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November 27, 2011

DIY Holiday Burlap Pillows

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend filled with lots of turkey and pumpkin pie! If you stopped by the blog this weekend you may have noticed that it got a BIG makeover! I’m so excited about the new look, I’m still making a few tweaks but it’s almost there.  I’m anxious to hear what you think. Thoughts?

This weekend I finally completed my first Christmas project of the season, very timely I might add. Are you ready for the big reveal? Here are my new DIY holiday burlap pillows to go with my ‘rustic-glam’ Christmas decor this year.

DIY Burlap pillows, Holiday pillows

I hand painted the designs on the pillows using white acrylic paint (full tutorial below). I was a little nervous to do them completely free handed, but I think that’s my favorite part of them… they aren’t perfect.

burlap pillows

I love the rustic vibe and how they add just the right touch of holiday decor without going over the top. Since I won’t have these pillows up year round, I wanted to make the covers easy to remove so I made them with envelope backs. They are so simple to make, you don’t have to hassle with zippers or spend hours hand sewing them shut.

Here’s a closer look at each design.

Winter Snowflake (crossing my fingers for lots of snow this year!)

And my modern Christmas tree!

 

For those of you interested in how to make these here is the full tutorial:

What you need:

– 2 yards of burlap for 2 18 X18 ” pillows (you will have a little left over)

– 2 18 x 18 pillow inserts

– 3/4 yard of white cotton fabric (muslin would work great too!)

– white acrylic paint

1. Start out by cutting 2 20 X 20″ squares out of the burlap for the front of the pillows.

2. Paint your design with the acrylic paint directly onto the pieces used for the front of the pillows (If you look closely you will notice the tiny little fingers of my assistant : P)

3. Then cut 2 20 X 25″ pieces to use for the envelope style back and cut them directly in half. So you will have 4 pieces at 20 X 12 1/2″

4. Press a 1″ hem on the inside edges (1-4 shown above) of the envelope pieces and sew.

5. To make the trim, cut 8 3 X 20 1/2″  strips and then press in half.

6. To create the corner pieces, align the two right sides together and cut into a triangle shape shown below. Sew together. Depending on your seam allowance,  you may need to trim some excess fabric.

7. When you turn the pieces right side out, you will get a perfect corner piece for the pillow trim. Repeat for all four corners.

8. Pin the right sides of the pillow front and back together with the trim in-between. All of the raw edges should be aligned. Note: When pinning the pieces together, the two pieces of the envelop back will overlap 2-3″, creating the pocket.

9. Because of the fragile nature of the burlap, I ended up placing a thin layer of all-purpose glue over the seams to keep them from fraying and pulling.

10. Turn the pillows right side and stuff them with a pillow!

If you get stuck along the way, always feel free to contact me :)

What are you working on for the holidays? I have so many projects on my to-do list, I’ll be lucky if I complete half of them!

About Taryn Whiteaker

Hi! I’m Taryn! The voice behind Taryn Whiteaker Designs. I launched this brand over 11 years ago when I became a stay-at-home mom. What started as a small craft and mom blog eventually grew into a full time design and DIY site. My goal has always been to inspire others (especially women!) with design ideas, DIY tutorials, entertaining ideas and give you the tools you need to complete them yourself!

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Filed Under: ALL POSTS, Christmas, Crafts & Sewing, DIY Home Decor, DIY Projects, Seasonal Decor & Crafts Tagged With: Before & After, Christmas Projects, DIY, my home, paint, repurpose

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. sewloveit says

    November 28, 2011 at 12:13 am

    the makeover looks great!! your pillows look lovely… i love the fact they were done freehand is a great touch… It would match the look your going for :-)

    Reply
  2. Cathy @ My 1929 Charmer says

    November 28, 2011 at 5:53 am

    I love the pillows, I’m in to anything burlap right now. I really like the christmas tree one so much I’ll be making one. Freehand? That means my lines won’t be very straight . Here’s hoping you’ll share your project over at Sunday’ Best. Sharing is a good thing.

    Reply
    • Taryn says

      November 28, 2011 at 7:47 am

      Thanks Cathy! I LOVE burlap, it’s the theme for my holiday decor this year! I would love to see what you have been making with it. :)

      Reply
  3. mdbc77 says

    November 28, 2011 at 7:37 am

    love the blog header!!!!

    Reply
  4. Ann says

    November 28, 2011 at 10:48 am

    Your website looks terrific. And I love those pillows. Not sure I’d trust myself to do them freehand but i might give it a try.

    Reply
  5. Carrie says

    November 28, 2011 at 12:10 pm

    These are sew cute! {pun intended, I know I’m a nerd!} Pinned them, and your newest facebook follower. :)

    Reply
  6. Abbie (Five days...5 ways) says

    November 28, 2011 at 9:12 pm

    These are fantastic, Taryn! I may just have to rip this one off big time. I absolutely love the white against the scratchy burlap and the fun mod shapes you chose.

