I’ve had this horse pillow for years. My sister gave it to me when we were younger, and I’ve never had the heart to throw it out, even when the design started to crack with age. I stuck it high up in a closet where it would occasionally fall on my head when I opened the doors.

After!

Using iron-on patches, I created the design of two owls sitting on a branch, which I ironed onto a linen-look napkin (cotton/poly blend).

Instead of a traditional two-piece pillow cover with a slit up the back to fit the insert, I turned the insert on an angle and folded the four corners of the napkin together at the back. Pinning them in place, I hand stitched the two bottom seams to where they met in the center, then folded the top flap over like an envelope and fastened it with a string wound around a spare coat button.

Materials: old pillow, cotton napkin (ironed), spare button, iron-on patches cut into desired shapes, needle & thread

Voila! Happy little owls for $0.