Well, it's official. I've completed my first Christmas project for the upcoming holiday season and it wasn't anywhere near as scary as I thought it would be (since it's only October and all.) It's reminiscent of a pillow project I completed last Christmas, and I'm just as happy with how this one turned out as I was with that one. It was cheap, easy, and truth be told, I think it might even be considered somewhat of a Pottery Barn knock-off. I haven't had any of those in a while!
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Today I'm joining a few of my friends for the Junk Visionaries monthly challenge: Reloved Fabric. My "fabric" might not exactly be reloved, but it sure was repurposed! You'll find the other reloved fabric posts at the bottom of the page. Be sure to stop by and check them out!
Last Christmas I whipped up two decorative winter white throw pillows out of placemats I found on clearance at Target. If you want to know exactly how I did it, check out From Placemat to Pillow in 3 Easy Steps.
This year I created another Christmas pillow from a Target placemat that was also on clearance last year. I paid $1.18 for it, knowing full well that it was going to become another one of my Christmas pillow creations.
I made this pillow exactly the same as last year's, but I'll share the instructions here again. Before I do that I want to mention something that's pretty obvious but can be easily overlooked:
Use a seam ripper to gently rip out some stitches, starting from one corner of the placemat. You need to make the opening large enough to be able to place your hand inside and fill it with stuffing. I chose to open the seam on the side that did not have applique on it so as to avoid the possibility of it looking wonky and uneven after I closed it up. (I'm not the best seamstress, just sayin'.)
STEP 2: Fill with polyfill stuffing or pillow insert.
I chose the polyfill method. Keep in mind that if you choose to go the pillow insert route you'll have to rip out a lot more stitches and as a result you'll have a lot more area to sew closed!
STEP 3: Use needle and invisible thread to sew the opening closed.
Placemat: $1.18 Target Christmas clearance 2015
I hope you enjoyed reading about my
Today I'm joining a few of my friends for the Junk Visionaries monthly challenge: Reloved Fabric. My "fabric" might not exactly be reloved, but it sure was repurposed! You'll find the other reloved fabric posts at the bottom of the page. Be sure to stop by and check them out!
Last Christmas I whipped up two decorative winter white throw pillows out of placemats I found on clearance at Target. If you want to know exactly how I did it, check out From Placemat to Pillow in 3 Easy Steps.
Here they are sitting pretty in the foyer alongside a Target Dollar Spot Noel pillow. It's a match made in heaven.
I'm a huge fan of the retro woody station wagon so this was right up my alley.
I made this pillow exactly the same as last year's, but I'll share the instructions here again. Before I do that I want to mention something that's pretty obvious but can be easily overlooked:
Placemat PillowTransformation Tip:
Be sure to
purchase placemats that are double-sided. In other words, make sure the
placemat isn't made of just one single piece of fabric. You’ll need two pieces of
fabric, a front and a back, sewed together. This way, you can just rip open a
bit of the seam in a corner, stuff it with polyfill and close it up. Otherwise,
you'll have to cut fabric to create the back side of the pillow and either
attach it with Stitch Witchery (my fave) or sew it on.
STEP 1: Rip out seam.
Use a seam ripper to gently rip out some stitches, starting from one corner of the placemat. You need to make the opening large enough to be able to place your hand inside and fill it with stuffing. I chose to open the seam on the side that did not have applique on it so as to avoid the possibility of it looking wonky and uneven after I closed it up. (I'm not the best seamstress, just sayin'.)
STEP 2: Fill with polyfill stuffing or pillow insert.
I chose the polyfill method. Keep in mind that if you choose to go the pillow insert route you'll have to rip out a lot more stitches and as a result you'll have a lot more area to sew closed!
STEP 3: Use needle and invisible thread to sew the opening closed.
The thread I use is called Coats Transparent. It's a bear to thread onto the needle because it's so hard to see, but it's great for invisible seams! This is especially important for those of us who were not born with a sewing needle in our hand. You can make a few mistakes but they won't be noticeable.
My Cost:
Placemat: $1.18 Target Christmas clearance 2015
Polyfill: $3.00 on sale at Hobby Lobby
Total: $4.18 (I already had invisible thread and seam ripper.)
And voila.
I love the way it turned out. I even toyed with the idea of stenciling something on the open white area but decided to leave it alone. I can always go back and do that later if I change my mind. I also thought about adding red pom-poms to each of the four corners. I still may do that. And I have a few more clearance placemats up my sleeve so we'll see how many other pillows I get to this Christmas season!
I hope you enjoyed reading about my
Easy DIY Christmas Pillow From Target Placemat
and that I've inspired you in some way!
Don't forget to Pin it!
Be sure to stay in touch:
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My friends have linked up below with their reloved fabric creations, so be sure to check out their links for some incredible inspiration!
Leave a Comment!
Super cute, Kathleen! I'm always on the look out for fun placemats since it's one of my favorite ways to make pillows and it's even better when they are on clearance! Love this one!
Placemats are a great item for transforming into pillows. Really cute and so much more affordable than the Pottery Barn one.
I've never made a pillow from a placemat, but yours is adorable! Easy to follow tutorial too. I'll have to be on the lookout for a cute placemat on sale. I often see poly fiberfill for pennies at estate sales.
"Sew" cute, Kathleen! You're so smart to get an early start on Christmas projects. I made the exact same pillows last December ... although my placemats were not on clearance. LOL Target's Threshold line is a total Pottery Barn knock off ... and that's why we love it so much. Was just there yesterday and they had super cute embroidered leaf placemats ... just perfect for pillows. (But I think they're on to us crafty types .. last year they were all $4 and now they're $5!) :D Have a great week, Cynthia
Love this Kathleen! Placemats are perfect for pillows and yours turned out so great, and what a fabulous price tag for such a cute pillow.
So clever - I have so many holiday pillows - but always looking for more fun things to make. I'm beginning my christmas gift making binge - more fun ahead.
Kathleen, I love this placemat pillow cover!! Such a fantastic addition to your Christmas pillow collection!!
Very cute pillow and great tutorial. Thank you so much for sharing at Snickerdoodle Create~Bake~Make link party!
Love your pillows! I like making pillows from double sided fabric placemats from Target. I just open up about an inch on one side of the pillow and use a chopstick to push the stuffing in.
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