Make it Modern Pillows – March 2026 Tutorial

It’s Jamie again from Sew Brainy Designs! It’s year 5 of my Make it Modern Pillows series! I’m so excited and I have some fun designs in store for this year! In case you missed the previous pillow fun, you can click the links below. We also have a fun Facebook Group so we can all sew along together!

February’s block had some floating 3D rectangles.

March’s block has retro rectangle frames.

For my low volume background, I went with Lucky Charms by Melissa Mortenson from Hush Hush 5 for this one.

These colors are very spring!

The rectangles kind of look like rainbows.

I used the Malachite pantograph by Patricia Ritter on my longarm for this fantastic texture!

This month’s pillow features the Dainty Daisy basics line by Bev McCullough.

Lots of good colors!

Now let’s make a pillow!

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March 2026 Pillow Tutorial

Pattern Notes

• Please read through all instructions before beginning.
• Seam allowances are 1/4″ unless specified.
• Press all seams open (or in preferred direction).

Material Requirements

For the block (pillow top):

This pattern uses (1) BACKGROUND fabric [FABRIC A] and (6) ACCENT fabrics [FABRICS B-G]. Below are the requirements to make ONE 18″ block.

For the pillow body:

• (1) 22-24″ square piece of muslin or other fabric (for quilting the top)
• (1) 22-24″ square piece of batting (for quilting the top)
• (2) 13½” × 18½” pieces of backing fabric (for the pillow envelope)
• (1) 18″-20″ pillow form (my favorite one to use is the FJÄDRAR from IKEA!). I always use a pillow form that is one size larger than my pillow case to make sure it’s extra full.

Cutting Directions

From BACKGROUND FABRIC A, cut:

• (6) 3½” squares [A1]

From ACCENT FABRICS B-E, cut:

• (1) 2½″ × 6½″ [B6-G6]
• (1) 2½″ × 5½″ [B4-G4]
• (1) 2½″ × 4½″ [B2-G2]
• (1) 1½″ × 7½″ [B5-G5]
• (1) 1½″ × 5½″ [B3-G3]
• (1) 1½″ × 3½″ [B1-G1]

Piecing Directions

1. Lay out (1) A1, F1, and F2 as shown below. Sew the F1 to the LEFT of the A1 square. Press the seam.

2. Sew the F2 to the BOTTOM of the unit. Press the seam.

3. Lay out the previous unit along with D3 and D4 as shown below. Sew the D3 to the LEFT of the unit. Press the seam.

4. Sew the D4 to the BOTTOM of the unit. Press the seam.

5. Lay out the previous unit along with B5 and B6 as shown below. Sew the B5 to the LEFT of the unit. Press the seam.

6. Sew the B6 to the BOTTOM of the unit. Press the seam. This is the RIGHT FACING block.

7. Repeat STEPS 1-6 to create two additional RIGHT FACING blocks.

8. Lay out (1) A1, E1, and E2 as shown below. Sew the E1 to the RIGHT of the A1 square. Press the seam.

9. Sew the E2 to the BOTTOM of the unit. Press the seam.

10. Lay out the previous unit along with G3 and G4 as shown below. Sew the G3 to the RIGHT of the unit. Press the seam.

11. Sew the G4 to the BOTTOM of the unit. Press the seam.

12. Lay out the previous unit along with C5 and C6 as shown below. Sew the C5 to the RIGHT of the unit. Press the seam.

13. Sew the C6 to the BOTTOM of the unit. Press the seam. This is the LEFT FACING block.

14. Repeat STEPS 3-13 to create two additional LEFT FACING blocks.

15. Lay out the (3) RIGHT FACING blocks and the (3) LEFT FACING BLOCKS into TWO rows as shown below. Sew all THREE pieces together in each row and press the seams.

16. Sew the TWO rows together and press the seam.

17. Your pillow top is now complete!

18. Layer the completed block on top of the 22-24″ batting and muslin squares and quilt the pillow top as desired. When you are done, trim the block to 18½”.

Note – if you add dense quilting, your top may shrink a bit in size. Just trim it to the largest square that you can. You can trim the width of envelope backing fabric a bit in the next step if needed in order to match your actual top size.

19. Create a finished edge on the long side of each of the (2) 13½″ × 18½” pieces of envelope backing by folding 1/2″ of fabric over the wrong side TWICE. Stitch a seam near the edge to secure it.

20. With the square top facing up, layer the envelope pieces RST on top of it as shown below and sew a 3/8″ seam around the edge of the pillow top.

21. Trim the edges of the corners a bit to reduce bulk. Turn the pillow case inside out and insert your pillow form. Your pillow is now done! Enjoy your fun modern make!

I can’t wait to see all the beautiful pillows everyone makes! They can be very addicting! Be sure to share them on social media! #makeitmodernpillows #iloverileyblake #sewbrainydesigns.

If you check out my blog, I have some more color mockups and some freebie coloring pages you can download. Plus a sneak peek of a companion quilt pattern for this block that’s coming soon!

I’ll see you in April with some rainbows! Don’t forget to join us in the Facebook Group!

Until later, happy quilting!

Jamie