A great fabric find & six "new" pillows

My husband and I recently inherited some new furniture from his grandmother. It was a huge blessing because neither of us wanted to fork out the $1500+ for new couches downstairs. (We learned the hard way that, at least in our house, furniture is for people only. Our two puppies, Bentley and Bruce are part of the family, but shed obscene amounts!) Some savvy online shopping on my part and $117 brought us some slipcovers that I actually like. The problem was the pillows, like the couches were a la 1980. 

Recovering the pillows was completely necessary. I headed to Jo-Ann's to check out fabric, and quite honestly, I hit the jackpot! Certain clearance home decor fabrics were marked down to half off. Thus, I got six yards of sweet fabric for...$18! Score!

I will probably be returning to see if there's any other fabric I can't live without. In the mean time, here's how I recovered our pillows. Yes, this is an INCREDIBLY easy DIY, and yes, most of you could do this without my post, but I thought it would be a good one to start off this blog.


Super Easy Steps to Recover Pillows


1. Find some awesome fabric that will complement whatever fabric your pillows will sit on. I chose this:

2.Measure the pillow you want to cover. Be sure to get measurements for the length of all four sides. (Some pillows seem square but are actually rectangular.) Add 1/4-1/2 inch to your measurement for your seam. In my opinion, the better seamstress you are the less material you need. I'm still working on honing my sewing abilities, so I added 1/2 inch--1 inch total.


3. Mark your material and cut. Be sure to measure twice! 


4. Pin three sides of your cut fabric with the right sides facing each other.

5. Sew the three pinned sides; cut off extra material--be sure you DON'T cut the seam!

6. Invert the cover--remember to push the corners out--and cover the pillow.

7. After the pillow is placed in the cover, fold in the fabric on the open side and pin. 

8. Sew the last side shut. This step can be difficult depending on the side of the pillow. Go slowly and be careful to keep your fingers out of the way of the needle.

And now, for our final product...before and after.

The pillows find their home on the "new" love seat and sofa!

I also did these for our other room. They're more bohemian that I usually chose, but I think my tastes might be evolving. 

Thanks for checking out my first post here at Domestic Diversions! 

A blog is born...

All I wanted for Christmas this year was a new camera. Fortunately, I'm married to a wonderful man who surprised me with just that! Many factors motivated my desire for this new camera, several include: a new nephew on the way, my insatiable urge to document everything with pictures, my desire to appease the long-lost chief photographer of my high school's newspaper deep within me, and the fact that my phone was taking better pictures than my current camera...seriously. All of these were reasons for wanting the wonderfulness of a new Nikon, but I've also been dying to start a blog. 


Yes, I have a blog about my own life, and if you're one of my close family or friends, I know you read it faithfully, but I wanted a different kind of blog. I wanted a blog that others would want to follow...I'm hoping that Domestic Diversions is it. 


Since I was young, I've loved all things domestic. As a child, my library trips not only brought home the latest Babysitter's Club, but they also yielded kids cookbooks. My parents' basement is a testament to my love of creating. It contains potholders, ornaments, vases, and cross-stich samplers. In college, my love for all things crafty continued. I was introduced to Mod Podge and crocheting. My obsession grew. 


Today, I'm married with a home of my own, and my love for all things domestic has taken on new dimensions. My desire to create now expresses my love for those around me. Whether it's a soft blanket for my soon-to-be-here nephew, Finn; a batch of cookies for my brother, Randy; or a new bed for my beloved puppies, Bentley and Bruce; creating things that are homemade is my passion and my distraction.


This blog is a documentation of my projects, from recipes and crafts to decorations and parties, welcome to my Domestic Diversions. 

Bett