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Make a personalized pillow sham with this easy Free Pillow Sham Pattern that you can sew with beginner sewing skills.
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Free Pillow Sham Pattern and Tutorial

Make a personalized pillow sham with this easy Free Pillow Sham Pattern that you can sew with beginner sewing skills.
Prep Time10 minutes
Active Time15 minutes
Yield: 1 pillow
Cost: $4-15

Equipment

  • 1 sewing machine you could use washable fabric glue if you don't have a sewing machine
  • 1 Pair of Scissors
  • 1 set of fabric pins

Materials

  • 1 standard size bed pillow
  • 1 piece Washable Fabric measuring at least 24 inches by 65 1/2 inches If you purchase fabric with a pattern that needs to be lined up and has a right-side-up (on our fabric, the women need to be upright), then plan for that and purchase enough fabric to accommodate the pattern.
  • 1 spool Coordinating Thread
  • 1 Pillow Sham Pattern You can get your free copy of my pattern for your personal use.

Instructions

  • Cut your fabric so that you have one piece that is 24 inches tall and 65 1/2 inches long.  You will use this single fabric piece to create the front and back panels. You do not need to cut any additional fabric pieces.
  • Start by sewing a seam on the two short sides of the fabric. Turn the raw edges 1/2 inch  under and then fold it over again. Sew this seam down. 
  • Fold the fabric over with the right sides of the fabric together. You will need to leave an envelope opening on the the back of the sham to insert the pillow. This means that you will overlap the edges of the sides with the hemmed edges. You can fold the fabric so the opening is in the back center of the pillow sham, but I chose to offset the opening towards one side of the pillow. The short side of the two back pieces should be 8 3/4 inches long. The entire pillow sham should be 31 inches wide. 
  • Pin the edges of the sham together and sew the long sides together with a 1/4 inch seam allowance.
  • Clip the corners. Turn the pillow sham right side out. Poke out the corners so that they’re neat and smooth. Straighten all the seams and pin around the edges. Pay attention to pinning the ends that will overlap to keep the fabric in place so they don’t move while you sew the next step.
  • Sew a seam 1 3/4 inches from the edge to create the pillow flange. You can adjust the size of your flange depending on how full the pillow form you’ll be inserting is.  Sew around the entire edge of the pillow sham cover. 
  • Pin and then sew the long sides together with a 1/4 inch seam.
  • Turn the pillow sham right side out. Straighten all the seams and pin around the edges. Sew a seam 1 3/4 inches from the edge to create the pillow flange.