Yippee skippee, I have finished something. And it only took me 3 months! In late February I blogged about coveting pillows. I had the fabric, knew what I wanted to do, just needed to do it. I started with the idea that 3 18×18 pillows, and 3 12×12 pillows would be enough for my couch and chair. When I finished them, it didn’t look right. I realized that my other pillows must have been 20×20. I bought the new pillow forms and after work this week, I worked on the bigger pillows. I am very happy with how they turned out. They are placed in the tv room and I am very happy. You can find pictures of the old room here and here. These are photos of the new and improved room: the couch, the chair, closeups of the two big pillows, and a shot of my tv.

Why am I showing you my tv? First of all, we had some complaints from people (my mom) about never knowing what time it is when she’s in the tv room. Also I’ve heard that one design tip is to have a step down effect in a room. So we have the tall armoire in the corner and then from there the pictures step down. I don’t know if I achieved the effect or not, but I am happy with the result. Bill and I also worked on our terrarium which is in the center of our coffee table. I am horrible with plants so I am concerned about our killing the cactus and succulents, but I llike the feature. All the changes add warmth and color and I like the new feel of the room.

Also, if you look at the picture of my chair you can see the custom art created by Ellia, and above it is the picture that inspired the artwork. Bill has told me a couple of times that the illustration is his favorite part of the room. Next to it is a frame we got at Disneyworld and pictures our of trip there to celebrate my 30th birthday. That is one of our best souvenirs. What you aren’t seeing is our wall-o-books-and-dvds-and-games. We have elfa shelving hanging on one wall and it’s a good way to be functional and stylish.

I have to say that I am very proud of the pillows, especially the 20×20 ones. What I know about quilting isn’t much but I think I did a pretty good job. I did two different styles of machine quilting, one with a continuous growing box starting at the center and building, and the other with 90 degree angles. Confused? Yeah, I’m having trouble describing it, but if you click on the pictures you can see a bigger, more detailed version. The 18×18 pillows are lightly quilted (is that a term?). I just stiched 1/4 inch from the edge of each strip of fabric. I like the different strips of fabric and colors go together, and each pillow has the fabric in a different order. The only thing I don’t like about the small pillows is that they are pet hair magnets and the hair really shows on the light fabric. Such is life.

It’s amazing what new pillows and some finishing touches can do to improve a room.