A handmade cottage: How to make a simple cushion

Our masterpiece in Poppy's cosy corner!

Cushions, cushions and more cushions please! We love cushions. They're cosy, functional and can completely change the look of a room, whether you're changing to suit the season or simply adding a splash of colour. Cushions can be expensive, yet they are SO EASY to make! Once you've chosen your pretty fabric and made your first cushion, you'll never buy off the shelf again, I bet you large sums of cake.

So when my lovely friend and bloggy pal Poppy asked if I'd help her to make a cushion I jumped at the chance. If you don't already know Poppy allow me to introduce you. Poppy is the Notting hill-based lifestyle blogger of poppyloves.co,uk. She writes about all the gorgeous little cafes, boutiques and hidden gems she finds on her travels around London. She also loves a bit of a craft, so today Poppy and I are going to show you how to make a simple but beautiful cushion in 10 easy steps! Now don't be put off by measurements. This patterns is easy to follow and the cushion consists of just three pieces.

All you need:

* Lovely fabric!
* Three buttons (ours are Cath Kidston)
* Ribbon for button loops
* The pillow
* Newspaper.

Then make a cuppa and let the fun begin!

Before we cut into fabric make a template on Newspaper first,
You can then use it again and again.

1. Cut out the following pieces from your newspaper …

Front of cushion 12.5" x 12.5"

Back panel 12.5" x 9"

These measurements are for a 12 x 12 inch pillow but you can easily adjust them for the size of your pillow. Simply Add 1.5cm to each side for your seam allowance (a seam allowance is the area between where you'll be stitching and the raw edge of the fabric.)

Ralphy desperately wants to enter the GB sewing bee ...

2. Pin the newspaper pieces to your fabric. Once your Jack Russell has been lured of them with treats.

"Measure twice, cut once" my dad always says, I hate it when he's right!

3. Then cut them out.

Be careful not to burn yourself, or your friend ... sorry Poppy!

4. Take a back piece, fold over one of the long sides, by 1.5cm and iron flat.

It's easy to be put off making things by patterns and measurements, but don't
let it stop you. Quite often I've just tried to figure things out for myself.

5. Sew along that seam, approx 1cm from the edge. Next, take the other back piece ... fold over one of the long sides by 1.5cm and iron, but don't sew yet!

We're using ribbon but you could also use elastic, cord or make the loops
from your fabric.

6. Cut three pieces of ribbon. Decide how long you want your loops and pin them in place, starting in the centre. Once you're happy sew along the edge to keep them all in place.

7. Now stop everything you're doing and go and make a pot of tea, put your feet up for 10 minutes and marvel at how clever you are while stuffing large spoonfuls of white chocolate and blueberry cake into your mouth (Thank you South street pantry!) Ok back to work ....

If it wasn't for dog walks I would have a much bigger bum
due to South street pantry cakes.

Make sure all right side are facing inwards!

8. Almost there! Now lay your large front piece on the table with the RIGHT side facing up. Next, lay the back piece with the loops on top - with the right side facing DOWN and seam edges towards middle. Then lay the last back piece on right side down and seam towards the middle. Pin around each edge to hold in place.

GB sewing bee next year Poppy??

9. Then sew around each edge. Poppy's really getting the hang of it now ... you can't see it but there was smoke coming from that machine!

Buttons and fabric don't always have to match ...
mis-matched can often be far more characterful!

10. Finally turn the cushion the right way round and insert your cushion. Using a pin, mark where you want your buttons to go. Make sure the ribbons are taut otherwise they'll keep undoing.

TADA!!

Jodie May and Poppy's simple but beautiful cushion. To find out where Poppy bought her fabric, and to see more piccies from our lovely day together head over to poppyloves.co.uk.