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Inspiration: The recycled pillows at Rice restaurants (riceny.com)

TONY version: Walk into any of the four Rice locations in the city and you’ll see throw pillows fashioned out of rice sacks. Owner David Selig says he doesn’t even remember how the pillows came to be, because it was such a natural evolution. “I kept noticing these beautiful rice bags from India,” he recalls, and hated to see them go to waste. You can fashion your own versions out of similar sacks, or go further afield with unexpected materials. We crafted cushions from Astroturf, a Priority Mail envelope, a vintage dress and Bubble Wrap, but the possibilities are limitless. An old flannel shirt, a vinyl shower curtain, a pair of well-worn jeans could all be used as sewing materials; Selig has even used pool table felt.—Laura Fenton

Total cost: $0–$20
Estimated time: One minute–two hours

1. For the Astroturf pillow:

Materials
• Pillow insert ($2.99 at Ikea, 1 Beard St at Broad St, Red Hook, Brooklyn; 718-246-4532)
• Scissors
• Measuring tape
• Astroturf (44¢ per square foot at Lowe’s, 118 Second Ave at 10th St, Gowanus, Brooklyn; 718-249-1151)
• Carpet needle or large embroidery needle
• Green embroidery floss

This material is too hard-core to pass through a sewing machine, so you’ll need to hand-stitch the two sides together using a heavy-duty carpet needle and embroidery floss. We cut our squares of Astroturf one inch larger than the pillow insert (so 22"x22" faux grass for a 20"x20" pillow).

2. For the Bubble Wrap pillow:

Materials
• Pillow insert
• Scissors
• Bubble Wrap ($15 for a roll at OfficeMax)
• Satin ribbon

To create this design, cover the pillow with a piece of Bubble Wrap, allowing it to overlap by about two inches in the back (as if you were wrapping a present). Then, use the tip of a pair of scissors to pierce holes along the side seams, run lengths of ribbon through the holes and tie them into bows to secure the wrap into place.

3. For the vintage-dress pillow:

Materials
• Pillow insert
• Scissors
• Measuring tape
• Groovy vintage dress
• Coordinating thread

Look for a dress with an expanse of uninterrupted material that is large enough to render two squares of fabric bigger than your insert. We bought two for $5 at Goodwill (1102 Fulton St between Classon and Franklin Aves, Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn; 718-789-0856). Stitch them together as you would a regular pillow. (We used a one-inch seam allowance, so a 13"x13" pillow required two 15"x15" squares of fabric.)

4. For the Priority Mail envelope:

Materials
• Pillow insert
• Tyvek Priority Mail Envelope (free at any U.S. Post Office)

This pillow is the easiest of all: Simply shop for an insert that will fit in the envelope, slide the cushion in and seal it shut using the envelope’s own adhesive strip!

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