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Vintage scarf cushions

Sumptuous new cushions update a room instantly and are a great way to add a flash of colour or pattern. Make them yourself and you have the perfect use for those old scarves that you haven't looked at in years

Vintage-scarf cushions - using designer scarves if possible - are an easy way to landing a seriously chic designer punch in your living room. When choosing scarves to make your cushion covers from, don't be afraid of mismatching fabrics, just keep an eye out for patterns that sit well together, and an open mind about colour schemes. You'll be limited by whatever materials you have, but bear in mind that unexpected combinations often look fabulously fresh. Oh, and by the way, according to 1970s' Women's Institute books, making a cushion is 'well within the scope of the average needlewoman'. So there you are.

You will need

1. 2 same-sized silk scarves that match or clash well (mine were 72cm square; if you cannot find two scarves that match, cut a square of fabric the same size as the scarf you want to use and sew a zigzag stitch around the perimeter to prevent it from fraying)
2. Lightweight Vilene interfacing to back both scarves (this is a thin, fusible material that makes delicate cloth more durable)
3. Pins
4. Needle
5. Sewing machine, if you have one
6. Matching thread
7. Matching plastic zipper, 10cm shorter than the edge of the cushion
8. Cushion pad (down filling is nicest, unless you're allergic to feathers). This should be the same size as your scarves, even though the seam allowance will render the cover slightly smaller when finished. As with the cushion on page 26, making the cover a tad smaller than the cushion is what makes the finished thing look puffy.
9. Coloured pencil or tailor's chalk
10. Scissors

Method
Cut a piece of Vilene the same size as each scarf and iron to the wrong side of each scarf, using a LOW temperature. (1)

Remember, your scarves are silk and you don't want to burn them with a cotton setting. When you are ironing, rather than gliding the iron across the fabric, as you would usually, just gently press it down on a section, then lift and press it on the next bit. Silk tends to move around a lot, so this method will prevent the shape from skewing from a square to a diamond.

Place the right sides of the scarves together. The Vilene will be showing on the outside. You'll be glad you used Vilene, as your vintage prints won't slip around here. Pin together about 5cm of one side of the cushion cover from both corners, 1.5cm in from the edge of the fabric. This will be the back seam of the cushion cover into which you will insert your zip. (2)

To insert your zip into this seam, sew 5cm of the back seam of the cushion cover from each corner, removing the pins as you go. As you've only sewn 5cm at each end of this seam, you'll be left with a big hole in centre of the back seam, which is where the zip will go.

Open the material out in front of you, with the wrong side facing up. Iron the two 5cm seams open, and press back the seam allowance on either side of the hole. Flip the fabric over to the right side and pin your zip into the hole, ensuring the ironed edges meet at the centre when the zip is closed.

Undo the zip and sew all the way around it, removing pins as you go. Sew as near to the zip teeth as you can and you'll get a neater finish. If you are using a sewing machine, use the zipper foot, as this will enable you to get as close to the teeth of the zip as possible. Now the zip is in place, the rest is a doddle. Turn the material wrong side out and pin then sew around the remaining three sides, 1.5cm in from the edge. You can draw a line with a coloured pencil or chalk for a guide, which is a good idea if you're sewing by hand. Sew a few extra stitches at the start and end of your seams to secure them and, if you're hand-sewing, tie a knot in your thread as well.

Snip away the excess fabric diagonally at each corner and iron all your seams open. (3) This makes the cushion neat on the outside. If you don't do this, you'll find that the seams will dip inwards instead of lying flat.

Turn the cushion right side out (by pulling it through the zipper hole), then squash your cushion pad through the hole. Hold the pad tight so that it doesn't stretch the seams (the pad is bigger than the cover, remember).

Now you know what you're doing, zip it up, pat yourself on the back, and work out how many more you need, bearing in mind everyone and the cat will want to claim one for their own.

More crafts by Danielle Proud

Excerpted from House Proud by Danielle Proud, priced £16.99, published by Bloomsbury.

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