Sew your own African print cushions

A quick and inexpensive project to make in an afternoon or less.

I love these wild African designs and wanted to make some cushions from them. In the past it was impossible to purchase African Wax fabric other than by the six yard roll. Luckily for us we can now purchase on line through Etsy and also through the web site below.

http://www.africanfabric.co.uk/

They sell 100% cotton wax prints most of which are made in Ghana.

Surprisingly these vibrant prints did not originate in Africa but in Holland. Now for a bit of History from The Philadelphia Museum of Art

http://www.philamuseum.org/

The designs originated in the Dutch city of Helmond, where, in 1846, industrialist Pieter Fentener van Vlissingen purchased a textile factory with the goal of selling upholstery fabric, bedspreads, and handkerchiefs abroad. Van Vlissingen began creating imitation batik fabric based on designs from Indonesia — then known as the Dutch East Indies — with the goal of capitalizing on new roller printing technology that could effect the look of batik without all the labor-intensive work required to make the real thing.

So now you know the history now here is a super quick and easy way to make a cushion using it.

Rather than inserting a zip you use two pieces of fabric to make the back of the cushion. The two pieces overlap in the centre back so that the cushion pad is hidden.

You will need

A cushion pad

For the cushion front 1 piece of fabric, the same size as the cushion pad.

For the cushion back 2 pieces of fabric each the same width as the cushion front x ¾ of the length.

Scissors

Sewing Machine

Cotton Thread

Pins

Instructions

Step1

Pin and machine stitch a hem 1cm along the side of each piece of fabric that will eventually be overlapping.

Step2

Tack the two back pieces together, overlapping the hemmed edge. Once tacked together they should measure the same in both length and depth as the fabric that has been cut out for the front.

Step3

With right sides facing, pin the front and back together. Pin, then machine sew down the four sides. Remove the pins and insert the cushion pad.