Make Holiday Throw Pillows out of Placemats!

If you are anything like me, you will definitely use this idea. I get extremely bored of seeing the same pillows on my couch. I often get upset at the thought of paying $40 for a throw pillow. I've done it in the past and can kick myself for not thinking of this sooner. I get giddy at the thought of how affordable and simple this is to do. I purchase table placemats and turn them into pillows. I love going to Pier 1 imports and Crate and Barrel to get inspired. These stores make me want to redecorate my entire home the minute I walk in there. That's not going to happen anytime soon so I started making things that are similar to what they sell.

These are from Crate and Barrel and costs $9.95 each but you can find placemats that are much cheaper elsewhere. 

Things you will need:

• Fabric placemat-look for those that have two sides stitched together
• Seam ripper or X-acto knife
• Needle and thread (5" inch area to sew)
• Batting to fill or use stuffing from an old pillow

These come in silver or gold. Cut open a tiny section of the stitches on the mat (about 5 inches will do) and stuff it with batting.  I made an indication in red ink above to show where to open stitches. After stuffing to the plumpness you want, hand stitch opening closed. The reason I make my stitches in the center of the pillow as opposed to a corner, is to avoid a lopsided or crooked look when sewn. You can also purchase both colors and stitch them together to create a double sided pillow. To get 2 separate double sided pillows out of 2 placemats, you can completely remove stitching all around each pillow and sew the 2 colors together. This requires more work and a sewing machine but its worth the outcome. 2 pillows in one! This works great for those who have little space in their apartments or homes to store seasonal items. You can also make one side for summer and the other side for winter :)



Suggestions:

• Add gold flowers, ribbons, trims etc. that matches the rest of the house to tie decor theme together.
• Use the same placemats as actual placemats (ha) on your table also, guests will think you found the perfect pillows to match your placemats.

Here is my version. I bought these about 4 years ago at Pier 1 Imports. The colors work with almost all holidays.

They are two sided, so you can interchange colors to suit your mood. 

This is batting that I purchased at the craft store but it can be found in fabric stores also. 

 I cut the center of one edge about 5 inches and stuffed it with the batting. I then hand stitched it up. 

Like? This entire craft took me under 10 minutes to do. Had my pillow all done before the little rug-rats woke up from their afternoon naps.

Enjoy!

Tip: Instead of hand sewing the 5" area, you can put Velcro closures instead.

First 2 images are courtesy of http://www.crateandbarrel.com/

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