Outdoor Pillows

Do you know how hard it is to find outdoor pillows in the end of the July? I have looked everywhere and they are gone. So then I thought I would make them. So I went to Joann Fabrics and they had some cute outdoor fabric. But it was $16.99 a yard! I don't think so.

So then my wheels got a turnin'. I have shared before that my friends save random things for me that most people would throw in the garbage. They say, "Oh Beckie I found a half-chewed piece of caramel...surely you can make something out of it!" Ok, that might be a slight exaggeration. So my friend Lisa asked me if I wanted a table umbrella that didn't work because the wood base had expanded and the wood would not fit back together again. I say, "Sure why not." In my mind I am thinking I can sand the wood down and make it fit back into place again.

Well after we built our deck I realized that I don't need the umbrella because we get afternoon and evening shade (which would be the only times we would need an umbrella around the table). But we do need pillows. So what do I do? Cut the whole thing apart and make some pillows.

I had purchased 6 pillows at a yard sale for $2 that I planned on using somewhere. So I took 3 of those and recovered them in the umbrella fabric.

They were 12" x 16" pillows so I cut a piece of the umbrella fabric 24" x 17" and folded it in half.

I stitched around 2 1/2 sides and left about an 8" opening.

Then I squished the pillow inside the pillow casing.

and tucked under the edges and sewed it shut.

It gave me a tiny bit of color. The colors are red, green, brown, and khaki. It works for now and it only cost me $1.

I bought the little side table for $9 at Target on 75% off clearance making it $9. The verdict is still out on whether I like it or not.


I took the leftover umbrella fabric and tucked the table legs in the holes where the umbrella arms went and made a little table skirt.


I am pretty sure hubby is going to veto it when he comes home. He isn't a big fan of skirts on furniture. But I will enjoy it for an hour before he arrives.