DIY · Sewing · Christmas ·
Sewing a Linen Christmas Cushion a simple fir tree cushion in Scandinavian country style
There is a particular hour in December when the light outside turns blue and the first candles are lit indoors. The tree is up, tea is steaming on the side table, and the sitting room suddenly feels smaller and warmer. The Christmas cushion “Fir” is made for exactly that hour: a simple linen cushion with a sage green fir tree, held in place with a few visible hand stitches.
Natural linen, sage and a little wool felt trunk – that is all the cushion needs.
It is not a loud Christmas cushion. No red, no glitter, no reindeer with pompom noses. Just natural linen, sage and a small wool felt trunk. And that is precisely why it can stay – not only over the holidays, but from early December well into January.
In this post I’ll show you what lies behind the cushion: which fabrics make it look so calm, how the fir tree gets onto the linen, which size suits which sofa and how to style it through the winter. The complete instructions with a full-size pattern are in the sewing magazine “Christmas Cushion ‘Fir’” – more on that further down.
Why an appliqué rather than a tree-shaped cushion?
Search for Christmas cushions and you’ll quickly find cushions shaped like a Christmas tree: triangular, stuffed, often with a star on top. They’re pretty, but they are really an ornament. You put them on the sofa, and after a few days they end up in a corner because you can’t properly lean against them.
The Christmas cushion “Fir” takes a different route. It is an ordinary square sofa cushion – one you lean against, rest your head on, hug during a film night. The fir tree sits on the front as a flat appliqué. So the cushion stays a cushion, and Christmas joins in very quietly.
There is another advantage: the shape is so simple that it suits almost any interior. In a Scandinavian sitting room it looks clear and calm, in a country home it settles in among knitwear, wood and linen, and even in a more modern flat it never looks as if it’s wearing fancy dress.
The colours: natural linen, sage and greige
The cushion lives on a very small palette. The cover is made from linen in a warm oatmeal shade – not bright white, not beige, but somewhere in between. The tree is sage green, a muted, slightly grey green that recalls fir needles in winter light and never looks harsh. The trunk is a small piece of wool felt in greige, a blend of grey and beige. Add cream embroidery thread and you’re done.
That’s all. No fourth colour, no shine. It is exactly this restraint that makes the cushion so versatile. Next to a sheepskin, a chunky knitted throw or a pile of books it looks right straight away. And when the decorations go back into their box in January, the fir tree still looks like winter rather than forgotten Christmas décor.
If you like things even quieter, sew the tree tone on tone: a cream tree on oatmeal linen. Up close you see the shape, from a distance only a fine texture. Two cushions side by side – one with a sage tree, one with a cream tree – make a lovely pair.
Sage and cream: two fir trees, one quiet pair.
Why linen?
For a cushion that is meant to spend the whole winter on the sofa, linen is a very good choice. It is hard-wearing, gets softer with every wash and has that typical, slightly irregular weave with little slubs. It is exactly this texture that gives a simple appliqué depth: the flat fir tree sits on a lively surface and so looks less stuck on and more like part of the fabric.
Linen is also allowed to crease. A linen cushion needn’t look pressed smooth like something from a catalogue. A few soft folds belong to it and make the cushion cosier.
Only one thing matters: wash your linen once before you sew. Linen shrinks the first time it is washed. If you sew the cover from unwashed fabric and wash it later, it will shrink and no longer fit the cushion pad properly. So wash both linens – the one for the cover and the one for the tree – the way you intend to wash the finished cushion, then press them smooth. Only then do you cut.
Oatmeal linen, sage linen, a scrap of wool felt and cream embroidery thread.
The principle: ironed on and stitched by hand
The fir tree comes together in two steps, and both are very manageable for beginners.
First it is ironed onto the linen with double-sided fusible web. Fusible web is a thin adhesive layer on backing paper. You draw the shape on the paper, iron the web onto the back of the sage linen, cut out the tree, peel off the paper and iron it onto the cushion front. After that it sits firmly and won’t slip.
Then comes the nicest part: the tree is stitched down all the way round with a running stitch by hand, about half a centimetre inside the edge. Running stitch is the simplest hand stitch there is – the needle simply goes up and down at even intervals. The stitches may be a little irregular. That is exactly the charm: you can see that the cushion was made at home, at the kitchen table.
The cut edge of the tree stays raw. Thanks to the fusible web it hardly frays, and the few fine threads that loosen after the first wash make the tree look even more natural.
Up close: raw edge, cream running stitch, lively linen texture.
The envelope back: no zip needed
Many beginners shy away from cushion covers because they don’t want to insert a zip. With the Christmas cushion “Fir” that isn’t an issue. The back is made from two pieces that overlap in the middle – an envelope closure.
Each back piece gets a simple double-folded hem. Then the front and back pieces are sewn right sides together, turned out – and the cushion pad simply slides in through the overlap. The cover comes off just as easily when it needs a wash.
You’ll need a sewing machine for the cover, but only for straight seams. The fir tree itself is stitched entirely by hand. That makes it an ideal project for a quiet winter evening: the machine work is done quickly, and the rest is relaxing handwork on the sofa.
Three sizes: 40, 45 and 50 cm
The sewing magazine includes the cushion in three sizes: 40 × 40, 45 × 45 and 50 × 50 cm. The tree grows with it, so that including the trunk it takes up about two thirds of the cushion’s height in every size.
Which size suits you?
- 40 × 40 cm is the classic size for armchairs, benches and smaller sofas. It also makes a good present, as it fits into almost any home.
