Yo-Yo Quilt Pillow

I was fortunate to have a really close relationship with my grandma.  We spent a lot of time together when I was young.  She was always sewing and crocheting...doing a little of everything.  I learned how to do so many of these things because of the time we spent together.

I am the more sentimental one in my family and I tend to inherit belongings and such that are passed around.  Not too long ago I was doing some purging in my basement and I ran across a tote full of things I wasn't aware I had.  Grandma was a pastor and this tote had pads of paper with sermon notes, pens from her desk...a little bit of everything.  Down under all of the stuff I found pieces of a yo-yo quilt she had started and never finished.  She would work on that quilt while she set for hours a day, visiting grandpa in the nursing home.  She used a butter dish lid as her pattern for the pieces to the quilt.  I helped her trace and cut many pieces for those quilts.

There were a couple of whole sections in the tote (even one section with her threaded needle still hooked on) as well as a few half finished pieces.  I love making projects with sentimental value and decided to take the partial pieces of quilt section apart and make them into pillows to give to my mother and two aunts. 

I'm not sure that I'd have the patience to make these circular pieces myself but I have found that some craft stores sell pre-made yo-yo pieces.  If you'd like to make your own Yo-Yo Flower Pillow you can either make or purchase the pieces.

Supplies
Pillow case (either purchased or made)
Yo-yo pieces
Green ribbon for stems
Green fabric for leaves
Scissors
Sewing machine
Thread and needle

Instructions

• Decide the layout of your flowers by placing the pieces on your pillow front

• Do the same with your green ribbon stems.

• Remove yo-yo pieces and sew down your ribbon stems on the sewing machine.  I adjusted my machine to a wide zigzag stich.

• Trim the excess ribbon that hangs over the edge of your pillow.

• Place your yo-yo pieces at the top of each stem and stich them down.  I used a simple tack stich around the outside edge of the piece.  I put about five stiches around each piece to keep them laying flat when the pillow is inserted.

• Once completed, sew pillow together and stuff.