    Visiting from Tip Me Tuesday, and I would love it if you’d stop by my neck of the woods for a visit! : )

    ~Abbie (www.fivedaysfiveways.com)

    Reply
  7. Abbie (Five days...5 ways) says

    November 28, 2011 at 9:23 pm

    P.S. I’m following you now

    Reply
  8. Abby says

    November 30, 2011 at 11:15 am

    Love the simplicity! Very pretty!

    Reply
  9. Vicky says

    November 30, 2011 at 5:55 pm

    These are great and add a whimsical touch to the home. Love how simple they are while making such a big statement. I am a new Fb and Twitter follower from Creations by Kara. Vicky from Mess For Less

    Reply
  10. Ginger says

    November 30, 2011 at 6:26 pm

    These pillows are so cute! I love the edge you put on them. It adds so much. I would love for you to come link up to my party – http://www.literallyinspired.com I would love to share this with my readers.

    I am hoping for a lot of snow too!

    Ginger

    Reply
  11. Cameron says

    November 30, 2011 at 8:32 pm

    Wow – these are so amazing. I just found 50 lb. of burlap remnants for less than $60 – so I have a lot of raw material to work with. Ha ha, ha ha . . . .material. Eh, it’s late, I’m tired, that’s probably not really that funny.

    Reply
    • Taryn says

      December 1, 2011 at 9:58 pm

      What a great price for burlap! You can do so much with all of that! Thanks for stopping by :)

      Reply
  12. Jan says

    November 30, 2011 at 9:28 pm

    So cute! I just bought burlap today and this is the perfect project for it.

    Reply
    • Taryn says

      December 1, 2011 at 9:58 pm

      Oh good! I would love to see how yours turn out!

      Reply
  13. Erin{LavenderandLemonDrops} says

    December 1, 2011 at 12:13 am

    LOVE them! They are darling :)

    Reply
    • Taryn says

      December 1, 2011 at 9:57 pm

      Thanks, Erin!

      Reply
  14. Joy says

    December 1, 2011 at 1:05 am

    Very cute pillows, what a creative idea!

    Reply
    • Taryn says

      December 1, 2011 at 9:57 pm

      Thanks, Joy!

      Reply
  15. gina says

    December 1, 2011 at 3:13 am

    Those are adorable!!

    Reply
    • Taryn says

      December 1, 2011 at 9:57 pm

      Thanks!

      Reply
  16. auntie chris says

    December 1, 2011 at 3:39 am

    These are so pretty.This natural look goes with so many decors.Great tutorial.

    Reply
  17. Christine says

    December 1, 2011 at 3:47 am

    WOW!!!!!! They are awesome!! Thanks for the tutorial! I’ll be trying this!

    Reply
    • Taryn says

      December 1, 2011 at 9:56 pm

      Thanks Christine! I would love to see how they turn out, will you send me a pic?

      Reply
  18. Kimberly @ The Brown Eyes Have It says

    December 1, 2011 at 9:13 am

    Those are really, really cute! I love the rusticness. The Christmas tree is so cool!

    Reply
    • Taryn says

      December 1, 2011 at 9:56 pm

      Thanks for stopping by and leaving such a sweet comment! I love the name of your blog :)

      Reply
  19. katie says

    December 1, 2011 at 10:35 am

    I am loving these pillows!

    Reply
    • Taryn says

      December 1, 2011 at 9:55 pm

      Thanks, Katie!

      Reply
  20. patti says

    December 1, 2011 at 1:16 pm

    Very clever – love how they turned out!!

    Reply
  21. Alida says

    December 1, 2011 at 3:07 pm

    I love these! Simple, elegant and rustic at the same time. Thanks for the tutorial, too!

    I’d love to invite you to share this project at my Thingamajig Thursday party going on now.

    Alida
    radcrafter.com

    Reply
  22. Emily @ BabyBerry says

    December 1, 2011 at 6:48 pm

    These are absolutely GORGEOUS! Would love for you to link up at Find-Your-Craft Friday over on my blog! Thank you so much for sharing :) Have a great Friday!

    Emily @ BabyBerry

    Reply
  23. Gen says

    December 2, 2011 at 8:29 am

    Just beautiful! I love this idea for my very rustic home. Thank you for a great tutorial Taryn!
    Genevieve

    Reply
  24. OAK House 5. says

    December 2, 2011 at 5:04 pm

    I love burlap, it’s like my go-to fabric. Well done!

    Reply
  25. Taryn says

    December 2, 2011 at 6:32 pm

    Kim! Thank you so much for your note. I will definitely be linking up! I love your blog and am a follower :)

    Reply
  26. Leanne says

    December 4, 2011 at 1:07 pm

    I love your pillows. You did such a great job. Thanks for linking to the Home Decor and Organizing Link Party. I featured these on my blog.

    Reply
  27. Katie says

    December 5, 2011 at 5:21 pm

    Love this idea! I would love for you to link up to my new party,
    Also, do you button swap?
    [email protected]

    Reply
  28. Alida says

    December 7, 2011 at 7:22 pm

    Thank you so much for sharing last week on Thingamajig Thursday. Hope to see you again soon!

