Pillow covers are perfect home dec projects that easily refresh your decor by season and for holidays. Learn how to make a Wonky Star Pillow Cover to celebrate the Fourth of July with our step-by-step tutorial.
A quick and easy sewing project that is perfect for beginners, this pillow cover can be made with different fabric combinations, like I have, or make all of your stars the same. Have fun playing! It is a perfect project to use up some scraps.
Start by making three wonky star quilt blocks. It’s a fun and easy quilt block to make – no matching corners. The wonkier the better!
How to Make a Wonky Star Pillow Cover
Celebrate the Fourth in style with a whimsical wonky star pillow, using a pillow cover! Change it with the seasons and holidays!
Materials
- Three (3) Finished Wonky Star Blocks trimmed to 4-1/2 inches (see link above for directions)
- 3/4 yard 45-inch wide fabric for background and backing
- Thread
- One (1) 12-inch by 16-inch pillow form
Tools
- Sewing machine
- Rotary cutter and mat
- Quilter's ruler
- Iron
- Pressing surface
- Corner turner
Instructions
- Start by making your wonky star blocks. From your pillow cover fabric, cut one (1) 1-1/2 inch strip of fabric for sashing and one (1) strip of fabric 4-1/2 inches wide for the top and bottom of the front of the pillow.
- Lay out the stars the way you'd like them on your pillow top. Take the far left block and the 1-1/2 inch strip and sew the sashing to the right side of that block with a 1/4-inch seam allowance.
- Cut off the excess of the strip even with the bottom of the block.
- Take the middle block and sew to the other side of the sashing on the first block.
- Sew the sashing to the right side of the middle block.
- Now sew the last block to this piece of sashing.
- You have the blocks sewn together! Press the seams. For these seams, I did press them away from the quilt blocks and to the pillow cover front fabric.
- Now we'll sew the top and bottom of the pillow cover front to the block section. Take the wider fabric, right sides together, sew to the star unit with a 1/4-inch seam allowance.
- Trim off the excess. Now sew a strip of the wider fabric to the other side of the quilt block piece. TIP: If you sew with your pieced block on top it is easier to make sure that all of your seams stay open, resulting in a nicer finish.
- Again, trim the excess fabric. Press your seams.
- Here is the quilt block ready for the strip of fabric on the sides.
- Sew the 1-1/2 inch strip along both sides of the quilt block unit with a 1/4-inch seam allowance. Press your seams.
- I like to topstitch about 1/8-inch in from the blocks on the pillow front fabric.
- Now we are ready to make the pillow cover back. Cut two (2) pieces of fabric 12-1/2 inches by 10-inches.
- Along one of the 12-1/2 inch sides, finish the edge with either a zig zag stitch or serge the edge. Press it under 1/4-inch.
- Topstitch this turned edge.
- Lay the pillow front on your table right side up. Lay these two pieces over the pillow front, right side down, aligning the side edges. Note how the pieces overlap in the middle. This is where you will insert your pillow form.
- Pin and sew with a 1/4-inch seam allowance around all four (4) sides.
- Trim the corners.
- Turn the pillow cover right side out. Use a corner turner to get the corners nice and neat. If you don't have a corner turner, you can use a knitting needle or other small tool to gently poke out the corners.
- Press the pillow cover. Here it is all ready for a pillow form!
- And, the finished wonky star pillow cover with a pillow!
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Have fun with your wonky star pillow cover! Put it in a chair in the living room to support your lower back while doing some handwork and/or watching your favorite show.
Or, put it on a bench in your entry like this with some other pillows. I found these red and white pillows and thought they worked perfectly on this bench with my wonky star pillow! It greets my guests as they enter our home.
I think this is where it might stay during the holidays! Or, if we do an outside party, it will move to one of our patio chairs!
Browse through more Fourth of July projects on Create Whimsy.
