Give Mom a pillow duo that will add an instant splash of spring to her favorite sofa, chair or bed. Our side-by-side design sets off the the pretty Parisville prints with bold designer linen colors. And we love these double-ruffle ribbons from The Ribbon Retreat, which remind us a bit of lasagna. We used them as a lovely embellishment that not only ties into ruffly bow accents, it also ties the two pillows together into a perfect pair.

Give Mom a pillow duo that will add an instant splash of spring to her favorite sofa, chair or bed. Our side-by-side design sets off the the pretty Parisville prints with bold designer linen colors. And we love these double-ruffle ribbons from The Ribbon Retreat, which remind us a bit of lasagna. We used them as a lovely embellishment that not only ties into ruffly bow accents, it also ties the two pillows together into a perfect pair.

We chose Tula Pink’s Parisville for all our Happy Mother’s Day print fabric with coordinating Designer Linen Solids. Our thanks to our friends at Free Spirit for providing all this wonderful fabric. Tula’s Parisville came out late last year, but can still be found at many retail and online outlets, such as Fat Quarter Shop, Fabric.com and Hawthorne Threads. Thanks as well to everyone at The Ribbon Retreat for giving us the cool specialty ribbon. All the beautiful ribbons we used are available online now directly from The Ribbon Retreat in the colors we selected as well as many, many more.

Sewing Tools You Need

• Any Sewing Machine (we recommend the Janome MS5027LE Pink Ribbon)
• ¼ inch Seam Foot (optional)

Fabric and Other Supplies

Large Pillow

• ½ yard of 44-45″ wide fabric for the the front print panel, back print panel and back facing: we used Parisville Topiary in Sky by Tula Pink for Free Spirit Fabrics
• ½ yard of 44-45″ wide fabric for front solid panel and back solid panel: we used Free Spirit’s Designer Linen Solids in Turquoise
• 2½ yards of 7/8″ ribbon: we used Double Ruffle in Light Orchid from The Ribbon Retreat
• All purpose thread in colors to best match both fabric and ribbons: we used Lilac for both the fabric and the ribbons
• 16″x 16″ pillow form

Small Pillow

• ½ yard of 44-45″ wide fabric for the the front print panel and back print panel: we used Parisville French Lace in Sky by Tula Pink for Free Spirit Fabrics
• ½ yard of 44-45″ wide fabric for front solid panel and back solid panel: we used Free Spirit’s Designer Linen Solids in Burgundy
• 1¾ yards of 7/8″ ribbon: we used Double Ruffle in Light Orchid from The Ribbon Retreat
• All purpose thread in colors to best match both fabric and ribbons: we used Lilac for the ribbons and deep burgundy for the fabric
• 14″ x 14″ pillow form

Both Pillows

• See-through ruler
• Fabric pencil
• Seam gauge
• Iron and ironing board
• Scissors or rotary cutter and mat
• Straight pins

Getting Started

Large Pillow

1. From the fabric for the front print panel, back print panel and back facing (Parisville Topiary in Sky in our sample), fussy cut the following:
   TWO 10½” wide x 16″ high rectangles
   ONE 2½” x 16″ strip
2. From the fabric for the front solid panel and back solid panel (Turquoise Linen in our sample), cut the following:
   ONE 6½” wide x 16″ rectangle
   ONE 12″ wide x 16″ rectangle
3. Cut the ribbon into SIX 15″ lengths.

Small Pillow

1. From the fabric for the front print panel and back print panel (Parisville French Lace in Sky in our sample), fussy cut TWO 9½” wide x 14″ high rectangles
2. From the fabric for the front solid panel and back solid panel (Burgundy Linen in our sample), cut the following:
   ONE 5½” wide x 14″ rectangle
   ONE 11″ wide x 14″ rectangle
3. Cut the ribbon into TWO 16″ lengths and TWO 13″ lengths.

At Your Sewing Machine & Ironing Board

Large Pillow

1. Find your SIX 15″ lengths of ribbon. Make a tiny hem on one end of each length of ribbon.
   
2. Lay your front solid panel right side up on your work surface.
3. Place three ribbon lengths along the inside 16″ raw edge. If your ribbon has a definite right and wrong side, as ours did, the ribbon should be laid right side up.
4. Position the ribbons at: 4″ from the top, 8″ from the top and 12″ from the top, aligning the raw edge of the ribbon with the raw edge of the fabric.
5. Edgestitch each ribbon in place approximately ¼” from the raw edge of the fabric.
   
