This summer, my husband and I purchased some couches.  I loved everything about them EXCEPT the pillows you have NO control over.

Plan of Attack:

1. Measure the width and height of your pillow.

2. Pick your fabric.  I chose a natural cotton canvas fabric that was both cheap and durable.  Create your fabric pattern using this diagram:

3. If you want to add decoration to the front of the pillow, do this before sewing the back panels onto it.  I chose burlap ribbon found in the upholstery section of most fabric/craft stores.  A yard is about $3.  Since I wanted a square pattern, I cut about a 9” section with two opposing 45 degree angles.  You can save on yardage by choosing to do just one stripe down the side of the front panel.

4.  Layout your burlap ribbon and pin it in place.  Now, with the same color thread as your burlap, stitch on top of the pieces using the WIDEST zig-zag stitch on your machine.  I made the mistake of not going wide enough and had to stitch over a couple places.

5.  Once the front panel is complete, hem the two back panels with a 1/2” hem using the same zig-zag stitch.  Make sure the folded over hem is on the inside of the panel.

6. Now assemble the 3 pattern pieces inside-out with the back panels lapping over themselves.  Stitch all the way around using a 1/2” seam allowance.

7.  In order to make the corners crisp, you can eliminate some of the bulk by clipping out small areas of the fabric’s seam allowance.  Do this VERY carefully - you don’t want to clip into your finished pillow cover.

8.  Now, turn your pillowcase right-side-in.  You can iron it to get an even more crisp look.  Stuff your existing pillow into your new pillowcase.

9.  If you want, you can add a cute button detail here or ties.  I just chose to leave it lapped without anything.  I’m not the biggest fan of hand-sewing, so this method provides an easy-on, easy-off pillowcase without all the fuss.

Now step back and enjoy the difference these pillows can make:

After I made these pillows, I was so excited to see that One King’s Lane was selling a similar pillow for $80!!!  Mine was around $3.

This calls for a celebration!!!

CELEBRATORY WINE: Monkey Bay Sauvignon Blanc, $7.99-9.99.  You can read more about it on Monkey Bay’s website.  This is one of my favorite go-to cheap wines.  CHEERS!