Cake Rock Beach is Here! PLUS Joelle’s Framed Botanical Pillow | Purl Soho

Our very first line of fabric, Cake Rock Beach, has arrived!  We first told you about our collection in October 2007, so we’re very happy to finally make it available to you!  Above is the “Earth” palette. Cake Rock Beach also has four other palettes, Leaf, Water, Fire and Coral which you can see below.

Cake Rock Beach is Here! PLUS Joelle’s Framed Botanical Pillow | Purl Soho

Leaf

 

Cake Rock Beach is Here! PLUS Joelle’s Framed Botanical Pillow | Purl Soho

Water

 

Cake Rock Beach is Here! PLUS Joelle’s Framed Botanical Pillow | Purl Soho

Fire

 

Cake Rock Beach is Here! PLUS Joelle’s Framed Botanical Pillow | Purl Soho

Coral

Joelle’s Framed Botanical Pillows

Cake Rock Beach is Here! PLUS Joelle’s Framed Botanical Pillow | Purl Soho

Over the years I’ve collected many cherished decorative objects from the late 19th century (including the Wedgwood pitcher shown below).  When I created Cake Rock Beach, I was very excited by the prospect of including some of my own designs in the mix of botanically inspired objects around my home.

Cake Rock Beach is Here! PLUS Joelle’s Framed Botanical Pillow | Purl Soho

I’ve always loved how easy it is to refresh the decor of your home by adding a few toss pillows to the couch or favorite armchair, so as soon as Cake Rock Beach arrived I dashed home to create these simple and quick pillows. –Joelle

Cake Rock Beach is Here! PLUS Joelle’s Framed Botanical Pillow | Purl Soho

The Materials

  • 1-yard Flora print from Cake Rock Beach (I used “Earth Flora” above). This print repeats every 28-inches along the length, and goes across the entire 45-inch width of the fabric.  If you get 1-yard of this print you will have enough to cut out at least one of each of the botanical images with a 3/4-inch border.
  • 1/4-yard of any solid fabric per pillow for the frame around the botanical image. I used “Obsidian” from our soon to arrive line of irridescent solid cottons called “Net of Jewels” (Net of Jewels will arrive in early April).  If your pillows are wider than 18-inches square, you will need 1/2-yard per pillow.
  • 3/4-yard of fabric will cover the back of at least 2 pillows up to 20-inches square. For 16-inch square or smaller pillows, 1/2-yard will be enough for 2 pillows.  I used “Earth Honeycomb” for the back of my pillows.
  • Pre-made pillow forms.  I always get mine from Artisiana Works. For the two pillows pictured above I used one 12-inch x 16-inch rectangle and one 18-inch square pillow.
  • Rotary Cutter
  • Cutting Mat
  • 24.5-inch x 6.5-inch cutting ruler, plus one smaller ruler for squaring up your fabrics.
  • Cotton thread to match Frame fabric (I used color #3020).

The Pattern 

Prepare Fabric

Wash, dry and press all fabrics.

Cut Fabric

All fabrics are cut with a rotary cutter and ruler.  For help with this, check out our Rotary Cutter Tutorial.

Botanical Print:
Use your rotary cutter and 24.5-inch x 6.5-inch cutting ruler to cut your favorite images from the cloth with at least a 3/4-inch border of the background around each image.

Frame Fabric:
Fold fabric selvage to selvage. Square-up your fabric and cut two 4-inch wide strips per pillow.  Trim selvages.

Create Pillow

  • Measure the long sides of the cut out botanical image. Cut two lengths from the 4-inch wide Frame fabric strips to match this measurement. Attach frame strips along each of the long sides of the botanical print with a 1/4-inch seam allowance, press seams toward Frame fabric.
  • Measure the two remaining sides of the botanical print (including the Frame fabric). Cut two lengths from your remaining 4-inch wide strips to match this measurement. Attach frame strips along each of the remaining sides with a 1/4-inch seam allowance. Press seams toward frame fabric. Trim loose threads.
  • Fold pillow front in half lengthwise and press, then widthwise and press to find the center of your design. Measure your pillow from seam to seam to find its exact dimensions. Using the press lines as a guide to keep your design centered, cut pillow front down to this size, plus one extra inch. (For instance, if your pillow measures 16-inches square, you will cut your pillow front to 17-inches square.)
  • Cut backing fabric to the same size.
  • Sew front of pillow to backing fabric, right sides together with a 1/4-inch seam allowance all the way around, leaving an opening on one side large enough to squeeze the pillow form through.
  • Turn right-side out and press flat.
  • Insert pillow.
  • Finish the opening by hand using a slip stitch (you can find info on doing a slip stich here).
  • Stand back and admire your pretty Framed Botanical Pillow!

 

Update 2024: You can explore our current collection of beautiful fabrics and supplies on our page of Sewing Tools + Notions!