I feel in love with this outdoor pillow from Pottery Barn the other day. They have some great outdoor pillows on their site and reasonable too. This one was $35, a little more than most of them but really cute and looked hand painted {or at least the illusion of it being hand painted} Once I saw it, I was inspired to make my own. I especially liked the idea of not having to be too perfect on the lines since I can’t draw a straight line to save my life.
Well, this is what I ended up with..
Ok, I know it isn’t exactly like the Pottery Barn one, but you get the idea. Once I had finished painting the flag on the fabric {which was so easy to do because you didn’t have to be perfect} I felt that it needed a little somethin, somethin, {plus I used a pen to make my lines and they were showing through the paint..shhh} so I added on the ruffle trim and some fabric flowers and Ta Da! I just love it!
Here is a brief overview on how I did it.
I used a pillow pattern for the pillow, {only because I happened to have one handy and again, I really can’t cut or draw a straight line so having a pattern helps me} but you can just cut two pieces of fabric to any rectangluar size you want or even make it square!
I did not use outdoor fabric, couldn’t find any in the color I wanted so I used duck cloth instead for the front and just regular blue ticking fabric for the back. {I knew the pillow would be only for decoration outside for a short period, so I figured I was safe not using the outdoor fabric}
{this is where those awesome real bloggers would insert a beautiful PDF of the flag for you to download..but I am not one of those awesome bloggers so I have to do it the old school way}
I used a ruler and pen (don’t suggest that part, a pencil would be better, but I was lazy and used what I had at hand) to draw out the flag on my fabric. I started with the blue area and drew a 5″ x 7″ rectangle (where you put your 50 stars ) and then measured and drew the rest of the flag stripes which ended up being about 1/2″ wide. The whole flag altogether ended up being 9 1/2″ x 14″.
I used regular craft acrylic paint on the duck cloth.
Personally, the stars were a problem for me to draw, so I went with plan “b” and found some silver brad stars in my stash and cut the brads off the back and glued them on. I am going to admit, embarrasingly, that I had to count the stars on the flag and how they were laid out in order to put them on. This is how it goes, 6 across 5 down.
First row 6 stars, Second row staggered 5 stars repeat until you have 5 rows.
I cut and glued store bought ruffle ribbon on top of my stripes. I just happened upon these ruffle ribbons, otherwise I would of used my ruffler, love that thing!
I made fabric flowers from scraps, and glued them on where I thought they should go. I sewed the two sides together, inside out of course, and then turned it right side out (leaving an opening for stufing) I cut open a left over pillow I wasn’t using and stuffed my new pillow and sewed the small opening shut.
I plan on doing other versions of this pillow, (thought of an easier version for the flag so that motivates me even more) that I plan on putting around my yard for the 4th of July, so stay tuned!























This is adorable!!!
You should link it to Centsational Girl’s 4th of July link party at the end of the month.
I love the ruffles. Thanks so much for the visit today!
Super pillow! I love it, might see if it’s for sale in Etsy!
Stephanie, I have just been reading thru some more of your blog. I am amazed at your house & its fascinating features. Your story is amazing. I look forward to seeing more of your projects!
Super Cute!!
I love it!!
That turned out fantastic! Love the little rosettes!