When I asked my kids what they wanted to learn while we were social distancing, the oldest two knew exactly what they wanted: to learn to sew! These easy-to-sew fleece pillows were a perfect inexpensive starter project.
A pillow is the first thing my husband and I each learned to make when we learned to sew. It’s a fast, simple, and satisfying project.
First, I showed my daughters the basics and made some practice sheets for them to work through. Then I realized they were ready for their first project.
Choosing Your Fabric
We chose to sew fleece pillows because it fleece is easy and, more importantly, it’s forgiving!
Mistakes aren’t readily obvious on fleece, but the best thing about it is that it doesn’t fray. This means that if you’re making something, you could leave the edges completely unfinished without worry that they’ll unravel or look unsightly!
A quick fleece project gave my girls the sense of completion and confidence they needed to keep on sewing!
Materials
For all sewing projects you’ll need:
For this project, you’ll also need:
Our fabric actually came from The Dollar Tree! They sell fleece baby blankets and one blanket is just enough for two 12″ pillows.
Prepare
Determine the size of your pillow.
Your fabric should be about 2″ wider and longer than your finished pillow size. For example, you’ll need a 14″ x 14″ piece of fabric for a 12″ x 12″ pillow.
Cut two pieces of fabric for each pillow.
Line up the pieces with the right sides facing each other and pin them together, leaving a 3″ portion of one side unpinned.
We used one green-headed pin on one side of this gap to indicate where to start sewing. The other side of the gap has a red-headed pin, indicating it’s the place to stop.
Sew the Fleece Pillows
Sew around the edge of the pillow, stopping at the red-headed pin (leave that 3″ gap unsewn).
Snip, Stuff, & Sew the Seam
Snip the corners of the fabric in each corner, taking care not to get too close to the stitches.
Using the 3″ hole, turn the pillow inside out. If you can’t quite get the corners to cooperate, use the eraser end of a pencil and, working from the true inside out, gently push on the corners until they pop out.
Stuff the pillow as desired, then hand stitch the opening closed using ladder stitch.
Snuggle up!
Looking for another sewing project? Try these no-knit mitts!
