I’ve been asked to make a travel neck sleeping pillow from the beautiful Cornelia range. It’s probably a good job I am making this as I have a habit of falling asleep in the car. My husband jokes that we can’t go further than 10 minutes before I am asleep. This will make it much more comfortable.
As always start by gathering your supplies:
Fabric: Cornelia White
Template
Cutting mat
Rotary cutter or scissors
Marking device
Sewing machine and thread
Toy stuffing
The first thing is to make your template. The one I have created it is based on an inflatable travel pillow, but I have altered it a little to make the back thicker and can increase the length of the sides. Once you are happy with your template you can use this to make your pillow.
I wanted to make this a patch work pillow, so I have made squares that are 4”x4” using the rotary cutter so the edges are sharp. This allows for a seam allowance of ¼”. You should end up with a pile of squares:
You can now piece together your patchwork. Make sure that when it is all laid out it covers the whole of your template and overlaps all the edges. If it doesn’t overlap the edges you will have no allowance when sewing the front and back together.
Now you have decided on your pattern it is time to start sewing. Sew two squares together, right sides facing, at a time with ¼” seam allowance and gradually build your piece up. I found it worked best to make 5 rows with 5 squares per row. Make each row sewing 5 squares together with a ¼ inch seam allowance. Once a row has been completed, press the seam flat. With 5 rows complete you can then sew one row to another in the same way you have been sewing squares together.
Line up your seams, use pins or clips to hold in place and sew with a ¼ inch seam allowance. Once complete, press your seams flat. You will need to repeat this process twice in total, so you have two sides for your neck pillow. Place the two pieces so the right sides are facing each other and ensure it fits the template. Now you can draw round your template and cut out your pieces, so you end up with this (I’ve used clips to hold the two pieces together so I could cut it out as one unit but you may be more comfortable cutting it out as two separate pieces and then clipping it right sides together):
Now it is cut out, you can sew it together. Ensure you leave a gap to be able to turn it the right way around and stuff it. I left a gap at the top slightly bigger than one square in length. Once the edges have been sewn turn your piece, so it is the right way around.
Now it is time to get stuffing. You will want it fairly firm to be able to give good support so don’t be scared of packing the stuffing in; you can always check as you go along whether it is right for you or not. Once you have it how you desire, you can sew the opening closed. This can either be done by top stitching on your machine or hand stitched.
With the top now closed, you have yourself a neck cushion ready for any long (or short) journeys. Provided no one else in the family tries to steal it from you!!
This blog post was made by Helen Bowes for the Craft Cotton Company 2020.