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Tuesday, November 3, 2009

Goodwill Pillow Redo

I found this table cloth (it was square) at Goodwill a couple of weeks ago, and immediately knew that it perfectly matched my couches and had the orange that I have been wanting to switch to.  I stood and contemplated it for quite some time, because I felt that it was on the expensive side - $3.99 for second hand.  This is a whole different topic, but have any of you noticed that Goodwill has gotten really expensive lately?  I was looking last weekend for some jeans for my son and found them to be $20-$25 a pair!  I can get them cheaper and  brand new at Wal-mart!  I guess lesson learned, you need to be careful about even the second-hand stores, because they seem to be creeping up in price.  I personally equate them to going to a rummage sale, so tend not to do much shopping at second hand stores unless I really need something and it's the dead of winter!  I get much better prices at rummage sales, so try to stock up all summer for any winter needs.

Back to my tablecloth (sorry for the bunny chaser!) - I felt that when you divided it by 4 it was only a dollar per pillow because I have 4 pillows to redo.
Here are my very sorry couch pillows, that maybe I should just throw away instead of rehab them!  The left one is the the before and the right one is after I stuffed more stuffing into it!  These have taken a beating with my husband and four kids, and have turned flat and droopy.  I'm too cheap to part with them, so I decided to use the ends of my quilting projects (you know, all that batting that you need to cut off to make your quilt fit the batting!) to stuff them back to life.

Because I only had enough of the table cloth to cover one side of the pillows, I decided to use some material I had around the house to cover the back.  It's not my favorite, but it works and actually matches the ribbing on my couch!  I did take the fringe from around the outside of the tablecloth and used that downt he middle for decoration.  How I did that was first I cut the cloth into 4 pieces bigger than each pillow.  I then cut each quarter in half.  The half that didn't have the fringe on it, I hemmed one edge so I could make a pocket to put the pillow through (I am sorry to those of you with the "mistreatments" but this one had to be sewn to stand up to my kids!).  I then put the right sides together, making sure to overlap the fringed half over the hemmend piece.
Here are the results!  I included a photo of the back side too.  It even has a texture to it, but that is what I don't like.  My hands are so dry all the time that they get caught on the material all the time.  The only thing that I am going to have to change is that I need to hand stitch my pocket together, as with everyone laying on these, it is getting pushed open all the time.  I figured that I've never changed the zipper covers on the pillows before in six years, if I need to wash a case here or there, it won't take me long to take the stitches out and re-stitch them.

The moral of the story here is that if you are on a budget, start to look at things in a different way than they are intended.  You might have a curtain panel or two that can be used to cover a pillow, or even make an upholstered headboard with (see my headboard here.)  You may decide to use old door knobs for hooks or any numerous other ways to reuse what you already own.  Use a little creativity and have some fun saving money too!
Let me know what you think!  I'll be linking up to: 2nd Time Around - A Picture is Worth 1000 Words

7 comments:

  1. Hi!
    Great redo! Love the fact that you used the fringe too!

    And I TOTALLY agree with you regarding thrift store prices lately! I just spent an hour ranting to my poor husband about this very subject! It's like now that the econmony is so bad and people are heading to to thrift store out of need, they decide to jack the prices up. Grrrr!! I have seen a lot of things that I looked at and said, "$1.99? I just saw that a couple of months ago at the dollar store!" Okay, I better shut up because I will so take up all your comment space on a big honkin' rant! LOL

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  2. I totally agree with you and Dian about the prices at goodwill and the $ store stuff that is marked up above a dollar!!

    Sorry to hear you are having such a hard time finding a cabinet. Rats!

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  3. Such a nice job. I love how you reused the fringe, too. (I know what you mean, our Sal. Army has gotten $, GW, not so much. Thanks for sharing.
    @cheapchichome.

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  4. LOVE the pillow! Great make-over. We love seeing others look outside-the-box. We really enjoy re-purposing in our home. It makes it feel more like US! Thanks for a great post and inspiring words~ Deborah & Hubs

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  5. Oh they look so much better!! I totally get frustrated when consignment store prices are just as high as if I bought it new! Give me a break!! I've never heard of a rummage sale. Is that the same thing as a yard or garage sale? The pillow looks awesome and good idea recycling material!

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  6. Rummage sale must be a Midwest word, but yes, that's what we call yard or garage sales here.

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  7. Lovely pillow! Goodwill is the greatest.

    PS Yay for Sparta! I grew up in MI but went to school in South Central MN, so I went by Sparta everytime I went to and from school!

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I love to hear what you think! Thanks for your feedback!