewing machine, and a half hour later I had a pillow cover! Tiffany was telling the truth, (not that we doubted her), but even a beginner can make a pillow cover!! This was my first ever pillow attempt and it turned out exactly how I wanted it!! Now how often can you say that about something that is your first attempt?

Pillow 11

Pillows 1

I just love the design, very Pottery Barn-ish. And as always with Cutting Edge's stencils, those lines are clean clean clean. This was especially important to me since this design would be seen up close, as opposed to some of the others I've done that are on the wall and are seen from a bit of a distance. Doing the stencil on a flat surface was just perfect, there was no pocketing or gaps, and it was as easy as pie. So I made another.

Pillows 2

I didn't stencil the back of the pillows because I liked the similar but contrasting look. (You know, same fabric color and texture for both, but pattern on one and not on the other.)

Pillow 13

I decided to add velcro to the back of my second pillow just to see how much of a difference it made. I did two 3 inch strips so my pillow still had that great over-stuffed look, but also had some durability since these will be used daily and aren't just decorative. It made such a difference that I went back and sewed velcro on the first pillow as well.

Pillows 3

So what do you think? Fun, right?

I'll be linking this around to some great parties, including the DIY Club. Hope to see you there!

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47 comments:

Andria February 14, 2011 at 6:43 AM  

Hi! I'm new to visiting your blog. Just wanted to say that I think your pillows look great! Amazing what you can do with stencils.

Brandi February 14, 2011 at 7:31 AM  

Great Pillows! love the stencil pattern you chose.

TBonesMom February 14, 2011 at 8:02 AM  

Super cute!

kimberly @ craftyland February 14, 2011 at 8:33 AM  

wow those are so pretty! i've been wanting to use fabric paint to make some cute pillows too. i didn't think of using a stencil though, thanks for the tutorial!! popping over from the craft-o-maniac monday party. :)

kimberly.

Anonymous February 14, 2011 at 9:28 AM  

Those turned out great! Great idea with the drop cloths!

Sandy February 14, 2011 at 10:19 AM  

Your pillows turned out so great ... I love the envelope back too, it is so easy to make and looks good too! I have a bunch of muslin, maybe I'll try stenciling on it and see what happens.

Jessica February 14, 2011 at 11:59 AM  

These are great! Love that stencil :)

Shug February 14, 2011 at 1:22 PM  

I admire your talent..The pillows look great with your sofa. I always get in such a big hurry and I don't have the patience to wait...
Have a Sweet Valentines day..
Blessings,
shug

Tiffany February 14, 2011 at 2:30 PM  

Those turned out beautiful! Love them. Glad the tutorial worked out for you! : )

Megan Gunyan February 14, 2011 at 4:30 PM  

Very cute! I have a drop cloth, just waiting to be turned into some pillows as well! :) I'll be back for the giveaway--love Cutting Edge!

EmTea Designs February 14, 2011 at 7:14 PM  

I love these pillows sooooo much! You did a brilliant job! LOVE LOVE LOVE! Did I mention I love these pillows?

Jamie @ DIY Home Sweet Home February 14, 2011 at 10:11 PM  

Those are so beautiful!! I love the look of custom painted pillows but have yet to try and make my own. Following you from tutorial Tuesdays. Please stop by my blog when you can. http://diyhshp.blogspot.com/

Green Door Girl February 15, 2011 at 8:17 AM  

LOVE these - they turned out great! I am book marking this for a future idea!
jenn - greendoordesigns.blogspot.com

Kari February 15, 2011 at 8:40 AM  

I love this!

chris February 15, 2011 at 9:46 AM  

Your pillow came out fabulous! I've been wanting to stencil my curtains...mmmm.

Unknown February 15, 2011 at 6:28 PM  

These are gorgeous! love the simplicity of the pattern!

Brittney February 15, 2011 at 7:02 PM  

Beautiful! I was just going to totally copy you until I saw the price tag on that stencil... yowza! Between the stencil and dropcloth that's $50 for 2 pillows before paint! I can't afford that but they are beautiful 2 of a kind works of art.

Unknown February 15, 2011 at 9:29 PM  

What a lovely stencil!!! Those pillows look fabulous.

WhisperWood Cottage February 15, 2011 at 9:30 PM  

I'm totally inspired! I was thinking of doing something like this and wasn't sure where to start. You've made it easy for me! Great project and tutorial!!

