Pendleton Woolen Mills, a 150 year old family-owned Oregon company, seems to be having a real moment right now. i’ve seen the fabric recently in all the cool shops around town as pillows and recovering vintage couches/chairs, and it’s all over the blogs in ponchos and purses and in this book (affiliate link), of course. so after drooling over one too many super awesome Pendleton wool creations, i finally listened to the universe and got some to make my own.
i’d gone into the retail store (on SE McLoughlin) a few times, gotten overwhelmed, and left empty-handed. just too much amazing fabric plus a pretty high price point (this wool is over $80/yd normally). but on my most recent trip, i got a half yard sonora jacquard wool plus a couple apparel fabrics (on sale!) and forced myself to sew this into a pillow right away, rather than let it languish forever in my stash. it only took a half hour to make!
i cut two 19” squares, centering the design as best i could, and then used sew katie did’s tutorial to add an invisible zipper. the invisible zipper i had on hand was only 14” but i was able to shove the down insert into it with only minimal wrestling. i like a fuller pillow, so i matched the fabric squares to the insert size and let the seam allowance bring it in a bit for me.
the wool was really fun to sew, actually – quite thick (they have looms at the Pendleton store so you can see how it’s woven, and it’s so impressive) but it sewed easily. i serged all four sides before sewing the pillow together so there wouldn’t be any chance of unraveling.
the pillow won’t live on our bed permanently; it’ll go on the basement couch. but being a basement, the lighting isn’t really blogworthy. plus i wanted to take some pix to document our new Isaac Sconces, our 11th wedding anniversary present to ourselves (ELEVEN YEARS OMG). we also commissioned some new art by O up on the wall there because potato head cyclops drawings by four year olds are the best. 🙂
my husband and i have been slowly collecting pieces (mostly lighting and accessories) from Schoolhouse Electric here and there over the years. the stuff they sell is high quality and really cool. the store here in town is one of the most inspiring places for me to visit – i just love the atmosphere, even if i can’t buy much (also, it’s attached to both a coffee shop and a florist – smells like heaven in there). we both shopped for each other there at Christmas, and very nearly gave each other the same present! it’s nice to have a very similar style as a couple – it feels kind of impossible to do the whole “minimalist decor” thing with little kids underfoot, but at least in our bedroom we can try.
peaceful oasis and all that.
skirt as top 
Very impressive invisible zipper pattern matching. Love the color scheme too, the lights/wall color/pendelton seem meant to be together. I’m feeling a little sorry for the pillow having to go to the basement. 🙂
thanks kristi! the basement is an okay place for it too, hehe. plus a really rad pillow already lives on our bed, made by my buddy jess (i think she got tendonitis pebble quilting it). 🙂
There fabric is amazing. I shop at the sale in September if I am in Portland. Love your pillow!
awesome! the sales are the only way to go, haha.
Love that wool!! Love the colors and pattern, So so pretty! Had to laugh at the squeezing the pillow into a tiny invisible zipper space…been there! 😉 (and hey lookie that we posted pillows on the same day 😉 ) Those sconces are beautiful! We currently have small lamps on each side of the bed and they are always getting in the way…I’m not sure why I never considered sconces…perhaps because that would involve measuring and drilling etc….haha! Oh and of course…O’s artwork is perfect! 🙂
thanks jane! yeah that was our main objective – to clear off the bedside table space, well that and the awesome sconces. the measuring and drilling wasn’t even too bad! my husband typically hates doing that (getting things even is the worst) but he did a great job with these. 😉
Love the pillow and your bedroom! Just overall perfect.
thanks celina!
11 years? What, did you get married when you were 15???!!! I need to see a pic. Beautiful photos, love the pillow…looks quiet in your house!
haha! close, i was 22. and you know how blog pics are – O was running around yelling in the other room and C was probably trying to eat a sticker someone left on the floor. ;P
I love the colors of the print you chose, and your pattern matching is impeccable! And excellent sconce choice!
thanks so much!
School house electric lights and Pendleton wool pillows…mmmm! have gold/black sconces picked out from there that I want for our living room. Love yours!
such a good combo, eh? gotta love companies that really take pride in their design/craftsmanship and are local to boot. i’m willing to pay a little more for that!
Wow, your bedrooom looks great. love the lights, the bed, the dark wall – and of course the pillow 😉
thank you!
Oh goodness, I love reading your posts so much. And the pillow is awesome!
aw rachel, thanks so much. the feeling is mutual.
Oooooo, that is awesome. Great use of Pendleton, I should make some- our current couch pillows are kind of trashed. I sort of want to cover our whole couch in it, ha!
thanks kelly! heck yeah i’m sure you’ve got some scraps laying around from your various pendleton projects. go for it!
Wow, I love that pillow. Who knew you could by Pendleton’s by the yard?!
i didn’t know either until pretty recently! the store is near my favorite apparel fabric store but i had never gone in – didn’t even realize what i’d been missing.
that is a great cushion! the invisible zipper definitely deserved it’s own close up. I’d also argue against banishing it to the basement, it suits your bedroom perfectly!
haha thanks shelley! our basement is finished and it’s our evening hang out space, so it’s not like it’s going to some dark dank dungeon or anything. it looks cool there too.
gorgeous yummy pillow! and your room looks amazing! Someday I’ll have white woodwork. And a dark focal wall, too. I love those lamps! And congrats on 11 years, that’s way cool. High five to you both!
thanks anna! 🙂
WOW! I love this pillow so much!! The room looks great!
Really lovely – and I’m jealous that you can pop in and shop fabric like this!
Hi Kristin! I absolutely love the pillow you made! I also love the dark color of that accent wall! Do you know what the paint brand/color is? Thanks!
hi anna! thanks! it’s devine penguin, and i love it. here’s a link: https://www.devinecolor.com/shop-trend-proof-colors/gray/color/devine-penguin
Love the look! Where did you get headboard and bedside lighting?
Thanks! Bed frame is from Crate & Barrel (years ago) and bedside lighting is from Schoolhouse Electric (recently!). It’s called the Isaac sconce. 🙂