New cushion covers

Our living room is slowly getting out of its winter mode.  I took down the winter quilts and have put up brighter, flowery ones.  But our sofa still had flannel red plaid cushion covers.  During the holidays Tetsu and I visited a couple of interior stores looking for just the right cushion covers for our two pairs of cushions on our sofa.  Either there was only one cushion cover left that we liked (we needed two for our pairs) or they were WAY too expensive.  And I wanted summer blue, whereas Tetsu wanted bright.

Excuse me.... I am a quilter and I do have a lot of fabric.  Cushion covers shouldn't be that hard to do.

I have made cushion covers before.  As a matter of fact, one could do an archeological dig and with each cushion cover removed, an older one can be found underneath.

Anyway... to get started...  I didn't want to cut into my patchwork fabric.  This is so crazy because there is so much in my stash!  This week when he was cleaning out the closets, Tetsu had tossed a roll of yukata (cotton kimono) fabric my way suggesting that it would more likely get used in my sewing room rather than in the closet.  The yukata fabric was something I'd bought when the kids were in kindergarten and although it was pretty, I can't see me making a yukata these days.  I'll cut it up and make cushion covers!

Kimono fabric is sold in set lengths and widths and I wanted to use the finished selvages so I just sewed up two strips to make a square.  A too large square but so what...  my cushions will have ears.  The problem of course was putting in the zippers on the back and I'm not showing those because I didn't do such a great job.  I never claimed that I could sew.... I make quilts.

I still had a lot of fabric and the flowers were so pretty...  Okay, I'll cut some out and fuse bond them to some light fabric.  Light fabric, light fabric...  Ah-hah!  I remembered stuffing an old curtain into a drawer rather than throwing it out.  It was pretty worn and frayed but still nice fabric.  I wouldn't mind sacrificing an old curtain for a quick project.

I had my light fabric and did my fusing and then free-hand machine quilting.  All that was left to was to make an envelope opening in the back.  (I'd had enough with those zippers!  Grrr.)

Two pairs of new cushion covers for our sofa.  Bright!  Summery!  They will do.  (And the white ones match the curtains there in the window.)

Tetsu was extremely impressed with my handwork!  He thought I'd bought my cushion covers (he didn't look at the zippers).  I got lots of compliments and praise from him.  I can work on a QUILT for over a year and when it is done he tells me it is "nice".  Make four cushion covers and I'm practically a genius in his book!

We are all satisfied.