Dish Cloth Pillow Cover

This was a totally fun craft, with limitless possibilities.  I found some dish cloths I really liked at Marshall's - 2 for $3.99 - and brought them home with the intent of using them in the kitchen.  Once I washed them, I decided to keep one for the kitchen and then do something a little more creative with the other one...make it into a pillow cover!

Here is what you'll need to make a dish cloth pillow cover:

1) A dish cloth - I selected one with a stripe, which was sort of bold of me because a stripe isn't very forgiving when it comes to matching up two sides.  A solid color or one with a floating pattern would be a bit easier, just in case you can't get the seams to match up perfectly.

2) A pillow form that fits inside the dish cloth.  I found a pillow I had that I wasn't using and chose to use the pillow form inside of that so I wouldn't have to buy a new one...the thriftiest option for sure. :)  In order to make sure it would be a nice fit, I folded the dish cloth in half and made sure that it covered the pillow completely.  Make sure you wash and dry the dish cloth first, because they often shrink up a bit.

3) A zipper that matches your dish cloth.  I bought mine at JoAnn's and it cost less than $2 - a very pleasant surprise!  It's amazing how many different colors of zippers there are, so I'm certain you'll find one to match the fabric of your cloth.  If you like, be bold and choose a cool accent color for the zipper instead of the background color of your dish cloth.

4) A spool of sewing thread that matches your dish cloth.

5) A sewing machine...yes, I always admit that I'm not much of a sewer.  However, I have a sweet friend who is a wonderful seamstress - she majored in clothing design - and she was more than happy to let me use her machine.  She even patiently helped me sew the pillow cover!  A true saint...

Now that you have all your materials, the execution part is not all that complicated.

Instructions:

1) Fold the dish cloth in half (hamburger style - that means short side to short side) inside out.  This allows you to work on the inside, so the seams don't show on the outside of the pillow cover.  Folding it over also gives you one finished side that you don't have to sew - YES!

2) Pin two unfinished sides so the seams match up well.  Keep the zipper side open.   Pinning will help you guide the dish cloth through the machine (preferably, with the help of a footer) and it will keep your seams in line.

3) Sew a plain straight stitch along the two pinned sides.  Feed the cloth through and remove pins as you approach them with the needle.  When you get to a corner, raise the needle and rotate the dish cloth to sew the next side.

4) For the zipper side (this was one of the short sides of my pillow cover), my friend sewed it because she said that zippers can be a bit tricky.  It's essential that both sides of the zipper line up perfectly so it zips up well.  Since many of you probably own a machine and are far more talented at this than I am, I won't go on about the zipper side.  I'd just say, take your time and find a friend or family member who can help you out with this side if it seems daunting to you.

5) Once the zipper is in, you can put the sewing machine away!  Take a needle and thread and tuck the zipper tails (extra cloth around the zipper) in and sew them down, so they don't stick out of the finished pillow cover.

6) Turn your finished pillow cover right-side out, then stuff your pillow inside.  That's it!

Quick and easy and affordable.  And, you won't find another one like it in a store!  Take a gander at my finished dish cloth pillow...

Far from perfect...but it was only $5 and I'm sure future pillow covers I make will look even better.  Have fun and let me know how your dish cloth pillow looks.  -Kristen