Pleated Boxes Pillow: How to Pleat

Welcome back to the Pleated Boxes Pillow Sew Along!

Today I am going to show you how to add those lovely pleats to the rows of your pillow front. It’s not as difficult as you might think. Let’s get started! Did you get your free PDF pattern?

Add Messy Pleating

1. Along each of the background fabric rows you just added, take a 5” section of the row and add 3 to 4 horizontal folds.

Hold in place and press.

Repeat with the next 5” section until you’ve pleated the whole row.

2. Pin gathers in place, at the patterned box intersections, so that the pleated rows are about 1” to 1.25” wide. You can measure the first one and approximate the rest.

3. Starting at the right-most patterned box intersection, stitch a vertical line from the top to bottom of the row, just between the box corners. Remove pin as you sew and use your fingers to carefully guide fabric through, retaining the pleats. Backstitch at both ends.

4. Without cutting your thread, release your presser foot and lift your pillow front so you can stitch the next vertical line. Again, stitch between the patterned box intersections and backstitch at both ends. When finished with the row (six vertical lines), trim threads. This will save you lots of starting and stopping!

5. Repeat process for other two rows. To keep the pleats on outer edges of pillow front from shifting, stitch across each row with 1/8” seam allowance from the edge, so stitching is not visible when pillow is assembled. (See below: Left pleated edge is stitched close, and right is still open.)

6. Trim threads. Your pleated pillow front should measure about 14” x 18”.

And that’s a wrap! There are some lovely pillow front popping up in the Flickr group, so pop on over if you are still wondering what fabrics to use. You still have two full weeks to get in on this sew along and enter to win prizes!

Craft Buds Pleated Boxes Pillow Sew Along

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Hi, I’m Lindsay Conner, an author, modern quilter, editor, and founder of the Lindsay Sews blog. I’m a Baby Lock ambassador and Stash Books author who loves writing modern sewing and quilt patterns for beginners and weekend sewists! I live in Indianapolis, Indiana with my husband, son, and two loveable cats, Murph and Chloe. I’ve been crafting for as long as I can remember. As a kid, I saved my dollar bills for trips with my mom to Jo-Ann Fabrics, where I’d find new floss for friendship bracelets or mini cross-stitch kits. Because my mom has always shared my love for crafting, she bought me my first sewing machine, a Hello Kitty Janome.

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2 comments

  2. I love you “messy” pleats. I was too careful trying to keep to about an inch and a half wide and ended up with mostly uniform pleats. I may be the only sewer who has to practice being less accurate:-}

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