my most recent project: vintage flour / grain sack pillows.

i have mentioned my friend debbie here before. i worked with her at the coffee shop, and she is one of the sweetest, most genuine people i know. when she came to me with a project a while ago, i was more than happy to create something special for her!

debbie bought some vintage flour and grain sacks after seeing this pillow on the pink pig antiques blog:

she supplied me with three vintage sacks, pillow forms, and striped "ticking" fabric in blue and red. the rest was up to me! it took me a while to complete this project, but when i finally buckled down, this is what i came up with: 

here's a little bit of the journey from start to finish: 

i cut open the grain sack, ironed it, and cut it to fit the size of the front of the pillow.

for this pillow case, i trimmed it with red stripes and sewed the pieces to the front.

for this one, i mixed it up a little and used both red and blue stripes for the trim. i also added a small straight "ruffle" around the outside edge, made from excess pieces of the pillsbury grain sack.

and here are the finished products (click on any of the pictures to see a larger version!) :

red trim and a blue piping style edge:

(this pillow case has a red stripe back.) 

my favorite vintage sack! blue stripe trim and a 2" red stripe ruffle:

(this pillow case has a blue stripe back.)

the mix-and-match red & blue stripe trim with a straight "ruffle" made of the pillsbury vintage sack:

(this pillow case has a blue stripe back.)

three peas in a pod:

one more close-up:

all of these pillow cases have velcro closures on the back, so they are completely removable and washable. i like to keep things practical, so going with the removable cases seemed like the best option! 

these creations reminded me how much i love to sew. i spend a lot of time hand sewing, gluing, and designing, but i especially love to design and assemble using my sewing machine. i am looking forward to more projects like this in the future!