the Pouf

Form and Function (and pretty), the Pouf

I had a mess with these foam floor tile thingies that kept falling out of their storage spot.  Mostly it was just annoying.

And, it has been like this for a long time.  I recently had my front deck rebuilt and put in a new railing.  The new look had me inspired to use my deck differently.  I bought an outdoor rug from Target and then started shopping for poufs.  I already had the furniture I liked, but thought it needed something, just a little something to go with it. That's when I got the idea to solve two problems with one project.  

Not only does this spot look better now, but I can also move that thing around and use it for different tasks.  It is a great foot rest for when I am sitting and hand quilting.  It also works great to stand on to reach the high spots on my design wall.  AND, it looks fantastic outside on the deck (where it was designed to be used).  

The making of the pouf took me a long time, though it shouldn't have.  However, spring is happening here, and I have been spending many many hours every day outside, inspecting the new buds, trimming off the brown bits of plants, raking live oak tree leaves, transplanting, weeding, and spreading compost everywhere.  The garden is shaping up beautifully! And it lifts my soul to be working outside.  And then I am too tired to do anything else...which is okay, because there is no deadline for making a pouf!

The selection of fabrics and cutting went quickly. That lovely dark brown is such a nice contrast for the florals and pale blues.  And, it goes great with the new deck railing color!

Then came the quilting, which took longer. I decided to try different quilting ideas on the different sides, just for fun, and just for practice!

Then came the trimming to size, and since I was cutting through the quilting lines, I needed to zig-zag all the edges. 

For such a small project, it seemed to have a lot of surface area.  Here are the pieces stitched together before adding the zipper.

Yep, the zipper is really BIG!

The moment of truth, will all the foam floor tiles fit inside?

Yes, YES THEY DO!  The bag is a little loose, which makes it easy to put the floor tiles inside.  I think it would look better if I stitched those seams a little bit smaller, but it functions better with a little slack in it.  So, it will stay loose.  Also, when this thing gets dirty (and it will get dirty!), I can unzip, and toss it in the washing machine! YEASS!!

you can see the zipper on this side

the other side, with more colorful florals

Thanks for stopping by.  I can now return my attention back to quilting (well, and, um, the garden!)