How To Put In A Zipper For Pillow

How To Put In A Zipper For Pillow With Cording. How to Sew Zipper Pillows with Piping.

Supplies:

- fabric
- Yarn to match fabric and piping
- piping, here 1.7 meters
- zipper foot and possibly blind zipper foot

Method:

I started from a rectangle of 42 by 43 for the back piece and one of 42 by 42 for the front piece. You adjust these sizes yourself. Just keep in mind that your back piece should be 1 cm longer on the side where the zipper will be.

- Cut the pieces and overlock the edges.

- Fold over one side of the back piece 3 cm so that you get a square of 40 by 42.

- Fold over one side of the front piece 2 cm so that you get a square of 40 by 42 here as well.

- Fold the turned over part back flat, but make sure you can still see the fold.

- Attach the piping all around to the front piece using this method, making sure the piping itself is just before the fold of the turned over piece.
In case you are wondering why my piping looks so “sloppy”: it is homemade, and thus pre-washed, because the macramé twine always shrinks a bit. Hence the frayed edges.

- Take the zipper and place 1 piece upside down with the teeth just next to the piping. The zipper pull is a few inches from the corner.

- Stitch in place about two millimeters from the zipper.

- Take the other part of the zipper and pin it to the turned over piece of the back piece, the teeth of the zipper about half an inch from the fold. This will give you the little flap that hides the zipper.

- Place both pieces on top of each other and iron a new fold in the back piece if necessary. Make sure the fabric folds in half to just up to the piping. Pin in place through both pieces (here pin from right to left).

- Now pin the back piece and zipper in place. Be sure to pin only the back piece to the zipper. (Pin from left to right in photo above)

- Fold open and make the flap. Start a few inches from the edge and stitch perpendicular to the edge a 1 cm piece, through back piece and zipper.

- Turn a quarter turn and stitch parallel to the edge about 1 to 1.5 cm from the fold (depending on the width of the zipper). 

- A few centimeters before the end, turn the whole again a quarter turn and stitch the last centimeter until you get back to the edge. This is the result:

- Place both pieces on top of each other right sides together, pin and stitch all around according to this method.

- Close the openings on either side of the zipper by hand.

The flap should now completely cover the zipper and the fold should align nicely with the piping.