When I am in the mood to create something new, my first stop is often Pinterest.  I think about what I would like to make and then I spend some time searching.  The pictures I see inspired me and act like a sounding board to my creative thoughts.

When I was out fabric shopping the other day I saw a beautiful cushion.  It had a Moped embroidered on it.  I loved it for its embroidery and simplicity. It inspired me and my mind began to create.

When a free afternoon presented itself, I jumped at the chance to make a start on a new cushion.  My first stop was my laptop.  Pinterest is full of great ideas. Sometimes it reminds me of a sewing group where you get to see other peoples creations.

Whist computers are great, my mind works best when I have a pencil in my hand. With paper, pencil, string and scissors I sketched out my design.  I used string to get a nice curve onto a piece of paper the size of my cushion.  Paper was cut to produce the  bunting flags in a size proportional to the cushion.

For Christmas this year I embroidered small purses with the words “live simply”. I decided that phrase would go perfectly on my cushion.  I enlarged the font and used my window (aka light box) to trace it onto my design sheet.

I am constantly amazed at the power of a well stocked stash.  My sewing background is mostly in quilt making, so most of my collection is patchwork fabrics.  I have had some other projects going on these holidays and I had just the right amount of fabric left over from a Roman blind I made for my sewing room.  I took that to use as my background fabric and then I went looking for the bunting fabrics.

It was easy to pull out the type of fabrics I wanted to use.  The hard part was selecting only nine to use.  I love applique, so there was no question when it came to attaching the bunting flags.  I used freezer paper to create the flags.

I took my fabric back to the window and used a pencil to draw on the curve and the font.  Then I used black 3 strand floss to back stitch the bunting string and phrase “live simply”. With my embroidery done, I began to applique my flags.

Putting a zipper in the back, I stitch the back and the front together.  I love the end result.  I was going to square the corners to create a more “impressive” cushion, but the phrase “live simply” demanded a simpler style.