Funky cushion covers with vintage inspiration!
Funk up your balcony! A tutorial – part 2.
Last week I brought some colour into my balcony furniture’s life but I felt it wasn’t enough. Even though the new pastel rainbow paint is super funky and my balcony looks gorgeous, the wooden chairs hurt my spoiled bottom a little. So this week (every Monday is blogging day and I get to do creative projects, yay!), I decided to make vintage inspired cushion covers that match the pastel colours of my funky balcony and take you along for the ride!
To make your own funky pillows for your chairs, couch or chesterfield, you will need:
- a sewing machine
- fabric
- needles
- thread
- scissors
- vintage buttons
- lace ribbon
- a measuring tape
- and cushions.
Step 1: Choose 2 different but matching funky fabrics. Then measure the size of your cushions.
Step 2: Mine are square cushions from Ikea, 35cm x 35cm. Cut two pieces of your fabrics that measure half the width and 2.5 times the length of your cushions PLUS 1cm of seam allowance on each side. So for me that made 19.5cm x 107cm for each piece of fabric.
Step 3: Put those two pieces of fabric “good side” on “good side” and sew together. I use a serger because I love my serger and it makes the seams sturdier (a good thing if you’re prone to breaking things – like me) but a normal sewing machine will work just fine! Make sure to back-stitch at the end of each seam!
Step 4: Fold the shorter sides of your now big piece of fabric over twice to create a hem and pin it.
Step 5: Sew two seams to make the hem hold and look pretty.
Step 6: Cut a length off of the lace ribbon that is the same as the width of your cushion PLUS 2cm seam allowance. For me that made 37cm.
Step 7: Sew lace ribbon onto one end of the “good side” of the fabric. Right onto your nice hem.
Step 8: Lay the whole thing “good side” up onto your work station. Fold the end with the lace half of your cushion length back. That was 17.5cm for me.
Step 9: Fold from the other end, “good side” onto “good side”, so it forms a nice square (or rectangle if you don’t have a square cushion).
Step 10: Pin, then sew.
Step 11: Turn the bigger part inside out and squeeze cushion inside.
Step 12: Turn the rest inside out.
Step 13: Push out corners. I usually use a chop stick to do that, but be careful not to poke through the fabric.
Woooohooo! Doesn’t it look super cute already?
But we’ve got one more little step ahead of us. Come on, you can do it!
Step 14: Choose the cutest buttons you can find. Place them where you like them and sew them on. I find that it’s the easiest and the fastest to sew on buttons by hand.
Hooray! You’re done, we’re done! Yippeee! Except if you want a second cushion, then: Repeat from step 1.
I’m so excited how perfect for my balcony these cushions are! Funky but with a vintage touch. My backside is grateful…
Just so you know, I’m not a professional seamstress. I was taught how to sew by my mom and my grandma, two very precise and correct women. I’m afraid I belong more to something called “the punk-rock school of sewing” (I read that expression somewhere and I loved it!).
Don’t get me wrong, high quality is still one of the most important things for me, but I don’t mind “forgetting” to pin a hem here and there before sewing it or using my serger where other people would use a traditional sewing machine.
I hope you enjoyed this little tutorial and it helped you figuring out how to sew easy but fun and somewhat vintage cushions for your balcony or living room. I’m always delighted when I see your projects, so show me, show me!
With love from the Maple And Oak Diaries,
❤ Leonie❤
P.S.: That was easy, wasn’t it? I’d love to see your funky balconies, why don’t you send me some pictures!
