Thursday, December 16, 2010

Vintage Cushion Up-cycle

This is a project that I had been meaning to do for a while, nothing like procrastination to get projects done that you've been meaning to do for a while. Now my cushions were black (I'd gone through a black phase in our last house) and they looked too dark and dreary for our sunny, bright, lolly-coloured apartment :)

1) Firstly I unpicked the hem of the old cushion cover to use as a pattern, actually I cut it coz that sucker was tightly weaved and taking too long and I was going to chuck it out when the job was done anyway. Or you could make a pattern with the top square approx 68cm x 68cm and the longer piece that tucks in 68cm x 84cm, this would work for a standard european pillow (they make the best couch cushions, coz you can sit on them on the floor for movie nights, prop them up against the sofa for extra seating for lazy dinners or as a pillow for guests). Cut the two squares, I've used two vintage tablecloths that belonged to my Great Grandmother, Bena...then found co-ordinating vintage fabric from my stash for the back. The great thing about vintage tableclothes is that they are beautiful thick linen, so they'll last, it's also a great way to use peices of Barkcloth, coz the stuff is from curtains, strong and really unless you use it for curtains, what else can you do with it but admire it in a stash of vintage fabric :)

2) Hem around the edges of the cut fabic to stop it from fraying, you can use an overlocker, it would be quicker and easier. But I did it the "can't be bothered re-threading the black thread in the overlocker with white", and just did a straight stitch. Then put your fabric right sides together and pin it.
3) Sew around the edge leaving the flap part open for your cushion filler to go in...

4) Turn it back inside out to have the right sides facing outwards, does that make sense? ahhh so it looks like this...
5) Put the cushion filler back it...fold the flap over the cushion and tuck it inside and ta da!!!
Now you have a cushion using vintage tableclothes and "sit in your stash" vintage fabrics :)

This is the back of the blue one

And here's the pretty barkcloth of the pink one

Love them!
The little one is made out of a vintage hankerchief and vintage buttons, I'll show you how I made that one soon :)

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