Custom Throw Pillows

My bedroom has 3 windows above the bed. They let in a lot of light from the street lamp and even more from the moon. So we put curtains up to cover them almost immediatly.

There wasn't really a great way to open the curtains (maybe we could have done a wrap to pinch them in the center?) so the windows always stayed covered. Which basically made it that we didn't have windows. But these curtains were not blackout, so while they were good at night, the room was too bright to nap during the day.

You can see in that picture we also didn't have curtains. Well, there is a flagpole across the street that the guy keeps a spotlight on all night (as I guess he should). That spotlight comes in through the crack in the blinds at EXACTLY eye level to where I sleep (the window side is my side of the bed). Kevin can't see it, but curtains were a priority for me. (Once I put a t-shirt over the blinds, they became a priority for Kevin.)

A few months ago we got curtains, and I think they added a lovely finished look to the room. But they didn't match the small curtains. And the small curtains weren't really working as well as I'd like.

So I got another panel of the curtains, with the idea to make a set of small curtains.  But then watching movies in the living room, I had the goofy idea to stick the throw pillows into the square windows in our kitchen that glare on the TV.  And they blocked out all the light. And filled the window well almost completely.

I realized I had a solution. Instead of making curtains, I could make pillows.  And they fill the window almost completely (just a little light around the edges). The room is nearly black- which make napping very easy.

But even better is that I can take them out of the windows during the day, and use them as throw pillows on the bed. So my bed looks fancy, and the windows let light in.   

Since we were going to use them as throw pillows, it was important they be washable- the dog hair gets everywhere. So I made pillow forms and then put an invisible zipper in the seam and the curtain fabric is a pillow case.  The curtain cost $23.79, the zippers $0.60 each, the fiberfill was $12 for a 5-pound box (and I have about half left)- so the pillows were about $10.50 each.  Pretty good price for made to match, custom pillows. It would have been hard to find throw pillows on sale for that amount. And now I also have window coverings!

Did the gushing blog post give off how excited I am about this?