Side-Tie Pillow Tutorial with Ameroonie Designs

Hi there Gwenny Penny readers! I'm Amy from Ameroonie Designs. Gwen was so kind to let me come over and spend some time with all you lovely people! I am thrilled to share with you my tutorial on how to make this side-tie pillow. I have to admit- this is one of my favorite pillows to make. I love that it lets me show off a fabric, while adding texture with the bows. (you can see the others I have made here and here)

First you will need to start with a pillow form. This will dictate the measurements of the fabric you are cutting. The pillow I made was 12" by 16". You will need to cut: 1 pillow back- the measurements of your pillow + 1" (mine was 13" X 17"), 2 pieces for the front- take the length of the front piece (on mine 17), divide by 2 (I rounded up to 9) and add 4"- (my pieces were 13" X 13"). This will give you enough off-set that the bows will be on the side- but you are welcome to adjust the measurements (make one longer so the bows will be even further to the edge). Then you will need six ties. I am using a wool felt for this pillow, so I'm not worried about fraying- so mine are 13" by 3/4", but if you are using a fabric that frays, make the ties 1 1/2" so you can fold in the edges. (you can make the ties longer if you want a larger bow- but I'd keep them no longer than about 16" or they just get too long)

Take your ties and fold them in half. {If it's a fabric that frays you will press this fold, open it up, bring the raw edges into the fold line and press those folds. Then re-fold the center crease so the raw edges are tucked into the center. Fold up one short end into the crease so the raw edge is hidden.} Then edge stitch both sides of the tie- keeping the folded edges as close together as you can. Set them aside.

Take your two front pieces. Hem one side of each front panel by first folding the edge over 1", press, then fold over another 1". Top stitch at 3/4" and edge stitch the fold. (make sure the sides you're hemming are the ones you want to overlap.

Lay the back panel of the pillow on a flat surface. Line up the top pieces so they overlap, using the back panel as a guide for the width of the pillow.

Take the front panel that will be on top of the pillow and fold it in half along the hemmed side. Mark the center with a pin.

Decide how far apart you want your ties to be- remembering that you will be sewing around the perimeter with a 1/2" seam allowance to finish the pillow. Mine were 3". Mark each measurement from the center pin.

Now we're going to place the ties. If you are using a fabric that frays- you will pin them down as shown by the tie with the pink pin, folding over the end about 1/2". When placing the tie onto the panel that is underneath, I usually put the tie about 1/4" from the edge of the top panel. Pin all the ties in place and sew them down.





We're almost done! But this is the step that always makes me stop and think- so follow along with me! Take your back panel and place it on a flat surface RIGHT SIDE UP. Now take the front panel that will be on the TOP (ties should be sewn close to the hemmed edge) and place it on the back panel RIGHT SIDE DOWN. Match up the corners and edges and pin in place. Now take the remaining panel and pin it down. Make sure all the ties are tucked into the middle and won't get caught in the seam, or interfere with the placement of the front panels.

Here it is all ready to be sewn. Sew around the entire pillow using a 1/2" seam allowance.








Clip all the corners and turn the pillow right side out. Use a tool to push out the corners as much as you can. Now just insert your pillow form and tie your bows!

Some more shots of the pillows. I'm loving this gray, now I'm wondering where in my house I can put some!

Have Fun!

xoxo,

Amy

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Isn't this pillow gorgeous?!? I'm loving gray right now, and I love how simple and classic this pillow is. As soon as I saw it I knew that I had to ask Amy to share it with you guys. Amy is pillow crazy! You really need to go check out all of her pillows and other great projects on Ameroonie Designs. Thank you so much for sharing your pillow tutorial today, Amy!