Jumbo floor cushion

Roll up, roll up, come and see the Biggest Cushion in the Woooorrld. Creatively speaking, it's been a bit quiet around here. I do have a couple of crochet projects on the go and this sewing one has been sitting on a shelf for months waiting for me to finish it. I have to admit I got to a stage where I thought it all looked a bit too hard and wasn't exactly sure how to finish it so there it sat until last week when I saw this floor pillow on Sarah Jane's blog. That was all the motivation I needed right there.

I have always liked the idea of having an oversized circular cushion that could be pulled out as extra seating for indoor and outdoor use.  A few months ago, I spied some really cool fabric with large neon spots and bought up some meterage. I also needed to calculate how much piping I would need. It was here that my 48% 5th Form Maths exam mark scaled up to 52% came into play.  Initially I was going to make some charcoal piping which probably would have been a better choice, but at the time of purchase, I decided to unleash the crazy colour lady that is trapped within me and made some teal piping instead. Living dangerously, guys. I have to say that making piping is F-U-N people, not at all scary or difficult as some might think. Remember, I only started sewing in earnest a couple of years ago, so when I say that anyone can do it, it is most definitely true.

The hardest part was working out how to attach the bottom circle to the gusset. You see, I discovered rather disastrously that on a project of this scale it is very important to have circles EXACTLY the same size. Any variation in circle size results in a gusset that does not fit no matter how much easement you give it. Another challenge was working out how to attach the zip to the cover. I knew I wanted it on the bottom out of sight. This was the part that made me leave this project sitting on the shelf for three months. I made the mistake of sewing in the piping on the bottom circle when I should have attached the zip first and then add the piping before sewing the whole thing to the gusset. Oh, how I just LOVE unpicking seams. It's so fun. Fun, guys.

I'd like to be able to show you a photo of the cushion with something other than an 8 year old girl stuffed inside it, but I haven't decided what that filling should be yet. I just know that with a cushion of this size, whatever I decide it's going to be horrendously expensey, and I don't really want to think about it. Plus it means a trip out in this snowy weather that we're having right now and I'm a big girl's blouse.

Linking in with the linky love with Leonie.