Friday, January 08, 2016

hourglass pillow

Welcome to finish it up Friday!

It has been awhile since I made a pillow cover...it was high time to remedy that! I actually had a bare pillow that needed covering. (Can you believe it???) So, I can check that off my list. Yippee!
For this pillow cover, I started with several charm squares of Jennifer Sampou's new stash studio yarn dyes and stash studio prints. (Fabric is scheduled to be released this month.) I added in a few solids and textural prints (4 total) from my stash to make the pillow top square. I figured it would be easier to finish it that way. Ha!
It usually takes me 2 years (no joke!) to decide what to make from new fabric, but for some reason the idea of hourglass blocks popped into my head right away. I ran with it, and I'm so glad that I did. I love, love, love the results! I feel like this is an unexpected color combination, but I couldn't love it any more. I think it's fabulous!
I cut the charm squares down to 4.75", which resulted in 3.5" finished blocks. (You can refer to this hourglass block tutorial, if you care to make some of your own.) I finished the pillow cover with an envelope back using this wonderful Echino polka dot fabric that I found at my last trip to SR Harris.
The pillow cover is about 21'' square....and shockingly, it is NOT scrap project. Although it would be a good way to use scraps! You know, if you had any of those laying around....(hahaha!)

I'm so thankful for the fresh coat of pretty snow this morning! I had fun taking photos! :)

Now it's your turn! Please link up your finishes for the week. Thank you so much for joining me for finish it up Friday!

35 comments:

Empress Charlotte Handmades said...

I love your fabric choices! That black square in the middle is just perfect.

Carie @ Space for the Butterflies said...

Oh doesn't it look great - it really shows off the cohesion of the fabric even though they're such different colours - and it looks fabulous against the snow!

Michelle @ From Bolt to Beauty said...

I've never made an hourglass anything. This may be the inspiration to start me planning my own!

hydeeannsews said...

i think you're right that the color combo is unexpected, but wonderful! it has your signature scrappy look even though it's not scraps. nice pillow!

ipatchandquilt said...

Your pillow is awesome. It just is so woodsy!
Esther
esthersipatchandquilt at yahoo dot com
ipatchandquilt dot wordpress dot com

Jill Fisher said...

I have pictures out in the snow today, too! It must be winter finally in the midwest. I love how bright and PRECISE this piece is. A beautiful finish.

Southern Gal said...

Beautiful!

Debbie said...

Love how a simple design can be so stunning!

alison@the chainpiecer said...

Looks like a really interesting fabric line and a good choice of design to show it off. No snow here in UK, just dreary rain: not so good for taking photos!

Vera said...

Pretty! Are you considering creating a button for your linky? :)

carrie said...

Beautiful!! I'm admiring how your hourglass points line up so well.

Orchard Cove Photography said...

I made my first pillow cover this week using your pillow back tutorial (and adjusting the math a bit since my pillow was smaller) but I found that the center fit but the corners didn't fit well (https://www.instagram.com/p/BAH98NkBNjh/?taken-by=orchardcove) - since your pillow is 21" do you make your cover that big as well or do you make it smaller? Have been cutting out gumdrops like crazy to create a twin sized gumdrop quilt - can't wait to see how it turns out :)

tink's mom said...

Great backdrop for such a bright, fun pillow. Love those little blocks.

Anonymous said...

Hourglass blocks are my fav! Love your pillow.

Anonymous said...

I love hourglass blocks, although I make them the shortcut way where you sew two squares together along two sides and then cut on the diagonal. It helps to minimize the amount of time I have to handle any bias cuts.

Your pillow looks great!

Elin said...

What a nice pillow! Very inspiring, thank you!

SarahZ said...

So pretty, and surprisingly muted...so used to bright brights from you most of the time :) I also had fun taking photos in fresh snow this morning! Happy New Year Miss Amanda Jean!

Maria - Pink Pony Design said...

Such stunning fabric choices! Lovely pillow!

Katherine said...

A beautiful finish to kick off the new year in style! Love those hourglass blocks in these yummy fabrics.

Happy New Year!

Lorna McMahon said...

Another gorgeous cushion.... The hourglass blocks were the perfect choice for showing off those sweet new fabrics. Nice work!

Anja @ Anja Quilts said...

This is awesome. Great job.

Jen said...

Those hourglass blocks are just perfect and I love the colors! It takes me two years to figure out how to use new fabric too! Ha!

Mary Marcotte said...

The best I can do here (Louisiana) at this time of year is to take photos in mud! Snow is nonexistent around here, and the grass is not much better than the mud. Your pillow looks great in the show and has me wishing for just a little white every now and again. lol Preferably without the cold!

Granny Maud's Girl said...

You are right. The colours are fabulous!
And what a great way to use charm squares: hourglass blocks. I struggle with knowing what to do with charm squares at times.

KaHolly said...

Wow! Look at that list of finishes! Wish I had one to add! Such a pretty pillow.

cityquilter grace said...

simple design + pretty fabrics = stunning versatile pillow...goes with anything!

Cathy Melancon said...

What a great pillow! Love the colors and together they make a striking pillow! Great work as always!

margaret said...

a lovely pillow

Unknown said...

It has a great scrappy feel to it and I love the simplicity of the quilting. It really lets the fabric take center stage.

✾Jamie Lee Cooley✾ said...

Very pretty! I like the green polka dotty fabric on the back. I have no idea what Sr Harris is but it's probably a good thing there isn't one near me:)

Jeneta said...

No. I can't believe it. But I'm glad your naked cushion is now covered (it's beautiful!)!

Susan Jonsson said...

Love your pillow....Don't need another pillow....but your pillow makes me want one anyway....Love your playful, happy use of color. It suits the half square triangles beautifully. So pretty on this rather dreary morning! :)

Tracybug Creative said...

1. I love that this pushes you outside your comfort zone.. very inspiring! 2. Can we link I/G friday finishes to your linky party? I don't really blog right now...but would love to participate..

✾Jamie Lee Cooley✾ said...

I was wondering what the fabric is in the bottom corner of the third photo. There's a white and a yellow crosshatch that have little black somethings on them. I looked at Jennifer Sampou's collection and they aren't part of that. Just wondering. I could use the yellow and would like to see if I can find it online.

Marti said...

I love your pillow. The blocks look like little hour-glasses. Looks comfy too.