Make it Modern Pillows – October 2024 Tutorial

It’s Jamie again from Sew Brainy Designs! It’s year 3 of my Make it Modern Pillows series! I’m so excited and I have some fun designs in store for this year! In case you missed 2022 or 2023 pillow fun, you can click the link below. Last year we started a fun Facebook Group so we can all sew along together!

September’s block played with different sized rectangles.

October’s block has a bunch of arrows in different directions that have an improv vibe.

You can’t ever go wrong with blues and greens!

Scraps can work great here too!

So many crisp diagonal lines!

I did a 1/2″ grid quilting with Aurifil 50wt. white thread for this fantastic texture!

This month’s pillow features Riley Blake’s Shades basics line. The colors I used were Sweet Mint, Mermaid’s Tail, Songbird, Lettuce, Aqua, Coastal Blue, Celestial, Alpine, and Green.

So many good colors! And lots of new ones just added!

Now let’s make a pillow!

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OCTOBER 2024 Pillow Tutorial

Pattern Notes

• Please read through all instructions before beginning.
• Seam allowances are 1/4″ unless specified.
• Press all seams open (or in preferred direction).
• To avoid confusion, there is no FABRIC I.
• RST = Right Sides Together

Material Requirements

For the block (pillow top):

This pattern uses (1) BACKGROUND fabric [FABRIC A] and (9) ACCENT fabrics [FABRICS B-K]. Below are the requirements to make ONE 18″ block.

For the pillow body:

• (1) 22-24″ square piece of muslin or other fabric (for quilting the top)
• (1) 22-24″ square piece of batting (for quilting the top)
• (2) 13½” × 18½” pieces of backing fabric (for the pillow envelope)
• (1) 18″-20″ pillow form (my favorite one to use is the FJÄDRAR from IKEA!). I always use a pillow form that is one size larger than my pillow case to make sure it’s extra full.

Cutting Directions

From BACKGROUND FABRIC A, cut:

• (18) 4″ square [A1]

From ACCENT FABRICS B-K, cut:

• (2) 4″ square [B1/C1/D1/E1/F1/G1/H1/J1/K1]

Piecing Directions

1. Using your preferred marking tool, prepare all (18) A1 squares by marking a diagonal line on the wrong side from one corner to the opposite corner.

2. Pair (1) A1 and (1) B1 square RST to create HSTs using the two at a time method. Stitch a seam 1/4″ away from the center line on each side. Cut along the diagonal line to yield (2) HSTs. Press the seams open and trim to 3½″ square.

3. Repeat STEP 2 with the remaining (17) B1-K1 squares to yield a total of (4) HSTs per color.

4. Lay out (4) HSTs of the same color in a 2×2 grid as shown below. Sew the (2) HSTs in each column together and press the seams.

5. Sew the (2) columns together and press the seam. This is the ARROW BLOCK.

6. Repeat STEP 5 to create the remaining (8) arrow blocks with the other HSTs.

7. Lay out all 9 ARROW BLOCKS in a 3×3 grid as shown below. Sew the THREE blocks in each row together and press the seams.

8. Sew the THREE rows together and press the seams.

9. Your pillow top is now complete!

10. Layer the completed block on top of the 22-24″ batting and muslin squares and quilt the pillow top as desired. When you are done, trim the block to 18½”.

Note – if you add dense quilting, your top may shrink a bit in size. Just trim it to the largest square that you can. You can trim the width of envelope backing fabric a bit in the next step if needed in order to match your actual top size.

11. Create a finished edge on the long side of each of the (2) 13½″ × 18½” pieces of envelope backing by folding 1/2″ of fabric over the wrong side TWICE. Stitch a seam near the edge to secure it.

12. With the square top facing up, layer the envelope pieces RST on top of it as shown below and sew a 3/8″ seam around the edge of the pillow top.

13. Trim the edges of the corners a bit to reduce bulk. Turn the pillow case inside out and insert your pillow form. Your pillow is now done! Enjoy your fun modern make!

I can’t wait to see all the beautiful pillows everyone makes! They can be very addicting! Be sure to share them on social media! #makeitmodernpillows #iloverileyblake #sewbrainydesigns.

If you check out my blog, I have some more color mockups and some freebie coloring pages you can download. Plus a sneak peek of a companion quilt pattern for this block that’s coming soon!

I’ll see you in November with a fun plaid and Dainty Daisy! Don’t forget to join us in the Facebook Group!

Until later, happy quilting!

Jamie