Create A Denim Fish Pillow: Easy Steps with Free Pattern
Turn old denim into a delightful fish pillow with our DIY guide and free fish pillow pattern. It's a fun, sustainable craft project.
I got inspired to make a fish pillow from a trip to Portugal.
Every summer, I visit my parents in Portugal; I love to spend an afternoon strolling around the local gift stores. Fish is the predominant theme for Portuguese gifts, probably because they eat more fish than anyone else.
My fish pillow, of course, had to be made from repurposed fabrics. I used my two favourite materials for recycling denim and sweater felt.
Fun Fish Pillow DIY From Upcycled Jeans
Using a pair of jeans for these fish pillows allowed me to use the exciting bits. Such as seams, buttons, and pockets to add details to the fish. I was also able to bleach stencil fish scales onto the denim fabric.
I've included the pattern for these denim pillows so you can easily make them yourself. And in other fabrics besides denim if you prefer.
Combining denim with other fabrics to make attractive pillows is popular upcycle of mine. In the past, I've combined denim with sari trim to make boho jeans pillows—denim with wool to make fabric placemats and an iPhone denim pocket pillow.
These fish pillows are featured under the letter F in the A to Z of repurposed jeans ideas.
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What You Need to Make a Fish Pillow
- Paper pattern - Draw your own to the desired size, or download mine here.
- A pair of jeans or denim scraps from several pairs of jeans. Or other fabrics if you prefer
- Small piece of felted sweater fabric (see here how to felt sweaters), or other fabric.
- Fiberfill - I use old pillows for this.
- Needle and thread
- Household bleach
- Fish Scale Stencil
How to make a denim fish pillow
Step 1: First, make a paper pattern template. I drew my fish onto paper and then cut it into different sections: tail, head, body, and fin.
I have scanned the pattern I used, which you can download and print out and use. Note the body template of the fish would not fit on one side of the paper, so it has been printed over two pages.
Step 2: Place the paper pattern onto the material and draw around, allowing for a 1cm seam allowance. Then cut out the shape.
Flip over the paper pattern and do the same again; you will need two pieces of fabric for each body part.
I used denim fabric for the fish's body, tail and fins. For the head, I used the felted sweater fabric.
To make the bleached scales on the denim fabric.
Step 3: Place the stencil onto the cut-out denim body. Using a foam brush, paint bleach onto the stencil. Leave for about 20mins to allow the bleach to work, then wash and dry the denim fabric.
Top tip: If you prefer to use paint for the stencil, check out my tutorial with my stencilled denim table runner.
Step 4: Lay out the fish pieces for each side and then sew them together. This is also the time to sew embellishments to the fish, such as a fin on the body or an eye.
I used the button from the jeans as the eye for the fish pillow. I just cut up a bit of the jeans pocket for the fin.
Step 5: Next, pin the two sides of the fish right sides together and sew. Leave an open gap of about 3 inches in the belly of the fish.
Step 6: Using the hole you have left, turn the fish pillow right side out and stuff it with fibre. Once you have finished stuffing the pillow, stitch up the hole.
Step 7: Finally, you can leave your fish pillow as is or add further embellishments, such as glueing denim seams to the body to add further detail.
I loved the repurposed denim fish pillow so much that I made another one. The pillows look more interesting if you use denim from multiple pairs of jeans; that way, you get lots of lovely shades of indigo.
When placed outside on my sofa with shibori dyeing outside, they look like the fish are swimming in the sea. They also match the Shibori indigo planters I made.
Making denim pillows is one of my favourite things to do with old jeans; I've made a denim world map cushion and a woven denim pillow, to name a few. They also look great with my repurposed jeans rugs.
Check out all these other wonderful-shaped pillow cover design ideas and my collection of adult summer crafts.
I used the same fish scale stencil when making these Japanese denim windsock fish. For some more whimsical ocean-themed crafts, check out these cute scrap fabric DIY jellyfish and these scallop shell bookends.
For more free home sewing projects, check out allfreesewing.com
These are gorgeous Claire, would look perfect in a bathrom (although I think my cat Boo would be very interested in them too!) Xx
Thank you, Lins.
I love these pillows! I really love fish and denim is the perfect fabric for them! I really like how you incorporated parts of the original jeans into the fish, for example the button eyes and the pocket flap fins! So creative, thanks for sharing! 🙂 Lisa
Thank you, Lisa. I love to use as many different parts of a pair of jeans in my denim upcycle projects as possible, I think it gives them character.
Was amazed to see a project that I had missed thinking it was from last year, and now I see it was just from a few weeks ago, amazing! i'm so inspired by the idea of using the stencil to bleach the fabric, amazing. I'm adding this to the features of craft schooling Sunday, just can't resist!
Thank you so much and thanks for the feature.
What a fun idea and a great upcycle project. These are great for summer decor. This was the most clicked from our last Snickerdoodle Party and all of the co-hosts will be featuring your repurposed denim fish pillows at today's party. Hope you'll join us!
Thank you so much. That is lovely to hear, and yes I will be there.
Love these - and agree the different denim works well, as do the scales. They've got a distinct feel of portugal about them, are smart but ugly enough to be authentic fishes (not ugly ugly of course!) #homeetc
Thank you, I know what you mean about ugly fish!
Claire you are the queen of denim. You can repurpose it into anything at all!
Thank you, Mary. I still have a pile of old jeans calling out to be repurposed.
these are so cute !! you are so creative!
Thank you so much.
Oh wow! Super cute and I love the use of the stencil. Portugal is such a colorful country. There's the blue and white that seems to be everywhere and then there's the iconic colorful rooster. Thanks for sharing with us at Creatively Crafty #ccbg 🙂
Thank you. Yes Portugal is very colourful, they do like their blue and white tiles. Very sunny too.
These are great, and they do look brilliant on your lovely outside seating. I've seen quite a lot of fish decor items around, they are really fun.
Thank you, Julie. They do look good outside especially with this lovely weather we are having.
The Queen of Denim strikes again and in such an awesome way 😉 Love your fish Claire. OMW they look amazing. Such a fun and unique idea
Ahh, thank you Michelle. Still plenty more denim upcycles to come.
What a fun project, Claire, and a great way to utilise the hard to use bits of jeans. The scales totally make the fish pillows. Showcased today.
Thank you so much Pam and thanks for the feature.
These would be great at a beach or lake house.
Thank you, they do have that summer holiday feel about them.
Love these, I once made something similar with watercolor on cotton sheet material for Father's day table display with vintage fishing gear.
Thank you. That sounds like a really fun table scape.
Great project as a gift for friends who have a lake home ~ thanks!
Thank you Martha. Yes they would look great in a holiday home.
Such a cute idea! You could even just do some shibori reverse bleaching if you don't have a stencil. I like that they can be hung by a rope when not in use.
https://www.madebybarb.com/2017/07/24/diy-denim-reverse-shibori/
Thank you. I love shibori but haven’t tried the reverse I’ll have to check it out.