A Vintage Vine February 15, 2011 at 11:25 PM  

I'm bookmarking this idea! They look great! Thanks for sharing, visiting from Power of Paint.

Lisa February 16, 2011 at 8:13 AM  

These are so pretty! They actually look really similar to the Crate & Barrel merimeko (or however you spell it) collection!

Contemplating Cadie February 16, 2011 at 10:53 AM  

WOW!
Oh this one really inspires me! Thanks for sharing!

PS)Not sure why, but your comment section won't let me sign in using my new account. I'm Anna at http://witbehind.com/

c. February 16, 2011 at 10:13 PM  

i LOVE these, erin-they look incredible!
a beautiful blue color and pattern. (=

Joselyn February 16, 2011 at 10:52 PM  

Love the color, love the pattern, love the pillow. Nicely done!

Spunky Junky February 17, 2011 at 10:03 AM  

I love the pillow! The pattern totally reminds we of a Charming Charlie Purse....so stylish! hahaha. I am featuring this pillow on my blog tomorrow--if you get a chance stop by and grab a lil ol' button.

Halsey

Lorena February 17, 2011 at 1:23 PM  

These are lovely!! nice job!!

Lucydesignsart.com February 17, 2011 at 7:52 PM  

wow! these turned out great!

Unknown February 17, 2011 at 10:00 PM  

I have always wanted to paint fabric. They are lovely!

Petie@inspirednesting.com February 17, 2011 at 11:01 PM  

Great job! These look awesome AND how nice that it worked on your first attempt....how often does that happen ;)

angie February 18, 2011 at 7:54 AM  

saw this on remodelaholic - LOVE!!! great job :)

Laurel {Make and Takes} February 18, 2011 at 8:02 AM  

These pillows turned out so cute! We are featuring fabric crafts this week over at the M&T Spotlight and I'd love for you to submit this: http://www.makeandtakes.com/spotlight

Tanya February 18, 2011 at 11:06 AM  

Wow, I absolutely love this project. Very designer looking for a fraction of the price. How can you go wrong with that?

extreme personal measures February 18, 2011 at 11:58 AM  

Very creative! Love the pillow!

Denise
Extreme Personal Measures

Mel February 18, 2011 at 12:20 PM  

Love these cushions, and I have a thing for cushions.

Maggie Muggins February 18, 2011 at 3:46 PM  

These are super cute! I love the blue color you chose.

Unknown February 18, 2011 at 5:02 PM  

These look great! The blue is beautiful! I'd for you to come share it at this weekend's party! Hope to see you there!

Maryann @ Domestically-Speaking February 18, 2011 at 9:10 PM  

You've inspired me to make some with my Cutting Edge Stencil... gorgeous! I'm putting the pillows in the PoPP Spotlight.

Vanessa@Lovin-Life February 18, 2011 at 10:37 PM  

These turned out great, totally cute. Funny, my bed spread looks exactly like these...

Kate February 19, 2011 at 8:02 AM  

These turned out so cute! I am featuring this on my Flaunt it Friday Features. Please stop by and grab a button if you'd like. Thanks for linking my party.:)

Anonymous February 19, 2011 at 8:21 AM  

Oh wow - great job on the pillows! I'm just lovin that stencil too!

Katie @ This Chick Cooks February 19, 2011 at 9:13 AM  

I'm stopping by from Chic on a Shoestring. These pillows are fabulous! I love the blue color!

Katie
Ps- Every Wednesday I feature recipes from all around the web on my blog and I'd love for you to stop by :)

Unknown February 19, 2011 at 11:11 PM  

I featured this on my blog today. Love how pretty they look!

http://jen-simplyliving.blogspot.com/

Debbie @ OtRD February 19, 2011 at 11:20 PM  

What lovely pillows, they turned out great!

Its So Very Cheri February 21, 2011 at 11:36 AM  

I LOVE your pillows. They look fabulous.

cheri

Carolyn @ My Backyard Eden February 22, 2011 at 6:19 PM  

I love these! That blue color is perfect! I'll be featuring these tomorrow at My Backyard Eden! Thanks for sharing!

Candy February 24, 2011 at 3:49 PM  

these look amazing. i love the stencil design and love that u chose that color blue.

RedTedArt March 2, 2011 at 2:12 AM  

Spring Get Crafty is now out!!! Have featured this!

http://www.redtedart.com/2011/03/01/spring-get-crafty/ thanks for a lovely craft to include!

Maggy

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