DIY Pillow Covers with Paint And Stencils

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Earlier this year I made over my basement into a pretty home office and living space for my family and me. And there was one project that I kept meaning to tell you more about, but you know how that goes–one project is done and movin’ on to the next one, right??

DIY painted pillows with stencils - Thrift Diving Blog

 

It’s those cute little pillows sitting over there in my red thrifted chair–the stenciled pillows. Remember those?

 

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A company called Paint-A-Pillow had contacted me and wanted to know if I’d be willing to try them out.

As a blogger, we love getting product from companies that send us cool stuff, but we also need to make sure that it’s something that’s useful for our readers. And us bloggers have to ask ourselves, “Would we buy this??”

 

I Was on the Fence About This One…

The concept is really awesome: here’s everything you need in one kit to create amazingly cute, easy DIY pillow covers! Who wouldn’t love that?!

The kit comes with a premium pillow, a stencil, one paint of your choice, a foam roller, and a styrofoam tray. Super convenient.

But I couldn’t get past one thing: the cost.

One kit costs $44.95.

And we all know that you can’t order just one pillow. Who ever makes or buys just one pillow?! LOL So you’d likely want to toss in an extra premium pillow.

Don’t forget shipping for $14.95.

Next thing you know, dude, you’re dishing out nearly $80 for two pillows.

Worth the cost?

Hmmm……

Paint a Pillow Painting Kit Review - Shipping Costs

I Went Ahead and Tried It…

I was curious about what a $45 kit would even looked like, so I allowed them to go ahead and send it anyway, not sure whether I would like it or not, or would I even be able to give it high marks here on the blog. I ordered some additional stuff, like rhinestones and a rhinestone setter, and extra paints, since they have some accessories for decorating your pillows and adding in other paint colors.  
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DIY Painted Pillows With Stencils - Rhinestone setter head applicator with rhinestones

 

An extra jar of paint will cost $3.95 each.

 

DIY Painted Pillows With Stencils

 It Actually Was a “No-Brainer”

So when I unwrapped the kit, I was pretty surprised.

I mean–right out of the box, this is what I got: a pillow cover and stencil clipped down to a piece of cardboard, with everything already in place and ready for paint. I could be the most awkwardly creative person and there was no way to mess this up. HA!

DIY Painted Pillows With Stencils - Comes with a stencil

 

The roller that came with it was nice and worked well. It comes with 1 jar of paint, so I picked the bright orange.

 

DIY Painted Pillows With Stencils - Paint roller and orange paint

 

 

The kids wanted to help, too. Who can resist cute babies in their Lightening McQueen undies, ashy knees and all??

 

DIY Painted Pillows With Stencils - Easy enough for a kid to do

 

 

 

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Once the paint dried, I removed the stencil and cardboard insert which prevented the paint from going through to the other side of the pillow cover.

 

DIY Painted Pillows With Stencils - Remove the insert

 

I had never used a rhinestone setter. It was fun, but tedious! I couldn’t imagine wanting to do any section larger than what I did. LOL

 

DIY Painted Pillows With Stencils - Completed

 

DIY Painted Pillows With Stencils - with studs

 

 

I had ordered an extra pillow and did the other one pink, using the same stencil.

 

Paint a Pillow Review - DIY Designer Pillow - Thrift Diving2414

 

 

 

And oh, man….the pillow inserts really were nice! They use a down alternative, so they felt fluffy once you unwrapped them. They come shrink-wrapped in plastic.

 

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All fluffed up, they really felt great.

 

DIY Painted Pillows With Stencils - The pillow actually was very nice!

 

 

So What’s My Final Verdict??

You know what, guys? These kits are super cute! I think they way I used them, as a craft activities with kids, was cool. And it was easy enough to get them done in probably about 20 minutes or less. No set up required. And the end result looked really good! But the cost still is the only hiccup, especially since I’m a DIY’er a heart, and I know that I could whip up a few pillows for a lot less than $80. However, here’s what I think about who should buy this kit:

This kit is for you if:

  • you’ve got two left hands and you screw everything up, LOL.
  • You have no crafting experience.
  • You have extra $$$ to drop nearly $80 on two pillows.
  • You want to buy it for a kid or as a gift (housewarming, maybe??)

This kit isn’t for you if:

  • You’ve got average crafting and DIY skills and know how to bust out a few of your own DIY pillow covers.
  • You are struggling to pay the bills, much less can pay $80 for pillows.
  • You hate pillows. (HA! <~~Sorry, couldn’t help a little pillow humor…)

 DIY Painted Pillows with Stencils

 

Cheap Alternatives: No-Sew DIY Pillow Covers

If you’re like me, you’re always looking for a true DIY option!

Last year I made these really cute DIY n0 sew pillows just using Heat n’ Bond iron-on tape. I even used my old pillow inserts. So the cost was super cheap!

 

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You can even watch my video tutorial on how to make no-sew pillows here:

 

If you want to make DIY stenciled pillows, you could also just buy a stencil and use squares of canvas drop cloth that you can buy from the hardware store or on Amazon (and you’ll get a bunch for cheap). Maybe I’ll make some and show you how easy they are to make! šŸ™‚

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Okay, so have you guys ever made DIY pillows or even stenciled your own? Leave a comment below and let’s chat about this!

 

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30 Comments

  1. Bridgette says:

    Serena, although the Paint-A-Pillow is nice and would be fun to make, I prefer your No-Sew Pillow Covers. I think that they’re absolutely beautiful and easy to make! I love them. I can’t see myself paying $80 for pillow covers.

    1. Thank you, Bridgette!! šŸ™‚ Glad you like my no-sew option! šŸ™‚ Always gotta have an affordable back-up! šŸ™‚

  2. I love the way they turned out but sorry, no way would I spend that on pillows. You DID get me to look at the company’s website though – and there are really nice choices. And pillows are so expensive for some reason. Actually I have saved every “old” pillow my dogs and kids have trashed just to recover them. I am too cheap, I guess…even if it means “style!”

    1. LOL, it’s a nice website, at least! šŸ™‚ They have a lot of nice stencils. And you could get a stencil and just reuse it yourself on your own pillow covers. So that’s good. I don’t know if they ever have sales where you could get one 20% off or something. But yeah, the kit itself, definitely for kids or wanna-be-creatives. I could also seeing it be a fun project for a housewarming gift! But not for my “want-to-DIY-everything” self! šŸ™‚ Thanks, Gretchen!

  3. I love the look and description of these pillows, but i don’t have anywhere that kind of money. Has anyone ever redone an old wooden chair with a lift out seat cushion before? Cause, Ijust finished mine up yesterday.

    1. Hey, Missy, send me a picture of it! I’d love to see your chair. I don’t know if I have heard of anyone here doing that kind of chair!

  4. So…first of all, what I see as the up side to your project. The pillows are darling. Your boys are even more darling. The fact that you let them help, will remain with them long after the pillows are gone and the boys are grown! So for me the downside, regarding the cost is that given a bit of time I’m fairly certain that I could find something very similar pre made, for less than half that price. That being said, by making something myself, repurposing a little I could cut the cost in half again. My very favorite pillow in my house I paid $20 for. It was on clearance for half price. With your question in mind, I asked myself…knowing how much I love that pillow, would I have paid $40 for it…the answer was no.

    1. Hey, Lyn! One of my favorite places to look for pillows is Home Goods. I haven’t bought many pillows in my life, but if I were to buy them, they have a good selection. I want to say they’re $20-$40 each? Not sure. I think if you find ones you love, get them. If you want to make some, make some. It all depends on how creative people want to be, and what their budget is. Thanks, Lyn!!

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