Shush celebrates (and says how we pipe a pillow)

Goodness me it's birthday time - for me on Tuesday it will be number 40.  To celebrate I thought that I would show you how I pipe a pillow.  Are you suitably amazed and overwhelmed?  I mean, what a gift, right?!

At the Modern Modern sewing Saturday I managed to get this finished.  After pretty much everyone voted for turquoise (apart from two renegades), I went and got some cotton corduroy backing and other supplies from Spotlight at Friday lunchtime.  BQF and I have little lunchtime fabric road trips every now and then.  It is very good at breaking up the monotony of lawyering.  As we inevitably have drive through lunch, it is not so good for the waistline.

It's the pillow stack. AKA a stack of pillows.

Anyway - to focus - this is how I piped the cushion.  This method is suitable for a cushion that sits on a couch or a bed (i.e. you don't really see the bottom) and has the zip inserted at the base.  That is because I only pipe three sides of the cushion.  I never would have considered doing this until I realised our existing couch cushions are only piped on three sides and I never noticed.  So clearly, piping all sides is not essential.  You will need:

* finished cushion front
* finished cushion back (same size as the front)
* piping long enough to go around 3 sides
* fabric to cover the piping (I recommend something textured, and that matches the backing for this method - it makes the fact you're only doing three sides unnoticeable.
* zipper

First, make your piping.  I won't give you all the details, because it depends on your cushion and piping size.  I cut 2.25" strips of fabric for mine - long enough to reach around three sides of the cushion (sew strips together if you need to) and sewed it around the binding with my zipper foot, like so.  I also stitched along each end, over the piping, so it wouldn't slip along the casing.

Then pin your piping it to your cushion backing, along the two sides and the top.  The piping faces the centre of the cushion, and the raw edges match the raw edges of your cushion.  The key here is to make sure that your stitching (on the piping) is less than 1/4" from the edge of the cushion back so that it is hidden when you sew your cushion together.  The edge of my piping ended up needing to be over the side of my cushion back, so once I had sewed it on, I trimmed the overhang back to the size of the cushion backing.

All pinned up.  This is the important bit, so don't rush it.

Don't forget to clip your corners.  You can do this before you sew, or as you go.  Then sew the piping to the cushion back, roughly along the line you have already stitched.  Basically, you are basting it together, so it doesn't have to be that tidy, as long as it is hidden within your 1/4' seam allowance.  Pivot at right angles at the corners.  I forgot to take a picture of this, but I have confidence you can visualise a row of stitches.



Then insert your zipper along the bottom.  I use this technique, which is nice and easy - although as you can see, I sew the zipper in from the right side - I think it gives a much tidier finish.  I have found that I need at least 1/2" seam allowance to insert a zip nicely - you may want to take this into account with your cushion size (i.e. make it slightly longer than wide).  Then UNZIP your zipper.

It's not scary - give it a go.

Sew the remaining three sides of your cushion, right sides together, 1/4" from the edge, using your zipper foot and trying to get as close to the piping as you can.

All done.  It's time for the big reveal.

Turn it right side out and admire your awesomeness.  Give those corners a good poke with your finger to pop the piping out.

Oh yeah.  Wow.  High five.

Happy sewing day

Then stuff that baby with a good large inner.  It looks best overstuffed, so that the lack of piping on the bottom doesn't stand out.  

You can see for my backing, I quilted a strip of the fabric from the Bee and Lotus range I used on the front, and then topstitched the corduroy either side of the quilted section.  I liked how this turned out - I think I will do it again!.

Straightish line quilting

So - do you like the finished cushion?

Finished front.

Finished back (hello little label)

If you do (and I mean really do - I want this to go to a loving home, not someone just wanting something for the sake of it) then please put a comment below (followers only - this is to thank you for being part of the Shush family) and I will draw a winner at random next weekend.  Inner not included :-)

Thank you for celebrating my big day with me!  Linking up to TGIFF and Confessions of a Fabric Addict.