How to make a throw pillow cover with zippered back

These pillows are 18x18.

You can make your pillow cover whatever size your pillow form is....14x14, 16x16.

I started with these cute panels by Good Company.

Choose your pillow center and cut the blocks apart.  

Trimmed that block to have a 1/8th inch edge all the way around.

Now measure your center block.  Decide how much of a border you need to make your 

pillow top 14, 16 or 18".  In this case, I'm going to make mine 18".

You can do one big border, or several borders....it's your creation...

My first border is 2".  Lay your first border strip over the width of the panel piece.

Trim piece so it matches at both edges.  

Fold your panel in half and your border piece in half.  Press to make a mark.

Now pin one piece to top, matching edges and center pressed marks.

Sew.  (I used 1/4" seam throughout.)  Repeat this process with the bottom.

(As you sew each border piece on, always press a center mark to line up with.)

Press with seam toward border.

To make side borders, lay 2" strip top to bottom and cut to be the same length 

as panel, with the top and bottom borders added on.  Sew as you did above.

First border now added.  Press with seams toward the border.

Add your next border.  Your final top should measure the same size as your pillow form.  

Now to make the pillow back!

You will need one piece that is 18x18", and one piece that is 18x4".  

(If you are making a different size pillow it would be 14x4" or 16x4")

Place 4" piece, right sides together, on top of one edge of 18x18 piece.

Mark 1.5" from edge.

Lay zipper centered on this line.  Mark both ends of zipper with a dot or intersecting line.

When sewing this seam, you will use a basting stitch between your zipper marks.

Regular stitch to first mark, basting to the second mark, regular stitch to end.

Press this seam open.  

For the rest of the pillow back, you will only be working on these seamed pieces.

So, fold your 4" piece back out of the way and press seam again.

Now, fold the seam edge to 1/4-1/8"

 (no need to measure, you just need an edge big enough to sew a zipper to)

Center you zipper (face up) and sew it to this folded seam.

Next, flip the zipper face down and sew to the other seamed edge.

(ignore the 18x18 back of pillow.  You are only attaching this to the 1.5" seam)

You did it!

Press pillow back and mark a line 3/4", toward larger portion of pillow back, above seam.

Top stitch, across the entire back piece, on this line.

Trim the back up to make an 18x18 piece.  

If you need to take any cuts, trim from larger of two pieces.

Open the basting stitches to expose your zipper.

 When you sew the back to the completed top, you will need to leave the zipper open, 

so you will have a way to turn it right sides out.