This week I’m pulling out the Halloween decor and I’m adding some new pieces: Cheap glitter candelabras from the Target dollar section (couldn’t resist). And….bat pillows! They’re easy to make in cozy and bright fleece fabrics.
These were the other part of my cousin Adrian’s wedding gift. Two little throw pillows in contrasting colors:
They’re perfect for the couch, or on the bed.
And they fit perfectly with the rest of our Halloween house decor HERE, using these 5 tutorials:
Here’s what you do…
1. You can use any fabric for these pillows but fleece is soft and available in a wide spectrum of colors. So pick a Halloween color that strikes your eye, along with a few felt colors for the bats–I used hot pink, dark purple, and black.
2. Cut two identical squares of fabric. My pillows are 15×15 inches and 12×12 inches. If you have store-bought pillow inserts, cut the squares to fit those pillows. Pay attention to the nap of your fabric–this refers to the direction of pile on the fabric. It may not seem obvious but fleece looks slightly different on each side. Make sure you use the same side of the fabric for the pillow front and back.
3. Cut out 2-3 bats in various felt colors. I used the same Bat template from the Paper Bats tutorial from last year. Or just type “bat template” into google, hit “images” and you’ll find all sorts of options.
4. Pin the bats in place on your pillow top–make sure you only pin them to the top layer!
5. Sew the felt bats to the front of the pillow.
6. With Right sides of the fabric together, place the pillow back on top and pin it in place.
7. Leave an opening on one side, for stuffing the pillow.
8. Sew from one end of the opening, all the way around the pillow to the other end of the opening.
9. Clip the corners of the pillow to reduce bulky fabric.
10. Turn the pillow right-side-out.
11. Insert your pillow…..OR….stuff it with standard pillow stuffing
12. Carefully tuck the edges under and pin the opening closed.
13. Sew the opening closed on your machine (using the strength of both hands)….OR…sew the opening closed by hand with needle and thread.
And you’re done!
For smaller bat pillows, trim your bats around the edges (to make them smaller) and cut the pillow squares 12×12 inches.
Happy Halloween!
