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La joie c'est le partage
{ the joy is in the sharing }

Saturday, January 24, 2009

Old Grain Sack Pillow

Good Morning and happy Saturday to you!
I wanted to show you a fun little project I did yesterday. As you probably know, I absolutely adore old French grain sacks but my gosh, they're pricey! I drool over those beautiful photos in the magazines where they're all stacked together in a pretty wire basket or sewn into gorgeous pillows!! So I thought...hmmmm...there's got to be a way that I can have one of those. I thought and I thought and this is what I came up with. I couldn't wait to share the idea with those of you who may love them too but can't stand the idea of spending so much money on them. I am so happy with the way it turned out.
This project is for a pillow and you will need:
unbleached cotton fabric
a red fabric marker pen
clear packing tape
scissors for cutting fabric or a rotary cutter and cutting mat
pillow stuffing of your choosing
sewing machine or a needle and thread if you prefer to hand sew it
a needle and thread to close the opening left for stuffing your pillow
The first thing that I did was buy a yard of unbleached cotton fabric. You can find this at Walmart for about $3.50 a yard. I then washed and dried the fabric and ironed out the wrinkles (or you can leave them in - it adds character!)
Then, you want to cut the fabric to the size you want your pillow to be. I used a cutting mat with a rotary cutter but good ole' fabric scissors will work just fine. After cutting, I left the fabric on the cutting mat so that when I painted the stripe on the fabric, I had a surface to work on and it will protect your table from the marker possibly bleeding through.

Now, it's time to get out your tape and your fabric marker. I used clear packing tape so that I could easily see through it to where my stripes were. Tape off your stripes and press the tape down firmly to the fabric so the marker doesn't bleed under the tape. Now you just draw your stripe with your fabric marker. You may need to go over it a couple of times until your desired color is reached. Peel away the tape and voila! You have your first stripe. I did my center stripe first and then worked out. You can do whatever is easier for you - that's just what worked better for me. Now go ahead and repeat the same steps for making any additional stripes that you want. I made my center stripe 1/4 inch wide and the outer two are an 1/8 of an inch wide. The stripes are spaced an 1/8 inch apart.

After you have completed your stripes and peeled away all of the tape, this is what you have.Not too bad, huh??
When you have finished your stripes on one side, go ahead and repeat all of the steps for the other side
Okay, this is what you will have when all of the striping is complete. I ironed the stripes to heat set them when I was finished. The pen I used didn't require it but I did it anyway just to be safe. Follow the directions on your pen.
Sew your pillow together remembering to leave an opening to stuff it. You can use Polyfil or whatever stuffing you desire. I have a featherbed that no one uses so I cut it open for the feathers and stuffed it with those. After you have finished stuffing your pillow, sew up the opening and you're done!!
And here is the finished product!!
Not too bad, I think it would pass as a pillow made out of an old grain sack - and for about $4.00, you can't beat it!!
Have fun!
xo,
Kathleen

41 comments:

Rosie's Whimsy said...

How Marvelous! That is the way to use you smarts instead of the dollar bills!

Confessions of a Plate Addict said...

Oh my goodness! Amazing! I would never have thought of that! Thanks...Debbie

Gypsy aka Tam said...

Wow - what a wonderful idea. I will definetly try this one. Thank you for the inspiration.
Have a wonderful weekend,
Tam

Chrissy...The Apothecary Shop said...

WOW!!! Love what you have done!!Those pillows are soooo expensive, great blog!!

Lynne (lynnesgiftsfromtheheart) said...

Wow.. girl.. thanks for sharing the instructions. I must try this..I have a daybed in the office I'm working on and I think this is the perfect added touch. Have a super w/k. hugs ~lynne~

Lisa~A Cottage To Me said...

What a great idea! Looks simple enough. Lots of ideas come from this one. Thanks!

Anonymous said...

Ohmigosh Kathleen - you are brilliant! This is such a fabulous idea!

Thanks for your visit and kind words on my blog... :)

Joy
xo

Kari said...

Hi, I am new to your blog but I already love it! I think your grain sack pillow is pure genius. I will definitely be back to visit more! I also have a love of French things!

Love,
Kari
Reese & Marie

Decor To Adore said...

This is fabulous!

Barb @ The Everyday Home said...

Hi - I found your blog thru Debbie at prof en retraite and love it. This was an awesome project and I can't wait to give it a try. HOW clever! I have joined your blog, and welcome you over to mine, too. Plus I'm giving away a little rooster which would fit right in to your home. :-) Blessings, Barb

Laura said...

I love that!! Thank you for sharing! And to think I would have kept looking for a grain sack to use. :)
I added you to my list of favorite blogs so will be back often.

Anonymous said...

