Photo tutorial - how to keep a ruffle hem detail on a memory cushion

 Hello everybody!

It was my little daughter's third birthday on Friday. She is currently a Minnie Mouse fan, and I had this sweatshirt that I bought in a charity shop last year, sitting around waiting for an upcycle.

So I turned it into a cushion as a birthday present for her! Making these cushions is a service I offer in my Etsy shop. Partly so I could remember how I did it for myself, I recorded the process to make a photo tutorial for you all.  The bit I really wanted to record was keeping that ruffle at the bottom. This method would work with any similar hem detail you wanted to keep.

1 Turn the top inside out and used a cushion to mark your sewing lines, so your motif (if you have one) sits the way you want it to,.  This top is the right width that I don't have to take in the side seams to fit my cushion (a 16 inch square). I am pretty sure that makes the whole of this process a lot easier.

2 Chop off the bottom ruffle/hem detail. I gave myself 3 inches of fabric to work with. I prefer to work with very generous seam allowances, you can snip them back later in the process if you need to.

3 Turn the ruffle the right way out and place it upside down (with the ruffle pointing upwards). Keep the top inside out.

Insert the ruffle inside the bottom edge of what will be the cushion. The right sides of the two pieces will be together. Make sure the detail you are keeping sits above the sewing line you have drawn.

4 Pin together. Check as you do so that the ruffle is completely above the line, especially at the edges.

Sew along the sewing line you have drawn, through all four layers of fabric.

If you don't turn the ruffle around the right way before inserting it in, this is what happens - the lining fabric shows.

And if you don't check the ruffle is completely above the line at the edges, this is what happens.

If you have done it right it will look like this!

5 Sew along the top (and up the sides if you need to), sewing through both the front and the back.  Leave a gap in the top edge for turning it the right way round and inserting the cushion.

6 Cut off any excess fabric. Snip at the top two corners. You will not be able to snip properly at the bottom too corners, due to the detail, but it does help to trim it back as far as you are able. If your fabric needs it, you can overlock/serge the seams at this point. Also, if you want to, you can insert a zip into the opening you left - this will let you remove the cushion cover for washing.

7 Turn it the right way around. Check your stitching all the way around. If anything hasn't worked properly, this is your last opportunity to turn it back inside out, unpick and fix any issues.

8 Insert your cushion, through the opening.

9 If you added a zip, zip it up and you are done! If not, hand stitch the opening closed using a ladder stitch.

10 A finished cushion!

So there you go! Here's a happy little 3 year old with her cushion and some new bedding from her grandparents. 

I also made her a set of Mickey Mouse scrunchies, from fabrics in my stash. 

Good luck! This really doesn't take long - it's doable in under 30 minutes, especially if you don't make mistakes along the way, like I did. If you try following this, do comment or send me a pic to let me know!

Thanks for reading!