Pretty Pillow

I found a set of 4 dinner napkins on clearance for $4-something at Target the other day and knew exactly what to do with them... since we don't use fabric napkins at this point in our lives :). I tossed them greedily into my cart thinking- They would make great pillows!

I also had some SUPER MEGA cute fabric I got at Hobby Lobby with every intention of making an apron but it was too cute for that. I didn't want people wiping their hands on the fabric. What cruelty. This would be a great applique though!

I chose this print, by Brother and Sister Design Studio. The napkins are 20x20, so I wanted my applique to be large and to have a large print on it as well. The fabric has little butterflies intermingled with the Japanese-style foliage, so I picked that motif to be my applique.

I eye-balled the butterfly on the fabric and tried to draw a large replica. Not bad! And here is where prep work is done and the assembly begins.

1. Trace your applique design onto the paper side of double-sided Heat-n-Bond type stuff. My design didn't matter which way I traced it because it was symetrical. Symmetry makes me smile.

2. Then iron the fusible stuff to your fabric. This is SUCH a COMPLICATED step. Just kidding, it is hard to mess this up :). I wanted to make sure I included some of those little butterflies to my big butterfly, so I did have to think about it a little bit.

3. Cut out the applique design. Leave the paper backing on after you cut it out :). I decided I wasn't going to embroider around the edge of the design so I did put Fray-Check on the edges at this point as well.

4. Position the applique design on the napkin wherever you think it looks best. Since my design is a butterfly, I wanted it to feel as though it was in flight or something existential like that. That is why it is crooked and in the corner.

It was also here that I noticed little spots on my only ironed napkin- what the??? All these Utah curse words went through my mind like "FRICK!" and "Oh Mylanta!" and "oh SNAP!!" I was bummed. I don't know what the spots were, I couldn't get them out with anything I tried. I didn't try ironing another napkin though... pure laziness. Oh well. Life is hard. Spots happen.

5. Peel off the paper backing and iron your applique design to the napkin.

6. I wanted my butterfly to have some antennae so I busted out my embroidery hoop and some brown embroidery floss. Brown? There are brown flowers. Matchy-matchy.

I just did a simple back-stitch and topped it off with a french knot. I thought it was perfect.

7. Get another napkin ready! It is time to make it a pillow. I liked the little edging on my napkins so I decided to sew the pieces wrong-sides together. Pin the napkins together so it doesn't scoot around on you and make you get acquainted with your seam ripper. I just sewed really close to the stitching already in the napkin.

Leave the bottom of your pillow open so you can stuff it with something. Please, may I suggest a pillow form you can buy at fabric stores all over. It will just look nicer and last longer than stuffing it with poly-fill craft stuffing. Blech. When you've wrestled your pillow form inside, blind-stitch it closed.

Since I was doing this during the munchkin's nap, I didn't have a pillow form. So I didn't close it. Obviously. Please, use your imagination for the next picture :)

Ta da!!

I was really pleased with the outcome, and I have two more napkins left over. I might do another pillow with two smaller butterflies flittering around on it, or maybe I'll applique the butterfly onto each napkin and then put them in frames. That would be pretty too. Anyway, I'll eventually put a picture of this in its stuffed form!

This was super fun. I hope you can re-purpose some napkins too!