following the sun...

... just like these sunflowers that I couldn't get enough of during our trip to the Loire Valley this summer is what I wish I could be doing now instead of being in back-to-school mode! Summer and our children's summer holidays are simply too short in this wonderful northern country of ours (sigh!)... At this time of year, I am always so envious of  all of you living in the southern hemisphere who now have an entire summer to look forward to!

 

So while still at the cottage at the end of August, I decided to make this sunflower pouf, inspired by thoughts of the lovely summer which was sadly coming to an end and, especially, by the beautiful fields of sunflowers which I couldn't get enough of during our holiday in France this summer. Who knows?... Perhaps looking at the pouf just might perk me up as the weather turns for the worst and all seems very grey and dreary... (I have to confess that I am a person who is too easily affected by the weather as my mood often lightens up as soon as the sun shows its face after a cloudy spell!)

 

I can't take credit for the beautifully cross-stitched sunflower which I used as the focal point of the pouf as it was something I picked up at a thrift shop a while ago for the silly price of $4.99 (with it being so well done, I can only imagine how many hours of labour went into making it!). While it's been sitting in a pile of odds and ends for the longest time now, I knew that I would eventually use it in some form or another, it being such a pretty a piece of needlework! 

 

The idea to use it in a pouf came about because I had just finished making slipcovers for two old poufs we had lying around at the cottage; I guess I was in pouf-making mode! The sunflower canvas was originally rectangular as perhaps its creator was planning on framing it and never got around to it. With my idea to use it in the center of a circular pouf, I simply cut a circle out of the rectangular canvas.

Now, as far as I'm concerned, the beauty of sewing at the cottage, far away from all the fabric supplies you can easily find in the city, is that you simply make do with what's lying around; you fashion your project around your odds and ends just like, I suppose, patchwork quilts used to be made out of old remnants and not fabric newly-bought especially for a specific quilt in mind. For my part, I enjoy these cottage projects because I find the limited upfront planning often leads to unexpected final results which can absolutely charm you!

 

 

In case you're wondering how this pouf came together, here goes... To make the sides, I just cut up random-width strips of some of the scrap fabric pieces from my cottage stash which were either brought there at some point for specific sewing projects or had been picked up at the local charity shop. I then sewed all the strips together to make a very wide tube, gathered the top and bottom with some loose stitching, and cut a circle the same size as the top sunflower canvas circle out of the fabric I chose for this bottom piece. Finally, to assemble it all, I sewed the sunflower circle to the top of the gathered tube and the bottom circle to the bottom of the gathered tube, leaving an opening to stuff it all with polysterene pellets, then hand-sewed the opening and voilà... one sunflower pouf perfect for rainy day lounging and daydreaming about France's many rustic charms!

 

Before parting, I just wanted to thank you all for your very enthusiastic response to my embroidered vintage linen bathroom curtain described in my last post. Several of you wanted to know how I sewed crochet-trimmed pieces together as well as a crochet-trimmed piece to a plain piece of linen, so here's the answer: I simply zigzagged them together, edge to edge. I have to admit that I put it all together very much in a "fly by the seat of my pants" way; I sort of figured it out as I went along, in some case even making French seams to get a neat finish! A lot of you seem to be on the brink of making something similar... Well, I suggest you go for it because repurposing pretty vintage linens into something you will enjoy looking at is fun, fun, fun! Hope you enjoyed this post and thanks for the visit!

Comments

[Allison]

That looks like such a cheerful squooshy spot! Perfect for reading on a grey day.

[Mette]

It"s gorgeous, Beata. Perfect for your cottage. I'm so in love with your place by the lake.

[Jocelan]

So inspiring me to make one right now!
It looks perfect!

[Alise]

AMAZING!!!!

[krista - Poppyprint]

This is so great - nice rescue of that gorgeous sunflower!

[Lyn]

Oh this is such a lovely post...with added cheeky smiles!
I love the pouf!
x

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[Angela-Southern USA]

So pretty! That would definitely cheer me on a rainy, cool day!Great repurpose project.

[Alex]

Thats a wonderfull pillow, I love round pillows and with al that color it`s just so good.

[disque dur interne]

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