I don't know how I missed this post the other day. But this is ABSOLUTELY fabulous!!!! Oh creative. I would love to try one like this in black.

How do you know the fabric is unbleached?

Whispering Pine Cottage said...

I love the grain sack idea! I am going to try it! Thanks, Angie

Christina said...

What a beautiful pillow and a great idea. Thanks for sharing.

I am really enjoying your blog.

Barb said...

This is pure genius. I am putting it on my "try this" list.

niartist said...

Oh MY! What a lovely way to make these fantastic beauties! I am currently working on some myself, but I'm using a stencil, because I just had to have the writing. I think the tape idea is perfect for the stripes though! Thank you so much for posting this, and again - beautiful work!

Stephanie said...

What a fantastic idea. The pillow is stunning. It really does look like a grain sack cloth. You are very creative!

Susan (Between Naps On The Porch.net) said...

Wow...love this! You could make these to sale...looks very professional! Susan

LaurenFaythe said...

I love this! Thank you!

GrannySmithGreen said...

This is a great idea! You are so creative. What other tricks do you have up your sleeve?

The Green Pea said...

Wow-wee what a great idea. I will to try it. Thanks and Blessings to you. Sandi

Cindy@Cutepinkstuff said...

What a great project! It turned out so French and fabulous!

Cabin 19 Supply Company said...

This is so fantastic! I would love to post this on my blog, a photo of your finished pillow and then a link to your "how to". Let me know if that's ok with you.
Lisa

Jackie said...

Absolutely fantastic! What a great idea and thanks for sharing it! I just found you through Urban Farmhouse - love your blog!

The Feathered Nest said...

This. is. WONDERFUL!!!!! How cool...and even more wonderful, that you shared your technique with everyone! You're such a sweetie, xxoo, Dawn

{Bellamere Cottage} said...

You are the MOST clever girl ever! What a dandy idea. I'll be copying this one for sure.

Blessings,
Spencer

Patti's Artful Design said...

Love your blog and love your pillow ideas. Thanks for sharing.

JenW!~ said...

I loved this idea so I gave it a try but didn't make it into a pillow. I made a library/market bag instead. It turned out great and am thinking of making another. Thanks for the turtorial.

Ann said...

Beautiful and cleaver. Perfect for a home with children and pets. My 3 yrs old likes to cut things,including my throw pillows.
I have posted a link to your tutorial on my blog. I know a lot of my readers would like this.

kath@retromantic antiques said...

I love this! I am definitely going to try this in a couple of colors. thanks! kath

cherylweaver said...

That's really a good idea. I have used masking tape for floorcloths to mask off and make straight lines, but I never thought of clear tape for fabric. Thanks bunches for that tip.

Igloochic said...

I love your idea...and want to add a little hint if anyone want's to hear it :)

Obviously it's hard to beat the price :) Except, Ikea sells unbleached cotton pillow shams (they call them cases but they have a flap that tucks in like a sham) for $1.99 for TWO. I used them in my son's 1930's safari tent room and just love them. They was perfectly and look exactly like your finished product and would be easier for folks who don't like to sew.

And at 1.99 you just saved a little bit more.

I adore the final product you've made. I am going to snatch a couple of my son's pillow cases and do this tomorrow for my bed :o) Thank goodness I bought several heh heh

They also have a comforter cover in the same fabric for under five dollars...I may do a stripe down one side or something similar :)

Jeanne Oliver said...

What a clever idea...and it looks just like it!!! Great work.

the upcycler said...

That is awesome! We are going to try the same idea to make some Union Jack pillows!

Check out my wife's blog when you get a chance, Vintage Junky You guys think alike.

She also has grain sack pillows for sale pretty cheap in her etsy shop. Vintagejunkystyle.etsy.com

CJ

colleen said...

This is genius!! I am totally going to try this. Thanks!

Pink Rufflez said...

Absolutely brilliant! Thank you so much!

Kristin @ My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia said...

This is wonderful! I might just have to try this out one day if that is ok with you :) Really enjoying your blog.

Victoria Hayden said...

Wow! This turned out great, I wouldn't have known it was a marker if I hadn't seen this...love it!! Will have to make some of these!

Hugs,
Victoria

Heaven's Walk said...

Kathleen - I am just loving your blog! I'm so glad I stumbled into it from The Vintage Farmhouse. Your ideas are so easy and creative! I'm your newest follower now! :)

xoxo laurie

Heart Vintage Design said...

Love this project!

Anonymous said...

Oh my goodness, that is brilliant! Ironically, I was looking around the web for french vintage farmhouse grain sack cloth, and I found your blog! All I can say about the grain sack cloth is Wow, that stuff is expensive! Definitely out of the price range I'm willing to pay. I just love how you came up with this!!

By the way, I just became your newest follower, yay! Would so love if you would follow back.