DIY Subway Art Pillows

 

I’ve been doing some redecorating recently.  I’m taking photos as I go so I can share the before and after with you.  I’m going from beige/beige/beige to grey/white/black…..crazy right? Ha.  My friend Paul came over to give me some ideas and his first suggestion was to carry over the subway art sign I made a few years ago.  Here’s the sign in our breakfast area:

 

When I first made this I was inspired by the black and white vintage subway signs from Restoration Hardware (original tutorial here):

 

I loved Paul’s idea of taking it to a pillow as a similar accent.  I picked a few street names that were important to Mr. LBB and I and here’s the result:

Diesel uses them as a ramp to get up to his perch:

 

I found a pillow cover with a nice thick upholstery fabric from Ikea….and added the white canvas letters.  They are just slightly frayed on the edges giving kind of a vintage feel:

 

 

You could use freezer paper to paint your letters onto a pillow or cut out fabric letters to make your own.  I have a Silhouette machine so it was so much easier to use that to design and cut out the letters….but cutting by hand would work too.  First, I ironed fabric interfacing/fusible web to the back of my white canvas. Any fusible web should work….but if you are using the Silhouette make sure to use the kind that has the shiny clear look to it so it sticks to your cutting mat well:

 

Designing my pillow on the Silhouette machine software (see fonts at the bottom of this post!):

The cutting machine:

 

My canvas was so thick the machine didn’t cut all the way through in places but it was easy to trim:

If you don’t have a cutting machine just trace your letters onto the fabric with a disappearing fabric marker and cut them out:

Here my letters are placed onto the pillow cover:

I ironed the letters to adhere them into place (the fusible web on the back is what does this):

Then I carefully stitched each letter with a straight stitch:

 

It’s easiest to sew the letters all at once and then trim the thread in between as the last step:

 

 

Material & Sources:

Ikea Karlstad pillows in Dark Gray

Silhouette Cutting Machine

Fusible Web

White Cotton Canvas by the Yard

 

 

Looking for vintage subway fonts?  Here’s a list of a few I love!  Links are at the bottom of the image:

 

 

amble / underground nf / helvetica / franchise / lane – narrow / copperplate / bebas neue