Make it Modern Pillows – January 2025 Tutorial

It’s Jamie again from Sew Brainy Designs! It’s year 4 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! Check out my December pillow and read to the end of this post to enter our fun 2024 year end GIVEAWAY!!!

December’s block had flying geese that kinda looked like little modern trees.

January’s block has some fun squares that give a funky mid-century modern vibe.

This year I’m using low volumes for the background. I used Heart Attack by Minki Kim from the Hush Hush 4 line here.

These colors are so sweet together!

And of course the hearts are so cute!

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

This month’s pillow features Dapple Dot. The colors I used were Marmalade, Aqua, Sugar Pink, and Frosting.

Lots of pretty colors!

Now let’s make a pillow!

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JANUARY 2025 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).

Material Requirements

For the block (pillow top):

This pattern uses (1) BACKGROUND fabric [FABRIC A] and (4) ACCENT fabrics [FABRICS B-E]. 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:

• (4) 3″ squares [A1]
• (2) 1¾” × 18½” [A5]
• (2) 1¾” × 16″ [A4]
• (1) 1½” × 16″ [A3]
• (2) 1½” × 7¾” [A2]

From ACCENT FABRIC B, C, D, and E:

• (1) 4″ × 7¾” [B4/C4/D4/E4]
• (2) 3″ × 4″ [B2/C2/D2/E2]
• (2) 3″ × 1¾” [B1/C1/D1/E1]
• (1) 1¾” × 7¾” [B3/C3/D3/E3]

Piecing Directions

1. Lay out (1) A1, B1, B2, B3, and B4 as shown below. Sew the B2, A1, and B1 together into one row and press the seams.

2. Sew the B4 on the top of the B2/A1/B1 section. Press the seam.

3. Sew the B3 on the top of the B2/A1/B1 section. Press the seam. This is the SQUARE BLOCK.

4. Repeat STEPS 1-3 to create SQUARE BLOCKS for FABRICS C-E.

5. Lay out the (4) SQUARE BLOCKS, (2) A2, and (1) A3 as shown below, noting the rotation of each SQUARE BLOCK. Sew the (3) pieces in each row together and press the seams.

6. Sew the (2) rows together with the A3 strip in the center and press the seams. This is the center of the pillow top.

7. Lay out the center of the pillow top along with (2) A4 and (2) A5 border strips as shown below. Sew (1) A4 on the left and right side of the center of the pillow top. Press the seams.

8. Sew (1) A5 on the top and bottom of the center of the pillow top. 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 February with some random rectangles! Don’t forget to join us in the Facebook Group!

Until later, happy quilting!

Jamie