DOG BEDS

I had to take time out from my Halloween quilt in order to deal with a crisis in dog beds.

“This is our home,” I whined to Mike as we looked over our motley collection of dog pillows, most of them quite badly deteriorated. I felt strongly that we should buy a fresh new pillow, and then I found myself sitting on the back step with a ripper, removing the top of a large Kirkland pillow. We had inherited it used with one of the dogloos. It was a decent pillow until Bess ripped the top to pieces. I reasoned that all it needed was a new top and it would once again provide comfort for canine bones.

So, as Mike and Ken left with the dogs for a hunt, I headed out to Walmart. I found what I thought was a great value and I chose two pillows with time-consuming care, but as I put them in the car, I realized they were indeed quite cheaply made. The backing was a pellon-like fabric, more like paper, and I knew it would not stand up to the rough handling that both of our dogs will inflict.

But did I take them back? No! I went on to Jo-Ann Fabrics with the thought of making covers for them.

At Jo-Ann’s, I bought enough of a furry knit to cover the big Kirkland pillow. Then, I searched the “red tag” sale fabrics, which were half off the already reduced price, and found a heavy home dec fabric to make covers for the new pillows. The paisley design was not something I would ordinarily choose, but on the other hand, the neutral color was really quite nice. I bought four yards at $4.00 a yard.

Back at home, I cut the furry fabric into a 45-inch circle, which should have worked, but it proved to be too large. I trimmed an inch off, and still struggled with too much fabric. Then I noticed that the good sewists of China just scrunched it in and made it work. Not to be outdone, I made the necessary scrunches and stitched the top in place. Voila! One refreshed old pillow. I just knew Nellie would love it.

Mike came home with the dogs about 2:00. Nellie was exhausted – so tired she didn’t even want to move. Mike prepared her chow, and then he and Ken took off at 3:00 to hunt again, taking Bess but leaving Nellie behind. Nellie ate a little of her dinner and then, ignoring the pillows, she stretched out to rest on the living room floor.

I wanted to get back to my Halloween quilt, but I decided I should cover those two new Walmart pillows, knowing that if I put it off, it would be put off forever. As luck would have it, the pillows were 27” by 36” and my fabric was 54” wide. How easy! A one-yard cut would cover a pillow. Then I faced a challenge in that I broke the zipper I had intended to install. I didn’t want to buy a zipper because it would add significantly to the cost of this project – and I really wanted to finish. I sat down to contemplate my dilemma, and the answer came as if spoken – “just sew it closed.” Naturally, it was a great solution!

Nellie was still resting on the living room floor, but now as I passed through the room she would wag her tail. The afternoon was slipping away, but I didn’t want this project left over for another day, so I cut another length and stitched up a cover for the second pillow.

Nellie finally chose to curl up on the big pillow for her evening nap, and Bess stretched out next to her.

By the way, Mike separated the dogs Thursday evening, putting Nellie in her old barrel house and Bess in the dogloo. However, last night Nellie chose to be with Bess in the dogloo. KW