I took advantage of this past long weekend to make some headway in my first ever “collection” of throw pillows! My goal is to open an Etsy store in the next week or two, launching with a late-winter collection of about 8 throw pillows. I am mirroring the design of my current pillows, using the same Diane Von Furstenberg knit.

Making basket-weave pillows can be time consuming because you need to cut so many strips of fabric to make the design. For this reason, I like to design the whole group at once and then go on a cutting rampage! Above are my 5 colors of fabric on top of my cutting mat (on the dining table). You can also see my sketch pad with all the math that went into the measurements.

Beyond the time it takes to do all of the math, the real time consuming aspect is marking out all of the strips in pencil so I can go back over and cut them out individually. This part can really make you see stars but it’s important to be diligent to ensure straight cuts.

I am new to the rotary cutter and I already don’t know how I lived without it! After 8 hours of near straight cutting my hand was super cramped and my first finger and thumb tips went numb. However I do believe strongly the rotary cutter allows me to work faster and cut straighter lines, so it’s all worth it!

In the end I cut several hundred strips of varying lengths and widths. Of course, what is much more satisfying than seeing the full quantity on the chair is seeing all of the woven panels assembled – more to come on that!