Swapping with Cindy 2: Christmas Carnival Pillow

I'm back today with a follow up to my post the other day about my swap with Cindy.  Today, I'd like to show you what I sent her.  And tomorrow--or maybe Friday--I hope to do a process post about making it, along with a review of some Aurifil thread, and a giveaway!

Ready for the reveal?  Cindy said she wanted a new Christmas pillow.  Here's what I sent to her:

I am so happy with how it turned out.  I really like it.  It's pretty nontraditional, so I was worried she wouldn't like it.  But, I hope she did.  She blogged it here if you want to read her blog post about it.  She said some awfully nice things.  Thank you, Cindy!

Here's another photo of it more straight on.  I tried to get some photos of it in my house on the sofa, but it always seemed too dark.  I wanted to get it outside in the sunlight.  Cindy's photos are much better.  You might want to check them out.

When I finished it, I showed it to Papa Pea.  He was actually really disappointed I was sending it away to someone else!  LOL.

Some specifics:

The pillow is an 18" square.

The main body of the pillow is all hand pieced, using English paper piecing methods.  My first try at it.  It was super fun.  I am a little hooked on English paper piecing now.  I want to find another project to start on.

I don't remember how I ran across it, but I found the pattern for the pillow top on the I'm a Ginger Monkey/Monkey Do blog.  Click here to see her version of the pillow.  It's quite different from mine!  If you are interested in downloading her tutorial for making the pillow top, you can get it here.  She calls the design "Spring Carnival."  Since my pillow is a Christmas pillow, I'm calling it Christmas Carnival.  (The tutorial does not explain how to make it into a pillow.  It just tells you how to hand piece the main design.  I'll tell you more about that in the process post tomorrow.)

Also, the pattern makes a 26" pillow.  I thought this was a little too big.  (Not that I'd mind making one so big, I just wasn't sure Cindy wanted a pillow that large.)  So, I adapted the pattern just a little bit by deleting some of the hexies, squares, and triangles to make it smaller.

The fabric is called Spunky Pillow and Maxfield Christmas collection by Pillow and Maxfield.  I got it here at the Fat Quarter Shop.  I can't remember how I found it either, but I sure fell in love with it right away.  I ordered it just for Cindy.  :-)  I mean, I was making a pillow, after all!  It just seemed to fit.

Here is the back of the pillow.  It also uses fabric from Pillow and Maxfield.  I had ordered a fat quarter bundle for the front of the pillow.  I think I ordered a yard of this print for the back.  I have a lot left.  (Yay!)  I also got it from the Fat Quarter Shop, but when I went to get the link for you, it wasn't there.  Maybe they are sold out.  But I love this print!  Papa Pea loved the back as much as the front!  LOL.  You can see I put in a zipper, too, so Cindy can remove the pillow form and wash the pillow cover if she needs to.

One of my only regrets is that this zipper pull is so large that it hangs down and is quite visible.  I had a zipper from JoAnn's that I could have (should have?) used, and it had a really small zipper pull that would have been more hidden.  As you'll see in my process post tomorrow, however, I used Pam Damour's instructional video to help me construct the pillow.  (By the way, her videos are great and really helpful!)  You might remember I went to a workshop she gave up in Grand Rapids sometime a while back.  I blogged it here.  She has her own zippers that are sold by the yard.  You can totally pull the whole zipper apart, and then you add the pulls, which come separate.  I used her zippers, which I also love by the way (in her video she talks about how in her 20 years as a custom home dec sewist, she has never, ever had one of these zippers pull apart on her), so I could follow her tutorial exactly.  I just wish the pull wasn't so big and was a little less visible.

When I thought up doing this pillow for Cindy, I had planned to do pom pom fringe around the pillow.  But, when I finished piecing the top, I realized I was going to need some special trim.  Plain old pom poms were not going to cut it.  So, I went online and scoured Etsy, looking for something special.  When I saw this crocheted trim, I knew it was the right thing to get.