6. Lay the front print panel, right side down, on top of the solid/ribbon piece, sandwiching the ribbons between the two layers. Pin in place along the 16″ inside edge.
   
7. Using a ½” seam allowance, stitch together through all layers.
8. Press the seam allowance towards the print fabric.
9. Topstitch on the print fabric panel ¼” from the seam. I used my ¼ inch seam foot.
   
10. Press from the front, but do not press the ribbon or you’ll ruin the ruffles.
11. Set your finished front panel aside.
12. Find the 2½” x 16″ facing piece. Hem one 16″ raw edge, using a ¼” double turn hem.
    NOTE: If you are new to small hems, check out our tutorial How To Make A Simple Hem.
    
13. Lay your back print panel right side up on your work surface.
14. Place the remaining three ribbon lengths along the inside 16″ raw edge. As above, if your ribbon has a definite right and wrong side, as ours did, the ribbon should be laid right side up.
15. Position the ribbons to match the front panel at: 4″ from the top, 8″ from the top and 12″ from the top.
16. Edgestitch each ribbon in place approximately ¼” from the raw edge of the fabric.
17. Lay the hemmed facing strip, right side down, on top of the print/ribbon piece, sandwiching the ribbons between the two layers. Pin in place along the 16″ inside edge.
    
18. Using a ½” seam allowance, stitch together through all layers.
19. Fold the facing to the back. Your seam is now along the edge and the ribbons will pull out to the left.
20. Topstitch ¼” from the edge. Again, I used my ¼ inch seam foot. 
    
21. Press well, but don’t press the ribbons.
22. Find your back solid panel. Make a ¼” double turn hem along one 16″ side. Press well.
    
23. Overlap the back fabric panel on the back solid panel until it is exactly the same width as the front panel.
    
24. Edgestitch the two back panels together along the top and bottom at the overlap. This allows you to now treat the two pieces as one for the final assembly.
    
25. On both the front and the back panels, gently gather up the ends of the ribbons and pin them in the middle of the panels, out of the way of the seams.
26. Place the finished front and back right sides together and pin around all four sides.
    
27. Using a ½” seam allowance, stitch around all four sides, pivoting at all corners.
28. Clip all four corners.
29. Turn the pillow inside out through the back envelope opening. Use a blunt end tool, like a large knitting needle or a chopstick, to help push out the corners so they are as square as possible. Remove the pins holding the ribbons in place.
30. Insert the pillow form and fluff it out into the corners.
31. Wrap and tie the ribbons into three petite bows along the pillow’s edge.

Small Pillow

1. Find your TWO 16″and TWO 13″ lengths of ribbon. Make a tiny hem on one end of each length of ribbon.
2. Place your front solid panel and front print panel right sides together, aligning one 14″ side. Pin in place.
   
3. Stitch together, using a ½” seam allowance.
4. Press the seam allowance towards the print fabric.
5. Topstitch on the print fabric panel ¼” from the seam. I used my ¼ inch seam foot.
   
6. Press from the front.
7. Set your finished front panel aside.
8. Find your back solid panel and back print panel. Make a ¼” double turn hem along one 14″ side of each piece. Press well.
   
9. Overlap the back fabric panel on the back solid panel until it is exactly the same width as the front panel.
   
10. Edgestitch the two back panels together along the top and bottom at the overlap. This allows you to now treat the two pieces as one for the final assembly.
11. With the finished back panel right side up on your work surface, place the two short ribbon lengths along the outside raw edge of the solid panel and the two long ribbon lengths along the outside raw edge of the print panel. As above, if your ribbon has a definite right and wrong side, as ours did, the ribbon should be laid right side up, and the raw edges of the ribbon should be aligned with the raw edges of the fabric.
12. Position the ribbons at: 4″ from the top and 10″ from the top on both sides.
    
13. Edgestitch each ribbon in place approximately ¼” from the raw edge of the fabric.
14. Gently gather up the ends of the ribbons and pin them in the middle of the panel, out of the way of the seams.
15. Place the finished front and back right sides together and pin around all four sides.
16. Using a ½” seam allowance, stitch around all four sides, pivoting at all corners.
17. Clip all four corners.
18. Turn the pillow inside out through the back envelope opening. Use a blunt end tool, like a large knitting needle or a chopstick, to help push out the corners so they are as square as possible. Remove the pins holding the ribbons in place.
19. Insert the pillow form and fluff it out into the corners.
20. Wrap and tie the ribbons into two petite bows along the front pillow seam.

Project Design: Alicia Thommas
Sample Creation: Liz Johnson