No Sew Fleece Heart Pillow with Braided Edge

It's hard to believe Valentine's Day is almost here.  Even though Valentine's Day is almost here you can whip up this no-sew heart-shaped pillow in a few hours with this tutorial. 

The fun part of throw pillows is changing them out each season to match the holiday. Your sofa needs a nice, bright-colored heart throw pillow; especially on Valentine's Day.  Or these heart pillows are a pretty gift-giving idea.

DIY Heart Shaped Pillow

No-sew projects are always fun. This soft and cozy no-sew fleece heart pillow is easy to make and best of all, there’s no sewing involved.  

Many fleece no-sew pillows are made by knotting the fringed edge which makes them lumpy and uncomfortable.  Our no-sew heart-shaped pillow has NO knots; it's braided.  Well, it looks braided but it is really weaved.

Want to know the BEST part?  All you need is fleece fabric, scissors, a fabric marker, and a ruler to make this fleece heart pillow happen.

If you want more projects, make sure to check out this list of DIY no-sew craft ideas. There are tons of ways you can use fabric to brighten up a room without the needle and thread.

Learn more about and how to make this fleece heart-shaped pillow by watching our video Or keep reading this post for a photo tutorial with step-by-step instructions.

Is this fleece pillow washable?

Of course, it is.  The fleece is washable and if you use poly-fill,  that is washable too.  Simply toss the entire pillow into the washing machine on a gentle cycle with warm water and a mild detergent.  Air dry or tumble dry on air or low heat setting.

Fiber may shift during laundering, gently massage the project with fingertips to move the fiber back into place.

SUPPLIES

You'll need very few supplies to make the pillow, most of which you may already have. 

YOU'LL NEED:

• Red Fleece Fabric - 1/2 yard
• Scissors
• Ruler
• Fabric Marker
• Poly-fil

how to Make a no-sew heart pillow

STEP 1: cutting hearts

You'll need to cut two hearts the exact same size and shape.  So you will be cutting both hearts out of fleece at the same time.

The fleece is already folded in half with the selvage edges together.  

Since you want to cut two identical hearts out of the fleece, fold the selvage edges toward the centerfold until it measures about 11 inches wide.

Next, you need to make a half heart shape on the folded fabric.  You could cut out a heart template from packing paper or newspaper.  I prefer to just make the heart shape freehand.

With a fabric marking tool, such as a quilting pencil or quilting chalk marker, make the heart shape.  Using a scissor cut along the drawn line.

Now, lay the two fleece heart shapes on top of each other, so you can cut through both layers at the same time.

At the bottom point of the heart, a diamond/triangular piece must be removed.  Using a quilters ruler, position the ruler with the corner of the ruler pointed toward the top of the heart.

On the left and right side of the point, place the 1 1/2" mark of the ruler.  Mark.  Cut along the marked lines.

To make it easier to cut the fringe evenly, again with your fabric marking tool, draw a line 1 1/2" around the entire heart from the edge.  This will give you a guide when cutting the fringe.

STEP 2: cut fringe

Now, let's cut the fringe.  Starting at the bottom of the heart, approximately every three-fourth to inch cut through both layers of fabric to create a fringe. At times because of the heart shape, the fringe may be wider or narrower on the outside edge or inside edge.  That is alright.

Continue cutting around the entire heart.  At the top of the heart, cut straight down 1 1/2".  Notice in the following picture how to cut the fringe here.

When finished it should like similar to the following picture.

STEP 3: CUT SLITS

Next, you need to fold each piece of fringe back on itself in half, then cut a small slit in the middle, about 1/4 inch long.

Cut slits in all the fringe.

You are simply creating a small slit in the fabric as shown below.

STEP 4 WEAVING THE FRINGED EDGE

You will begin weaving the fringes together to create a rope or braided look around the outside of the pillow.

 Begin on the left side of the pillow about two-thirds of the way down.  Basically, you want to take a set of fringe pieces (both pieces) and put them through the holes on the fringe piece on the left (both pieces).

 Pull them though. These pieces become the next hole that you use.

Insert the next set of fringe pieces on the right through the hole of the last piece finished (left side).

Repeat around the entire heart pillow until you get about 3 to 4 inches from the start.  Leave an opening about 3 or 4 inches, that will be used to stuff the pillow with polyfill.

STEP 5: STUFF PILLOW

Stuff the pillow with polyfill. The amount you will use will depend on your liking of softness or firmness for the pillow.

STEP 6: FINSHING

Weave the opening closed.  When you get to where you started, you will finish with a knot.  Separate the two strands of the last piece of fringe. 

Put one strand through the starting hole and tie a double knot with the two fringe strands.

Finish by tucking the knot into the inside of the pillow.

You are done!  Enjoy this pretty Valentine's Day pillow which will brighten your day throughout the year.  Display your pillow on your couch, bed, or chair.

Thank you for reading this post.  Needlepointers.com hopes you enjoyed this tutorial.  We are always happy to get feedback from our guests.  Just contact us or comment on our YouTube videos.

 Happy Heart Day!

Other free pillow patterns

• Envelope Pillow - How to make an envelope pillow cover with a back-flapped closure.
• Nine Patch Pillow - A traditional nine-patch block can be used for the front of a pillow.