Here is a close-up shot of it.  It was from a store called Holland Fabric House.  Yes, they are located in the Netherlands.  So, I got the trim ordered and then had to wait for it to arrive from the Netherlands.  Isn't it just the cat's meow?!  Here is the link to it, if you want some for yourself.  I thought it would be crazy expensive, coming from the Netherlands.  But it was only $1.30 per meter, and the shipping costs were not bad at all.  Plus, they shipped it right out, and I had it within about 10-12 days, I think.  Noor, of Holland Fabric House, helped me out so much with my order.  You'll see why...Keep reading.....

For that price, and because it was sooooo cute, I asked for an entire roll of the red (13.7 meters), and while I was at it, I got the turquoise, too.  I can just imagine all the fun I can have with this.  When I ordered a full roll, Noor gave me a discount, so the price was even better.  What a great deal!  I also saw this adorable gnome fabric in her shop and had her throw that in the box, too.  Isn't it cute?  It is made in the Netherlands as well.  I just felt like this trim was the exact special touch I needed.  I want to thank Noor for all her help in putting together the special listing for me and sending it out so quickly.  I want to give a shout out to her shop for great service and really fun products.  Check it out!

Here's one more shot of the pillow on my living room couch.  You can see what I mean about the darkness of the photo, but this gives you a sense of how it looks on the couch.  I fussy cut many of the motifs.  That was fun.

I truly loved every minute of making this pillow for Cindy.  For one, it was a fun project.  For another, I just felt delighted making it for her.  I wanted to please her so much.  ;-)  Do you know how that is?

Well, I hope Cindy liked my pillow.  I told her she could send it back if she didn't like it.  I'd be glad to keep it.  LOL.  I might have to order another fat quarter bundle and make another pillow.  I'm looking for another project after all!  (My fat quarters look pretty "Swiss cheesed" from all the fussy cutting I did!)

Come back soon for a process post on some of the construction and decisions.  I want to tell you about the Aurifil thread I used, and I'll have a thread giveaway for you, too!  Woo hoo!

Until next time,

 

 

 

 

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Swapping with Cindy

Comments

[Lynn]

Wow! That trim is great! Love, love, love the pillow. I just ordered some of the zipper on a roll stuff for my LQS. folks are always asking for crazy sizes of zippers so we thought we'd give it a try.

[Mary on Lake Pulaski]

Lucky lucky Cindy! The pillow is so cute and the trim is just perfect for it!

[Sherri]

The pillow is gorgeous! Now I know what you were working on with Englisg paper piecing!

[Maggie Szafranski]

AWESOME! English paper piecing is fun, addicting... Love that trim!

[Kim]

Amazing! I love the design, the fabrics, the trim -- everything. And thanks for posting all the links.

[Lisa Ruble]

Wow! So impressed by the pillow front. I love the fabric, the fussy-cutting, definitely the trim! No wonder you've been so busy...you've been hand piecing!

[Ivy]

That pillow! That trim! That gnome fabric! Oh. My. God. And too funny! You know that hoop you like? Well, I found the doll fabric and trim for it at Holland House on Etsy, too! Ha! I am totally impressed with that beautiful pillow :)

[jenclair]

The fabrics are so cheerful, and what a great trim you found! Perfect. I can see why Papa Pea may have been a little reluctant to have you send it off, but I'm sure Cindy is glad you did!

[Maureen]

Awesome, awesome, awesome!!! You are so talented and get so much done!!

I am with Papa Pea, I wouldn't want it to leave my house either! You know, those colors would look great on my couch!! ;)

[carolld]

I saw your pillow earlier on Cindy's blog. I love it. Very clever trim. You do a wonderful job.

[Deb]

What a great pillow - I would never have thought to use all those big prints in that pattern but it sure looks awesome. That's why I like your blog - it makes me want to not be so 'traditional' in my quilting (but I probably won't stray too far).