How to Make Designer Look-Alike Painted Pillows - Southern State of Mind Blog by Heather

Today I am sharing the pattern I can’t stop swooning over, and a perfect quarantine project to try! If you have been around here long, you know that this pattern has become my “go-to” for adding a little something to my rooms. Read on to see how to make these Les Touches designer fabric look-alike painted pillows!

Remember that time I found a pair of thrifted chairs for $2.02 and hand painted the chair seats and I used them in my Dining Room makeover and they lived happily ever after?

And then that one time I painted a massive piece of art in my guest room and it lived happily ever after?

And that one time I gave the front porch a spring spruce up for $20 and this planter got a sweet little Les Touches inspired makeover?

And then recently there was yet another tale of something living happily ever after, this time with a pair of pillows on our kitchen seating banquette.

Hopefully you recognize a common theme of spotted goodness on all three of these spots in our home. Today I am going to share how I made these items. But before I do, let’s take a deeper look at the source of my inspiration.

THE INSPIRATION

The first time I ever saw this fabric, my heart skipped a beat- its called BRUNSCHWIG & FILS LES TOUCHES BLUE FABRIC. And I think it is perfection.

However, it’s about $125 a yard, which is not exactly in my day to day budget.

Source

It also comes in wallpaper- how classic is this?

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And in a variety of colors including blue, green, black, brown, pink and orange.

SOURCE

HOW I DIY THIS PATTERN

I always love to figure out ways to recreate expensive things and this has turned out to be an easy and fun one! Below, I will break down how I painted these pillows.

Supplies:

Plain Pillow Covers (here is an inexpensive pair from Amazon)
Navy Acrylic Paint or Fabric Paint (I used fabric paint on the pillows so I could wash them, but I used regular paint on the chair covers)
Small angled paintbrush

Step 1:

Collect supplies listed above. I am using a pair of pillow covers here that I had on hand. To avoid the paint from bleeding through I slipped a trash bag between the fabric panels. Then I just grabbed a small angled paintbrush and navy fabric paint.

Step 2: Pull up pattern for inspiration

In order to get the “look” of this fun pattern, I pulled it up on my computer so that I could use it for inspiration. For these pillows, I actually just pulled in the chair I had already done for reference.

Step 3: Painting time

Start painting- I like to start near the center and work my way out across both sides. I also start with the larger strokes and then fill in with the smaller. The key is to make the strokes feel as natural looking as possible.

Step 4:

Just keep working your way around the pillow until it’s done. I like to stop and reevaluate pretty often. Of course it’s always easy to add more later, so start with the “less is more” approach.

That’s all!

Is it perfect? Nope. Is it better than plain pillows? Yep! Remember to just have fun with it! I would NOT try this on something expensive. But if you have some old pillows, or extra plain fabric- then go for it! I always figure- what do I have to lose? Maybe you have an old lamp that could use a little something-something? Maybe you have a blank canvas that you could paint and add to your built ins? I am planning on painting a pair of mismatched bulletin boards soon with this pattern… the possibilities are endless!