    Alida
    radcrafter.com

    Reply
  29. Mai says

    December 8, 2011 at 9:01 pm

    I love your site still Taryn! Love the chevron and polka dot look!

    Reply
  30. Kelly Glenn says

    December 9, 2011 at 9:36 pm

    Would love for you to link up at Find-Your-Craft Friday over on my blog! I could always use more recipes.

    Reply
  31. Laura at Top This Top That says

    December 12, 2011 at 1:37 am

    love your pillows. looks like i might be making a few this week! great web site too!

    Reply
  32. BethM says

    December 12, 2011 at 5:56 am

    I love the look of these pillows! The snowflake one is my favorite, but I’m partial to snowflake designs anyway. I am definitely going to make some like these.

    Reply
  33. Laura Ingalls Gunn says

    December 12, 2011 at 12:04 pm

    Wow! You are a Christmas crafting genius! So glad I found your project via Centsational Girl.

    Please stop by for a visit to my blog. I am currently in the midst of a Gifts to Make series.

    Be Merry and Bright!

    Reply
    • Taryn says

      December 13, 2011 at 11:53 pm

      Oh you are so sweet! I’m not sure I’m a crafting genius but I sure have fun doing it :). Happy holidays to you!

      Reply
  34. Julie Locy says

    December 13, 2011 at 7:39 am

    Always nice to see other people who love to sew like I do! Love the mitered border you added around the edge of this pillow, I think it finished it off nicely. Thanks for sharing!
    Jules

    Reply
  35. Kimberley Mcfadden says

    February 20, 2012 at 10:30 pm

    Hope you had a great holiday weekend. I am loving these pillows! love your pillows.

    Reply
  36. Bonnie says

    September 13, 2012 at 10:15 am

    Love these! Your burlap looks so much nicer/softer than mine, mine is pretty rough! Where did you get your burlap?

    Reply
  37. Danni Baird says

    September 13, 2012 at 5:13 pm

    These are so cute! I love the snowflake one particularly! I have never painted on burlap, it sure turned out great! Saw you at the Burlap Challenge. Nice job!

    Reply
  38. JaneEllen says

    October 10, 2012 at 10:09 pm

    Really love your pillows. So glad you featured them. How do you sew burlap with your machine? Mine just won’t sew it, jams every time even tho we adjusted the tension and stitch.
    Because of my machine I”ll most likely make these pillows with painters cloth.
    We’re only people in our neighborhood that do any decorating for Fall, Easter, etc and they do little for Christmas if at all.
    I really love decorating for the seasons, gives some new color and different decorating to look at. I get very bored with things so love to make my own decorations. Some of friends think I’m weird because I change rugs and curtains for Fall/Winter and Spring/Summer. I move my art around often also. I”ve always done decorating and crafting even when I had 4 small children.
    Your blog is so delightful, so glad I found you, love your projects..

    Reply
  39. Liz and Lo says

    October 27, 2012 at 2:59 pm

    These are absolutely amazing and despite what you say we think they are perfect! Definitely on our to-do list. We will let you know if we give them a try. Thank you for the inspiration!
    xox Liz and Lo {celestandpearl.blogspot.com}

    Reply
  40. Sue Cushman says

    March 19, 2013 at 11:51 pm

    If you are afraid to do the drawings freehand, just put a ruler right by where you are doing the drawing and follow the line, or something with a straight edge. It will give you a little more confidence maybe. I love the pillows. They are beautiful. I also wondered if you might want to use one long length of material and then just use a ____(this is where my memory fails me) basket-weave) to sew it together after you have put the pillow form in.

    Reply
  41. Elha says

    November 13, 2014 at 6:29 pm

    I have one question, when doing #8 step, you only mention “pinning” the trim with the burlap, doesn’t it need to be sew together also?or Is it only going to hold together with the glue? I didn’t see anywhere saying that it needs to be sew together tho? :/
    Thank you!!!

    Reply
    • Taryn says

      November 13, 2014 at 7:45 pm

      Hi Elha! I was simply referring to pinning the burlap and the trim together to hold them in place before you sew them. Hope that helps!

      Reply
      • Elha says

        November 14, 2014 at 9:09 am

        Yes that makes perfect sense, I wanted to just make sure since I’ll be making a couple soon!! Thank you so much!!

        Reply
  42. Sharon C says

    December 15, 2017 at 7:44 am

    Love your burlap hand painted Christmas cushion covers. They are simple, elegant, natural, rustic and my kinda style! I have some burlap, so this is a totally doable project. Thank you for sharing these with us.

    Reply
  43. Michelle James says

    February 3, 2018 at 11:29 am

    Love these.

    That little hand belongs to the best kind of helper!

    Reply

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Hi and welcome! I'm Taryn and the voice of style behind Taryn Whiteaker Designs. Sharing our journey of modernizing our European style home in Dallas. Thanks for stopping by and don't forget to subscribe to my mailing list to get all the latest updates! Read more...

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