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The Daily Insight

What is a knife edge pillow

Author

Andrew Campbell

Published Feb 19, 2026

A knife edge pillow is one with a seam without a decorative finish. It tapers to sharp, crisp edges and corners, creating a very simple, clean, polished look. These types of shams are typically made with an envelope closure or sometimes a hidden zipper, especially if it’s more of a decorative style pillow.

What's the difference between box edge and knife edge?

You can enclose knife-edge pillows with a zipper that matches your fabric choice, or with an envelope back. Box edge pillows have a top, bottom and are either cylindrical or have four sides. Rather than two pieces of fabric that meet at an edge, they have a long edge that creates a pillow with depth and dimension.

What is the edging on cushions called?

A welt is a decorative ridge around a cushion, usually filled with a thin rope to help it keep its form. The welt may be made of the same fabric as the cushion, or a different fabric and color entirely for a decorative embellishment.

What is a flange pillow?

A flanged pillow — one with a flat border around the plump middle part — is more decorative than a regular knife-edge pillow, without being much more difficult to sew. It makes a nice showcase for your chosen fabric, and an interesting contrast to plainer pillow designs when arranged together on your bed or sofa.

How do you finish the edge of a pillow?

A common way to close a pillow is to hand stitch the fourth side of the pillow closed. This is the best method to use when you want the edges of the pillow to appear the same on every side and if you either don’t plan on removing the pillow or want to use stuffing rather than a pillow form, as you sew it inside.

What does a box edge cushion look like?

BOX EDGE. The box edge cushion has a vertical side panel between the top and bottom cushion pieces. It sits square on the piece of furniture and is equally raised on each side. The box edge cushion looks tailored and can have welting of the same or different fabric.

What is a box pillow?

A box pillow is a simple design, whatever its shape: a top and bottom layer of fabric separated by a band, or boxing. The pillow’s closure is housed in the boxing, and after you’ve decided on the type of closure, it’s the first element to be constructed.

What is a French edge cushion?

A great way to turn any bench, window seat, chair or floor into a soft place to sit is to add a French mattress style cushion. These plump, plush cushions feature a rolled edge and tall boxing reminiscent of a mattress. … These cushions sew together just like a typical box cushion with one exception — the rolled edge.

What are decorative pillows for your bed called?

The smaller decorative pillows that often go in front of your pillow collection are actually commonly called cushions, but you might know them as decorative or throw pillows. Cushions are generally square and vary in size: 18,” 20,” and 24″.

What is the difference between welting and piping?

Piping (Also Single Welting): Piping usually refers to garment sewing whereas welting refers to home decor. Piping Cord is made of cotton or polyester, as opposed to tissue Welt Cord.

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What is self flange?

Knife Edge: This is the most basic type of seam for a pillow. … Self Flange: This is also very similar to the self welt pillow in that the flange is made from the same fabric as the rest of the pillow. A flange is a flap of fabric that runs along the perimeter of a pillow, these can be small (like above) or wide.

What is pillowcase flange?

Flanges found in bedding… A Flanged Border is decorative strip of fabric that runs around edge or edges of a Pillow Sham, Pillowcases, Flat Sheet or Duvet Cover.

What is a knife edge finish?

A knife-edge finish doesn’t use a separate piece of fabric, as in the double-fold binding. Instead, you fold under the excess fabric along the edges of the quilt top and the quilt backing and sew those edges together, either by hand or by machine.

What does boxed and welted mean?

Below see the descriptions and pictures. Box Edged with Welt. Box edges are made up of several different pieces of fabric. A top, bottom and side layer come together to form box edges.

Are Box pillows good?

Box pillows are easy to the budget and maintenance. They are a good alternative to natural-fill pillows thanks to the cambric cover. To restore their natural shape and firmness, simply fluff them up several times and enjoy for a good night’s sleep.

What is the point of decorative pillows?

Decorative pillows are commonly used to tie in color accents within a room, often drawing on the colors in drapes, walls or area rugs. They can also be used to give a more casual feeling by looking as though they were thrown onto a piece of furniture.

What is the difference between a sham and a euro sham?

The most obvious difference between the standard sham and euro sham is the shape of the bedding items. The standard American pillow sham is rectangle in shape, while the European style pillow sham is square.

What does it mean to ask for an extra pillow?

Asking for an extra pillow at a hotel is actually code word for ordering a prostitute.

Why is Dacron used in upholstery?

Dacron is a material that is used to wrap cushions for to create a sharper and fulfilled appearance. … Serving as an upholstery padding, Dacron is wrapped around cushions to hide imperfections and uneven areas in the cushions surface. The result is a cushion that is wrinkle-free and has a rounded a softer look.

What does a cording foot do?

The Cording Foot Snaps onto the existing shank and presser foot holder on your machine. The guide on the top of the foot has three slots in which to place cords. To load the cords into the slots on the top of the foot, simply slide the cords in from the right.

What is a self welt?

A self welt is when the cord is done out of the same fabric. A welt cord that is done out of a different fabric is called a contrasting welt cord. Contrasting welt cords add lots of style & pop to your upholstery.

What does cording mean in sewing?

In sewing, cord is a trimming made by twisting or plying two or more strands of yarn together. Cord is used in a number of textile arts including dressmaking, upholstery, macramé, and couching.

What is a Turkish corner on a pillow?

If you’ve never heard of turkish corners, you might be wondering what they are. Basically, they’re a pleating detail on the corners of a pillow that make the pillow more of a box shape. I recently made pillows for two of my dining area chairs, and I knew turkish corners were the way to go.

What does a welted pillow mean?

A welt is simply a thin cord covered in fabric that creates a decorative ridge around the pillow. Welting provides a tailored look and gives a outline to the pillow.

What is a sham?

A sham is a decorative pillow case that transforms normal sized pillow fills into useful accessories for one’s bedding set. … Although they can definitely be slept on like normal pillowcases, pillow shams are usually used as support when sitting in bed and as decoration during the day.