Hey friends! Today’s pattern is a little bit different and something I hope everyone will find a place for in their homes. Instead of a plushie, I’ve been thinking of a way to incorporate a little more crochet into my home and make it the comfy, cozy place of my dreams. And even though I have tons of throw pillows on our couch, I didn’t have a crochet pillow that just screamed “Get comfy”, so I made one! Read on for the free crochet pillow pattern.
This free crochet pillow pattern is super easy to make and although I used neutral colors that matched my space, you can totally make this as colorful as you want! The basic structure is just two squares to make up the front and back, with a slit in the back so you can remove the pillow from the cover, and a bit of lettering to finish it off. The lettering is really simple, and I’ll walk you through it, but it can take a little while depending on how neat you want it to be.
I used one of the 16×16-inch square throw pillows I already had with my sofa, but you can use ones off Amazon, and make them different sizes if you want. This pattern is incredibly easy to customize! I’m thinking a long pillow with some colorful message might be my next project, and it’ll follow this same process, just different stitch counts. So feel free to get creative with yours!
The full free pattern is written out below. For those who’d prefer to print the pattern and take it with you for on-the-go and to markup as you go, you can buy the inexpensive printable PDF from my Etsy and Ravelry shops. The PDF is formatted without ads or comments, so it’s easy to read.
Materials:
- 10.00mm N/P hook*
- #6 super bulky weight yarn – I used 1 skein each of Lion Brand Wool-Ease Thick & Quick* in Charcoal and Fisherman
- jumbo tapestry needle*
- 16-inch square pillow insert*
*denotes affiliate link
Abbreviations:
- ch – chain
- SC – single crochet
- sl – slip stitch
Pattern Notes:
- Skill level: Easy
- Sizing: 18″ square
- Gauge: 2S X 2R per inch
“Get Comfy” Pillow: Free Crochet Pillow Pattern
Front Piece:
Row 1: For the front piece, create a magic loop and chain 35. Turn and SC into each space along the chain (34).
Rows 2-36: Chain 1, turn, and SC along the row. Repeat for 36 rows total.
Row 37: Chain 1, turn, and SC 33. In the corner space, work 3 SC into the same stitch. Turn the piece so you’re working into the side and SC along the length of the piece. *Into the corner, work 3 SC into the same space, turn and SC along the side.* Repeat from * once more until you’re back to the beginning of the round and work 2 SC into the first space you worked. BO and leave a long tail for weaving later.
Back Piece:
Row 1: For the back piece, create a magic loop and chain 35. Turn and SC into each space along the chain (34).
Rows 2-20: Chain 1, turn, and SC along the row. Repeat for 20 rows total.
Row 21: Chain 36. Take care not to twist the chain and slip stitch to the last space on the previous row. This gives you a new foundation chain for the split in the back of the pillow but keeps it all attached as one piece.
Rows 22-40: Chain 1, turn, and SC along the row. Repeat for 19 rows total.
Row 41: Chain 1, turn, and SC 33. In the corner space, work 3 SC into the same stitch. Turn the piece so you’re working into the side and SC along the length of the piece. *Into the corner, work 3 SC into the same space, turn and SC along the side.* Repeat from * once more until you’re back to the beginning of the round and work 2 SC into the first space you worked. Do not bind off. Leave that last loop open since we’ll pick up from here later.
I used some scraps of the main color to tie the halves together while I worked. It just made the piece easier to handle, but you can leave them on at the end and tie them as bows too if you like.
Adding the text
To add the text, cut a length of yarn about 2-3 feet of the contrast color, or the color for the back, and thread it through a tapestry needle.
First, use the water-soluble pen to write out the text and get it how you want on the front piece. You can also freehand this, but making it out helps to keep the lines smooth and ensure that your text will fit on the pillow.
Then, outline the text with the tapestry needle and a running stitch. just go over and under the stitches to create the basic guide for the letters like in the image below and we can thicken and smooth them out later.
You can do this step with one length of yarn, but be careful not to pull the thread too tightly. You want the loops to be easy to go under later. Trim the yarn with some tail to weave in later and thread a new piece of yarn.
Start at the beginning of the text again and let’s start to thicken the letters. Instead of going in and out of the fabric now, use the tapestry needle to go under the loops of the outline, always working in the same direction. If you start by going under the loop, continue going under all the loops.
To secure curves, pick up a small amount of the background to anchor the curve, and as before, keep your tension even so you don’t pull the letters too tightly. Work your way through all the text and trim the yarn, leaving some tail yarn to weave in later.
If you want the letters even thicker, repeat the last step. Then weave in all the ends into the back of the fabric, making sure they don’t show on the front, and trim off the excess.
Assembling the pillow
Stack the front and back pieces together with the right sides facing out and the back piece on top. Pick up your loop from the back piece and we’ll begin joining the pieces together.
Insert your hook into the front loop of the back piece, then into the back loop of the front piece, YO, and pull through all three loops. This stitches the sides together with a slip stitch. Continue all the way around the pillow and BO. Trim the excess yarn and weave in the ends to finish.
Now just fit your pillowcase over a 16-inch square pillow form and you are done!
This pattern was fun to design, but I love having it in my living room more than anything else. It’s such a cute and easy way to add some crochet flair to my space in a way that isn’t flooding the space with my usual plushies or yarnbombing the room with something that feels too much.
If you liked this pattern and want to see what else I have to share, be sure to subscribe to the newsletter! You’ll get free crochet patterns, tutorials, details about yarny events, and more delivered right to your inbox every week. Just use the box below to fill out your name and email, and you’re good to go.
See you soon 🙂
Visit my pattern shops on Ravelry, Craftsy, and Etsy to buy the printable PDFs of all my patterns. They're ad-free, comment-free and your support helps me run The Blue Elephants so I can continue publishing free patterns here.
My material lists sometimes include affiliate links (denoted with a *) for which I earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. I only link to products I personally use, love, and recommend. You can read more about this in my Disclosure.
I worked hard on this pattern, so please be respectful and do not sell or redistribute this pattern as your own. If you sell finished items made using this pattern, credit The Blue Elephants as the designer and link back to the blog post or the Etsy pattern link. For any other questions, read my Terms of Use or contact me.