Yo-Yo Pillows from Feedsack Scraps!

I discovered this vintage yo-yo-pillow in an Amish town in Indiana a few years ago. Known for their resourcefulness, Amish quilters use every bit of fabric available to make their quilts. Leftover scraps from larger projects are never thrown away but rather made into items to sell or use in the household.

This yo-yo pillow was made from vintage cotton and feedsack fabrics and is a lovely keepsake. Many beautiful yo-yo pillows were made over the years and I always look for them when searching for treasures at an antique mall or flea market sale.

Yo-yo's are made from circles cut from scraps. The edge of each fabric circle is turned under, stitched around using a running stitch, then pulled tight and knotted. Yo-yo's can be sewn together to make quilts, pillows, or other creative items. This technique was especially popular in the 1940's and 50's and in recent years has had a resurgence. It is frequently used by quilters today!

Making yo-yo's is a wonderful sewing craft for any age. Children can easily accomplish the steps! When I was a young girl in Brownie Scouts, our leader taught us to make yo-yo's which we turned into flowers by adding pipe cleaners for stems. Our leader poured wax into tiny pots and placed the "stems" into the wax until it set up. These "plants" were given to our mothers for Mothers Day. We were so proud to be able to make such beautiful gifts at age eight years old!