- 45 × 45 cm is the all-rounder for a standard sofa and the size for which it’s easiest to find a matching cushion pad.
- 50 × 50 cm looks generous on deep sofas, daybeds or on the bed.
The difference in size is subtler than you might think: the smallest cushion is only about a fifth smaller than the largest. Together on a bench or a sofa, all three look like a family rather than a random collection.
Three sizes, one family – on the bench in the hallway.
How to style your Christmas cushion
A calm cushion doesn’t need a grand setting. A few ideas:
On the sofa in front of the tree. The cushion against a pale linen sofa cover, with a chunky knitted throw and a sheepskin beside it. In the background the tree with warm white fairy lights and a few simple fabric ornaments. Nothing more is needed.
On the bench in the hallway. Three cushions in the three sizes side by side on an old white-painted bench, a basket in front, a lantern with a candle and an enamel jug of fresh fir sprigs beside it. That way Christmas begins at the front door.
In the armchair by the window. A single cushion in the reading chair, a pile of books and a cup of tea next to it. Especially in the afternoon, when there’s frost on the flowerbeds outside, it becomes a little retreat.
As a tone-on-tone pair. One cushion with a sage tree, one with a cream tree. One looks festive, the other almost neutral – and together they look particularly harmonious.
Make sure there isn’t too much competition around it. The cushion looks best among matt, natural materials: linen, wool, wood, ceramics. Shiny baubles or gold accents would drown out the quiet fir tree.
A present that stays
A hand-sewn cushion is a wonderful Christmas present – above all because it doesn’t look like a token gift but like something that will stay for a long time. Wrapped in plain brown paper, tied with cotton cord and finished with a small gift tag, it already looks special before it’s opened. A fir sprig tucked under the cord is all the decoration it needs.
If you’d like to give a cushion, 40 × 40 cm is usually the safest choice. And remember to wrap a matching cushion pad too – then it can go straight onto the sofa.
Brown paper, cord, a little tag – and the present is ready.
Goes with the 24 tree ornaments
The Christmas cushion “Fir” is the second issue of the Villa Bloom Christmas Collection. The first issue is the 24 tree ornaments: eight simple shapes in linen and wool felt, including a fir tree, star, heart and bauble, with the same visible decorative stitching. If a few of them hang on the tree behind the sofa, the cushion picks up their colours and stitches, and the whole sitting room feels all of a piece.
Both projects share the same idea: Christmas decorations that don’t need to sparkle to be beautiful. Things you sew yourself, love to touch and bring out again every year.
Care: so the cushion lasts many winters
You can wash the cover inside out at 30 °C on a gentle cycle and then let it air-dry. Follow the instructions on your fusible web packaging. Iron it from the wrong side, ideally while slightly damp. Don’t iron the wool felt trunk on a hot setting – lay a cloth over it.
Washed after Christmas and stored dry, the cushion is ready again next December. Or it simply stays where it is until spring arrives.
So much for the short version. If you’d like to sew the cushion exactly as it appears in the pictures, the magazine Christmas Cushion “Fir” – Villa Bloom Christmas Collection No. 02 has everything technical.
The sewing magazine: Christmas Cushion “Fir”
- Eight illustrated steps
- Full-size pattern for all three sizes
- Cutting and fabric tables, a little sewing glossary
- Tips, common mistakes, colour ideas & care · English & German
Frequently asked questions about the Christmas cushion
Where can I get the pattern for the Christmas cushion?
The complete instructions with a full-size pattern are available as the PDF sewing magazine “Christmas Cushion ‘Fir’” in the Villa Bloom shop on Etsy. You can download the files straight after purchase – in English and German.
Is the cushion suitable for beginners?
Yes. The cover uses only straight seams, and the envelope back needs no zip. The fir tree is ironed on and stitched down with running stitch – the simplest hand stitch there is.
Do I need to wash the linen first?
Yes, please. Linen shrinks the first time it is washed. Wash both linens before cutting and press them smooth. Then the cover will still fit the cushion pad after its first wash.
Which fusible web should I use?
You’ll need double-sided fusible web with backing paper, the kind used for appliqué. Several brands make it – just follow the temperature and pressing time on the packaging.
Can I stitch the tree down by machine?
You can, for example with a short straight stitch just inside the edge. The cushion’s particular character, though, comes from the visible, slightly irregular hand stitching in cream.
Which cushion size should I sew?
For armchairs and small sofas choose 40 × 40 cm, for a standard sofa 45 × 45 cm, and for large sofas, daybeds or the bed 50 × 50 cm. All three sizes are included in the pattern.
May I sell cushions I have sewn?
Yes, in small quantities, as long as you credit “Villa Bloom & Co. by Jona” as the designer. The instructions and pattern themselves may not be passed on.
A quiet piece of Christmas
Some Christmas decorations feel like too much the moment the holidays are over. The Christmas cushion “Fir” isn’t one of them. It brings a little winter forest to the sofa without raising its voice – and every time you lean against it, it reminds you that it was made by hand.
If you sew your cushion, I’d love to see it on Instagram or Pinterest – tag @villa_bloomandcobyjona and #villabloom.
Your Christmas Cushion “Fir”
Sewing magazine with a full-size pattern in three sizes – an instant-download PDF in English and German.
View it on Etsy now →– Jona
About the author
Jona · Villa Bloom & Co.
I write about country style, the garden, the terrace and cosy living – from genuine conviction and my own experience. Everything I recommend here I've tried myself. More about me →
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