Make your own bolster pillows

Posted on by Naomi

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Learn how to sew your own bolster pillow covers with just some basic sewing skills.

Bolsters can pose themselves as a problem if you have trouble with math but don’t worry, a few calcuations will get you headed in the right direction to make your own bolster pillow.

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When planning for your bolster pillow, determine the lenth of the pillow, these come in increments of two and can be quite long (40″ or more) or can be much shorter.  The other measurement that must be determined is the diameter. For these I chose a 9″ diameter because it seemed to fit the size of the bed they were to go on.

Plan your yardage

You will need

  • 2 – 9 inch round diamenter pieces of fabric
  • One rectangular piece of fabric that is the length of the bolster by the circumference of the pillow. The formular for a circuference is π x the diameter so in this case 3.14 x 9 which equals 28.26 inches.
free intro to slipcovers guide

Slipcovers can be a beautiful way to enhance your home. Check out some of my projects for your own slipcover inspiration.

Download the Intro to Slipcovers

Note: when measuring and marking the fabric make sure to leave a seam allowance. I prefer to leave 3/4 of an inch and to trim the excess later.

  1. Trace the two ends onto the back side of the fabric (in this case I traced two 9″ diameter circles). If you plan to add piping, stitch the piping to the two circles.To make your own bolster pillow covers start by piping around the edge before sewing the whole piece together.
  2. Then stitch the zipper to the retangular piece of fabric that will wrap around the bolster pillow. The zipper will be attached to the width of your rectangle on both sides so after both sides of the zipper are sewn in it will create a tube. To make your own bolster pillows attach the zipper to the bolster pillow before you stitch it to the ends. This will form a tube.
  3. Pin and stitch the tube to the circular ends, all inside out.To make your own bolster pillows pin the bolster pieces together inside out and then sew.
To make bolster pillows turn the case right side out and stuff in the pillow form.

4. Turn the covers right side out and stuff the pillow in. 

The following are a few bolster pillows from amazon that I have used in the past. They come in several different lengths and diameters.

 

 

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For more on slipcovers check out the free downloadable guide to slipcovers. 

Supplies you will need for this project include cotton filler for your piping and upholstery zipper

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