Crochet pillows are the ideal project because you get to experiment with all of the different stitches, there’s no fussy shaping to worry about, and you finish up with a wonderfully cute, incredibly comfy pillow to show for it. It’s similar to swatching but with a much better payoff.
Read our tips before you go mad and start sewing like crazy to ensure your pillows are a dream come true.
Make Sensible Yarn Selections
Yes, colour is important, but the yarn’s texture and fibre content are. If this pillow is your go-to napping companion, choose something easy to wash (no, definitely get something that is washable!). Sprightly Acrylic Worsted is one of our favourite soft acrylics. Plus, look at the hues!
If your pillow is only for decoration, go ahead and get that cashmerino or silk blend yarn you’ve been eyeing.
Reduce the size of your hook
It’s worth experimenting with a hook that’s a half size or even a full size smaller than the yarn’s recommended size. So that your pillow shape doesn’t peek through, your crocheted fabric should be dense.
Do you see where this is going? Make a swatch to ensure that the fabric is dense enough and have a sense of the size you’ll be sewing. It’ll come in handy whenever you’re ready to start working on your actual project, we promise.
Make a Size Plan
You should probably know the size of your pillow form before you start crocheting a cover to go over it because you’re crocheting a cover to go over a pillow form. Make your cover just a hair smaller than the form you’re covering (about a 1/4-inch off each side) to keep your cushion from sagging.
Bring back that gauge swatch and perform a little math once you’ve decided on a size. If you’re making a pillow with one large piece for the front and another for the back, your starting chain should be long enough to cover the entire width of the pillow.
If you’re pursuing the patchwork approach, make sure you know how big your completed motifs will be so you can figure out how many to produce. A good granny square cover is one of our favorites, and there are so many wonderful themes to choose from.
Close the deal
Full Steam Ahead: Total Closure
You can finish your pillow cover in various ways, but one of the most crucial considerations is whether or not you’ll want to remove it for washing.
If the answer is no, the simplest option to finish your pillow is to sew the pillow cover straight to the pillow form. All you’ll need are front and back pieces that are the same size. On the Oasis Bobble Pillow above, we accomplished just that.
Envelope Style Partial Closure
If you’re worried about getting your pillow form out again, this method is ideal. Make your front piece longer than the rear (or just enough for a flap if you’re making one long piece and folding it in half). To attach the sides, sew along the edges, leaving a flap in the back.
To keep the flap in place, sew on a few buttons. Alternatively, like the Bobble & Fringe Pillow above, sew the flap’s sides into the side seams and leave the edge open.
Side Buttons for Partial Closure
Keep the sides open and use buttons to create a beautiful border. You may button up your cushion on either side, and you can play with the border AND the buttons to add even more style points.