It’s Wednesday the 14th, which means it’s time for this season’s totally unofficial Pinterest Challenge — not sponsored by Pinterest or anyone else, just an idea Katie from Bower Power created to get us off the pinboard and making things.
I tackled a homemade beanbag for Clara’s closet, an idea I mentioned last Wednesday when Katie, Erin, and Cassie and I launched our make-something challenge.
I used several pinned projects as inspiration and then put my own spin on things. The result is a soft, slightly oversized beanbag that works for a toddler, a small dog, or an exhausted adult who needs a quick rest.
After I mentioned the project, some readers pointed me toward an excellent step-by-step tutorial on Living With Punks, which I followed closely. The instructions were clear and simple to follow, even for a sewing novice — and I finally got the hang of piping. That felt like a major victory, so I called my mom to share the news!
Here’s how I made the beanbag. The Living With Punks tutorial includes excellent photos and measurements, but I’ll summarize my process and the tweaks I made. I wanted something bigger than the 17″ round shown in that tutorial, so I scaled the pattern up to 22″ circles. I used leftover fabric from another project for most of the cover and a contrasting piece for the base because I didn’t have quite enough of the main print.
Materials and basic steps:
- Cut two 22″ circles for top and bottom, two fabric tabs for the handle, and a rectangular piece to wrap around the middle (pattern details are on the linked tutorial).
- Attach piping around the perimeter of both circles and along the handle tabs, aligning the piping ends with the fabric edge.
- Sew along the piping stitch so the piping sits cleanly on the seams — I found this easier than I expected and it created a professional look.
- Stitch the handle tabs together with piping on both sides, turn them right-side out, then topstitch a box with an X to secure the handle to the side panel.
- Pin and sew one circle to the long rectangular side panel, following the piping thread as your guide, then repeat for the other circle but leave an opening to turn and stuff.
- Turn the cover right-side out and fill with batting or recycled pillow stuffing; I used the filling from four old pillows saved from the linen closet.
- Hand-stitch the final opening closed or, if preferred, install a zipper for a removable cover (I bought a zipper to add later).
One delightful accident: I pinned and sewed a section with the fabric inside-out and later turned it right-side out to discover the print draped just so across the top and down the side. It looked intentional and gave the beanbag a unique, happy detail — beginners’ luck, I guess.
Budget breakdown (I used JoAnn coupons):
- $0 — one yard of leftover fabric
- $2.38 — two 25-yard packs of white piping
- $1.19 — zipper (for a future upgrade)
- $1.50 — white thread
- Total: $5.07
If you tried the Pinterest Challenge this week, we’d love to see your projects. To share a finished project on the link-up, follow the instructions on the widget at the bottom of the original post: add a direct link to your project post, choose a descriptive project name (for example, “Homemade Beanbag”), and, if possible, link back to the inspiration projects so they get credit. If you don’t have a blog you can post photos to a public photo-sharing album and share the link in the comments.
Be sure to check Katie, Erin, and Cassie’s posts to see their projects as well. We’re excited to see what everyone made — please share photos or links so we can all be inspired.