Thrifty Thursday Tablecloth Porch Pillows

Happy September! As I shared on Monday, I am working on fall decor for my front porch. Check out the Make it Monday post below to see the new front door, fall "wreathes" I made.  Here is what my porch looked like for summer. You can read all about it HERE.

I am not ready for pumpkins so I am decorating with an early fall theme, yellows and browns and oranges with sunflowers. I went on the the thrift store hut for either yellow/ gold pillows, pillow covers, or fabric to replace these fun red pillows. I found a goldish yellow tablecloth at the senior citizen center thrift store (they have the best prices and linens!) for $1.50.

After I washed it and saw that it had no stains, I reconsidered cutting it up. It is long and work perfectly for a long table that I use for outdoor parties. But, after a week of scouring the thrift shops, I couldn't find anything I liked better and since I only entertain large groups once or twice a summer, I decided to use it to make pillow covers.

Keep reading to see how I made these pillows and to see more of my porch decor.

I decided to cut the fabric on the edge to include some of the darker inside rectangle on the table cloth and some of the lighter edge. I could have cut just the inside rectangle and centered the pattern more, but I liked the casual look of the edge cut. For two pillows I cut two 22" squares and two 22" x 28" rectangles. I then cut the rectangles in half and folded one raw edge over on each a sewed a finished hem. 

Pin the pillows right side together, overlapping the rectangles to make an opening on the back of the pillow cover to insert the pillow form in. I am reusing the same pillow forms that were in the red, summer pillows. that way I only have to store pillow covers.

Sew the pillow form, flip, and stuff with the pillow form. That is it!

I like the fabric pattern and the medallions that look sunflower like. The pillows are comfy and weather well on my covered porch. I replaced the wood chair that I had in the opposite corner from the green, metal chair with a bench that I painted black. I wouldn't say it is a super comfy spot to sit for an hour and read like the green chair is, but it is a great place to sit and have a brief conversation or to sit and take off shoes. I was going to paint it green, but since it sits next to my green wagon, I chose black. I added the extra tablecloth piece to add a little more of the gold color. I think I might make a lap blanket out of it for the porch.

I turned the painting I had created for my summer porch over and painted sunflowers. I like using the same painting because it means I get double use out of one item. I painted this quickly (took about 30 minutes) and messy and casually. It really helps to contribute to the early fall feel and adds a touch of art to the outdoors. 

I hope to share the rest of the fall porch makeover tomorrow. Remember that thrift stores are a great place to find linens--sheets, curtains, etc., all that can be used as fabric for other projects.