Decorative Monogram Pillows

An easy way to change up your home decor is by adding new pillows. However, shopping for pillows can be a bit pricy, especially if you need a few of them. It's easier and more affordable than you think to make some of your own. You can customize the size and color, and change them later if you need to.

I made a pair of decorative monogram pillows for my brother-in-law David ("D") and his girlfriend Alex ("A), for Christmas. Earlier in the year, we screen printed initial letters onto pieces of burlap. I know not everyone has screen printing supplies (I don't), but these letters can be made using stencils and paint or even black permanent marker. 

I purchased two 16x16 inch pillow forms from JoAnn Fabrics. Using 40% off coupons, I got them for around $8 each.

Select your fabric, and cut two 18x18 inch squares (this gives you a very generous seam allowance), one for the back and one for the front. If you would like two different patterns on the front (like I did), cut the fabric to the width you want and sew them together to make an 18 inch square. 


Place wrong sides together and pin fabric together. Start sewing (with a 1 inch seam allowance) at the BOTTOM of your pillow fabric, about 2 inches from the end. You will want to leave a large enough opening at the bottom to be able to insert the pillow form. You can use a sewing machine or sew by hand. 


Sew all three sides until you reach the bottom of the fabric again. Sew the bottom side about two inches in. Snip the corners of fabric so they turn right-side out easily. Turn your fabric right-side out. Insert your pillow form. If it fits perfectly snug, pin the opening together and sew it closed. If it's a little loose, you can always turn the fabric wrong-side out again and sew up the sides a little more.  

I used brown corduroy, a pretty pattern and burlap to make these, but the color combinations are endless. You could even make them seasonal. 

Decorative pillows are a quick and easy way to change your decor and add customized style to any room. And they make great gifts!

Screen Printing with Alex

Who remembers screen printing in junior high art class? If you've never had the chance to try it, then you missed out. Simply put, it's a printing technique, like a stencil, that forces ink through a screen and transfers it onto paper, fabric or other substrate. It's very fun. But a tad bit messy. And the cleanup can be a pain. But the results are worth it! 


Here's an example of screen printing on burlap bags, that totally inspired me when I saw it on the dieline. 

Aren't these bags great? I don't know what it is, but I want one of these. I've been on a burlap kick lately and I happen to have a bunch of it in my craft closet. I also love printmaking and ink. There's just something about bold ink in the form of typography and graphics. Don't you agree? Maybe it's just me. 

Catalina Rozo & Melissa Clinard, recent graduates from the University of Florida created these cute Burlap Bags for Market Grown, a campaign to help local farmers in Alachua County, FL (source, thedieline.com). And now they're selling them on Etsy if you'd like to order one.

I was crushing on these bags and trying to figure out how I could make one of my own. Then, low and behold, my husband's brother's girlfriend Alex (did you get that?) tells me she HAS a screen printer. Say what? When is the screen printing party? 

So, that's what we did. We had a screen printing party. It was like having art class in my living room. Alex and David kindly carted all of the printing gear to our house and we went to town testing it on burlap and other fabrics. It was so much fun! 

Here are the screens and ink. 

I traced shapes onto wax paper and cut them out, making stencils. These cherries ended up being my favorite.

I also made a pear and some initial letters (recognize these old stencils Mom? I knew they would come in handy!). We taped them onto the back of the screen with masking tape. 

Then placed fabric underneath, where we wanted the design to transfer. Next, we spread a row of ink, enough to cover the width of the design.

Then it was time for the fun part. Using the squeegee to spread ink through the screen and onto the fabric. When screen printing, be sure to apply enough pressure. You may need to go back over it a couple of times (like I did) to make sure it covers everything. If it's not perfect, that's ok. That's what gives it the screen printed look.

This is what it looks like when the ink is spread. Can you see my "S"? 

 Tada! Isn't that cool? I might make this into a tote bag for myself (someday). 

Here's my favorite. I like the bright red against the light tan.

The mustard color pear didn't look as strong, but it's still cool.

It printed perfectly on this thick piece of white fabric.

An "A" for my honey, Andrew, and of course for Alex, my screen printing teacher. I want to mention that Alex's middle name is Andrea. Which means when you say her full name, it's Alex Andrea. Say it again. Alexandrea. Clever parents.

And "D" for David. 

That concludes this session of art class in my living room. Thank you Alex, for sharing your screen printer and letting me try out burlap printing. And thank you for letting me do all the fun parts, like pick shapes, use the squeegee and admire our designs, while you did the not-so-fun parts like cleaning the screen, washing the utensils and picking up after me. You would make a wonderful art teacher!   

Now to figure out what to make with all my beautiful screen printed pieces of fabric...