Finish It Up Friday 1 - The Selvage Pillow

 So this is actually a finish from late February/early March, but I'm just getting around to sharing it now.

This is my scraptastic pillow that lives in my living room on my fabulous Ikea chair. It basically came about because I wanted to start sewing some pillows for my living room, I had a bunch of scraps, and I really just wanted to finish...something.

I've had a lot of bigger projects (quilts and the like) on my ever-growing to-sew list, so it's nice to have a smaller project every now and then. 

 I absolutely do not believe in throwing away scraps, even the little teeny tiny ones. Some people do and that's fine. But me? No.

First, I love scrappy quilts. I think they're fun and they can be kind of funky depending on how you do them.

Second, fabric is expensive. Especially if you get quality stuff. Trust me, it's worth it to get the quality stuff. It behaves better when you're sewing and it looks better when you're done. It just lays better and irons better.

I just can't bear to throw them out.

So I save all the bits. Even the selvages. And while that's kind of trendy in the sewing/quilting world right now, I also think it's smart. Why throw out something perfectly good that can become something else?  Especially when that something else is both pretty and functional.

 I mean, look at this pillow. The top is mostly selvages plus some larger scraps I had.

Also, it gives me the chance to play around and experiment a little bit and if I screw it up, it was just scraps, right? Especially since I tend to screw it up a lot.

Those white corners with the colored stripe alongside the selvages? Yeah, I definitely intended those to be reversed. Oops. Better next time, although I don't think it looks bad. My husband was glad of this. He's rescued a few projects from the garbage. :) Bless him.

 I foundation pieced the selvages onto scrap paper, e.g. paper I tore out of a phone book we'll never use. Then, I did the corner bits and sewed all four blocks together. I quilted it primarily by stitching in the ditch, although I did also outline the border.

At some point I'll write up a little tutorial, although I think you could figure it out pretty easily. My selvages have multiplied since I sewed up this little project. I need an excuse to use them up, right? :)

 For the back, I just did a simple envelope enclosure using leftover fabric for when I sewed the valences in my kitchen. Waste not, want not, right?

 Mr. Gardener kindly took these photos when he took photos of my first quilt. I very much appreciate him and his willingness to support my craft.

Enjoy your weekend!!



I'm linking up with Crazy Mom Quilts and Finish it Up Friday. You should, too.