Awesome Bandana Ideas: DIY Bandana Pillow

A simple, inexpensive DIY bandana pillow project to add fun and color to any spot in your home…

Welcome to “Camp Heathered Nest.” Today in the craft cabin, we’ll be doing an easy and inexpensive DIY project together: creating a Dollar Store bandana pillow!

Bandanas are great to work and craft with. Have you seen all the bandana ideas there are out there? If you haven’t, check out this post with 29 really creative and unique bandana ideas.

Personally, I love creating things with bandanas because they are colorful, nostalgic, and you can buy them at the Dollar Store for…you guessed it…$1!

Oodles of Bandana Ideas to Make

Back to bandanas.

Bandana pillows are on the tutorial docket for today! They are so fun that you can use them for all your bandana decorating ideas (inside the home and outside too).

Bandanas come in a huge variety of colors, so there’s ALWAYS at least one that will work with the rest of your decor. I made the ones I’m showing you today for our son’s room.

Here’s a little video preview…

What Do You Think of When You Hear “Bandana”?

An old western movie? Maybe the cowboy outfit you wore for Halloween when you were 7? Your college boyfriend who wore one when he rode his motorcycle? Brett Michaels from Poison? Andre Agassi? Rambo? Actually, wait…did he wear a bandana, or was it more like the headband from Flashdance?

At any rate, for me, when I think of bananas, I think of the Parent Trap. Not the new version. I mean the Hayley Mills movie. Classic.

The iconic, old-school summer camp with clapboard olive green cabin and orangey wooden sign. The uniforms, canoeing, s’ mores…the whole nine yards.

It seems so perfectly nostalgic! For the record, I never experienced this summer camp type of thing, personally.

And truth be told, I do not care for camping at this point in my life…the bugs, the cold/damp/lack of sleep…I could go on. BUT, my youngest son, “Sweet Cheeks”, he digs anything muddy, buggy, or otherwise “outdoorsy”. Typical boy, he is.

So, when I was working on his room, I thought “bandana”. And, this is how I used them.

How to Make a Bandana Pillow

How do you make a bandana pillow? I’m about to show you, my friend.

For a DIY project as easy as this one, I’m willing to bet you won’t just stop at one pillow 😉!

Here’s the step-by-step walkthrough for making your own DIY bandana pillow.

1. Find bandanas.

The most challenging part of this project is finding the bandanas you want to use.

I’ve looked high and low for the best places to find them when it comes to price and selection. You can find my research results in this post (look in the supplies section).

Bandanas are not only sold in tons of colors but also in different sizes, as well. Make sure you purchase a size that is appropriate for the pillow(s) you plan to make.

Mine were 22″x 22″ and, from that size, I created 16″x 16″ pillows.

Below again are some options for purchasing the bandanas…just click on an image to shop:

Pin

2. Sew Versus No-Sew Bandana Pillow…

Can’t decide? Well, you don’t have to…yet. I have both options for you. Check them out.

Pulling out my sewing machine makes me feel like a bit of a domestic goddess. So whenever there is the need for a simple straight stitch, I get out the machine. Anything harder? I go the no-sew route, or better yet, I just buy it 😉

I chose to sew these bandana pillows and I used the simplest method imaginable:

EASIEST-SEW Method Steps:

1. Place the two “good” sides of 2 bandanas together, and stitch three and a half sides. Use a couple of inches seam allowance (my bandanas were large – 22″ x 22″).
2. Flip the bandanas right-side-out and stuff with Poly-Fil.
3. Hand-stitch the last couple inches, and you’re done! Ta-da!

BETTER SEW Method (Envelope Pillow Cover) Steps:

This option probably creates the “nicest”, most professional-looking product. For an envelope-style pillow cover, you’ll use 3 bandanas instead of 2.

This style is great because the cover is removable and washable!

NO-SEW Bandana Pillow Cover:

The no-sew technique is a fantastic option. I love this simple tutorial from Homey Oh My which will help you create a no-sew envelope pillow cover.

Like with the envelope cover, you’ll be using 3 bandanas. With the no-sew options, you’ll also use a pillow insert and stitch adhesive instead of thread.

Easy breezy!

Bandana Pillow – EASIEST Option:

Buy them instead! How’s that for easy 😂? For real, sometimes buying something is just way more practical than making it, right?

Here are some options:

3. Use Your Bandana Pillow

Now comes the fun part (wait…wasn’t creating it fun? Why yes it was – now you get to enjoy the fruits of your labor). Use your bandana pillows in all your bandana decorating ideas.

Our bandana pillows have taken a beating and still look amazing, no matter how we decorate with them. They can usually be found strewn around his room, being used for lounging, or this, that…

and the other.

A favorite spot for them is in Sweet Cheeks’ little play tent. He camps out in there with his little lantern, his Spot lift-the-flap books, and munches on the felt s’ mores he cooks over his little felt campfire!

Now that you know how to make some bandana pillows, GO BANDANAS!

And certainly, if you like the Parent Trap, or a vintage camping, fishing, outdoorsy theme, I say definitely go for it!

For $8 a pillow (or less!), this DIY bandana idea is pretty great.

More Bandana Ideas to Make:

• DIY bandana pumpkins
• Bandana garland decoration
• Reusable bandana wrapping paper

Pin this post for later! And if you make one, leave a comment (or better yet, a photo) on the pin! That helps others know whether they want to try this project, too!