I made decluttering, de-stashing and using what I have a soft theme for June at the beginning of the month. No hard goal, no smart objectives, just the thought of using up the supplies I have, remaking things I have. I did buy fabric this month, both new and second-hand, but I am also happy I used up some of my stash.
The only hard goal I made back in April was no more yarn buying until September. My yarn stash has been growing a bit too much for my liking and I want to use more of it before jumping to buying new yarn. But that’s a story for another day.
Today I want to talk about two projects I made this month with materials I already had at home.
First up was this tufted floor pillow. I’ve never tried tufting before, it’s not an easy, relaxing job, but the effect is quite nice. Even my partner was surprised by the result: “I always assumed you needed some kind of machine for making this kind of pillows.” A Sky Turtle machine, one that goes slow but reaches for the sky. So cheesy, right? But it’s summer! It’s ok to be a little cheesy.
To make this tufted floor pillow, I cut two squares of fabric and one long strip measuring four times the side of your square piece + a few cm as sewing allowance. I pivoted at the end of each side of the square. Once I sewed it all up, leaving a hole on one of the sides, it looked like a deflated box.
I then stuffed it with two pillows we stored but didn’t use any more, the polyfill from one other sofa cushion that was disintegrating and some more leftover stuffing from old projects. I hand stitched the opening close, and then move on to tufting.
Then, I made 9 points on both sides of the square and, using a big needle, passed the 4 ply thread though all the layers. This was a workout. I then tufted the borders of the borders where the square was attached to the long strip, and I was done.
This is very comfy and has created an extra reading nook, perfect for summer. I am also happy I was able to use some long stored fabric scraps for this project.
The second thing I made is a bag. I haven’t made myself a bag for years. I used Japanese cotton from Nunoya, my local Japanese Fabric store and a very old leather strap I bought maybe four years ago. I really like this bag and since it’s quite small, but big enough to carry a book, it will surely become my summer bag this year.
