How to Put the Ends on a Bolster Pillow

By making your own pillows, you can match them to the colors and style in your home.

A bolster pillow is a long, cylindrical pillow that can be used to add interest to your home decor. Making one yourself is relatively easy. The trickiest part is sewing on the round end pieces, but once you get the hang of it it's no harder than sewing a normal square pillow. Follow these steps and you'll be able to put the ends on your handmade bolster pillow in no time.

Things You'll Need

• Sewing machine
• Straight pins
• Decorative trim

Instructions

1. Determine the size of your pillow's end pieces. If you're going to be stuffing your pillow with bolster pillow foam that has come in a set size, just place the end of the foam on the wrong side of your fabric and trace around it, then draw another circle about a half-inch outside of the one you traced. The outer circle will serve as your cutting line and the inner circle will be the stitching line.

2. Cut out the fabric circles, using the outer lines as a guide. You will want to use scissors that are as sharp as possible to prevent snagging or fraying of the fabric as you cut. If you sew frequently, it's a good idea to invest in a pair of scissors that you will use only for cutting fabric, because using them for cutting paper and other things can dull the blades quickly.

3. Decide whether you want to add piping, fringe or any other decorative trim to the edges of your end pieces. If you do, measure the circumference of your fabric circles and then add one inch to determine the length of trim you will need. Cut out two separate trim pieces, one for each end. Pin the trim to the edges of the right side of the fabric, with the decorative edges of the trim pointing toward the center of the circle, and sew them into place. Make sure that the portion of the trim meant to appear on the outside of the pillow is just inside the stitching line you drew previously.

4. Pin the end pieces to the large body piece of the pillow casing with the right sides of the fabric facing each other. Stitch them together with your sewing machine, being mindful of the seam allowance.

5. Turn the pillow casing right side out and check to make sure the trim looks right and that it hasn't accidentally been sewn up inside the seam. If you do notice any mistakes, just use a seam ripper or small pair of very sharp scissors to clip the seam and unravel it in the affected area, then fix the problem and sew it up again.

References

• Upholster.com: How to Make a Round Bolster Cushion
• Curbly: Make a Beefy Bolster Pillow from Old Towels

Resources

• Read this Article in Spanish