How to make your own pillow protectors

Pillows were not always the nice cushy things that we know today. The earliest pillows date back to Mesopotamia as well as to ancient Egypt and were made of wood. Later, the Chinese extended the materials used to jade, bronze and porcelain. It was not until ancient Greece and Rome that softer materials such as straw, down and reeds were used. The pillows today are far closer to those of ancient Greece and Rome. To help to keep them fresh and stylish, make your own pillow protectors.

Step one

If you do not have one, buy a pillow. If you do have one, measure it and write those measurements down. Buy fabric of your choice. The fabric can be tapestry, chintz or anything that is comfortable and washable. It should be more than twice the size of the measurements for your pillow. Buy straight pins and thread that will match the fabric.

Step two

Make a pattern for the pillow protector. Cut open a brown paper bag, making it to one large piece of paper. Draw the pattern on the paper using the measurements that you took in step one. Make a second pattern: This will be for a flap closure for the pillow protector. Make the flap the same width as the narrowest point of the pillow (the end) or, if the pillow is square, the length of one of the sides. Make the height of the flap six inches tall. For example, if the end of a rectangular pillow is ten inches, the flap will measure ten inches by six inches. Fold the fabric in half, right sides together. Place the pattern pieces on the fabric and trace around them. Trace around them again, adding 1/2 inch for seam allowance. Cut the fabric out.

Step three

Sew the flap to of the fabric pieces. If the flap measures the end, sew it on one of the ends, right side to right side. If it is square, then sew it to one of the sides. Sew the fabric pieces together for the pillow protector, leaving the end with the flap on it open. Turn the pillow protector right side out and slip your pillow inside. Tuck the pillow inside the flap so that the pillow is completely hidden from view inside the pillow protector.