Throw Blanket Pillow Cases

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Throw pillows. Can you ever have enough? I think not! We have quite the collection throughout our home but the pile that lives on our couch really needed updating. Speaking of updating, the colors in our living room are all new for the loft which is so overdue. Ive been holding onto this color inspo board for sooooo so long and its finally getting used(YAY!). Only problem with that is finding pre-fab decor items in such punchy colors. So I’ve had to get extra creative and the throw blanket pillow cases were the perfect start!

As I said, the colors I picked(and LOVE!) are not ones I’ve been able to find right on the shelf in the items I need to replace. So when I found this cozy throw blanket at Target I snatched it up real quick. At first I thought I would just use it as a throw for couch snuggling and we did use it for a short time. But after trying and failing to find pillow cases in the right color I realized the throw was basically just a piece of fabric in the ideal shade.

After skimming a few tutorials on Pinterest I realized I could make these super basic and skip the time consuming details like zippers(double yay!). I love sewing. Really, I do. I’ve been doing it since I was a kid(thanks Mom!) and I’ve sewed everything from simple blankies to very detailed garments like my wedding dress. And as much as I appreciate intricate stitched items nothing beats the high of completing a project in 20 minutes! Yeah, you read that right! 20 minutes my peeps!

The very basics of my envelope pillow case: Trim off original rolled hem. Roughly measure enough fabric to cover pillows with 4″ overlap. Hem flap edges. Fold with right sides together so the hemmed edges overlap 4″. Stitch down both lengths. Turn right side out. Soooooo basic!

If you want to get really precise or if you are using a less forgiving fabric by all means to the math. Map out your cuts, iron your seams, and pin EVERYthing. I’m sure my old sewing teacher would recommend doing every single one of those steps! But! Being this fabric is a fleece with a stretch and it was going on slouchy pillows I skipped those deets and it all came out perfect. At least to my eye!

One thing I will recommend is a walking foot. My machine is older and I’m sure its not the most fancy attachment but it makes a difference. When I hemmed the flaps(literally eyeballed it and folded over as I went) I used the regular foot. But once I folded the fabric over itself and started sewing it shut I was going over 3 thick layers of fleece. The walking foot kept everything moving smoothly and I promise its worth switching out!

Also, if you wanted to add a closure but still don’t want to deal with the hassle of a zipper a button would be perfect. Especially if it was something chunky, decorative, toggled, etc. Like I mentioned before, these pillows are super slouchy(which is why they’re so cozy!) so for now the envelope style sans closure is awesome. If I stumble upon a great decorative element later on I could still hand stitch it on. But for now these pillow cases are giving new life to our couch scene!

So have you repurposed any fabric lately? Cut up blankets for any other DIYs? You know I’d love to hear all about it in the comments!