quilted throw pillows

I finished up one last Christmas gift but I couldn't show pictures of it because I didn't want to spoil the surprise for anyone.
It's hard to get gifts for people who have everything or could easily get anything they needed or wanted. So for my in-laws I thought I would make a couch pillow with purple and yellow for them because they are big LA Lakers' fans.
I pieced the LA in the front and it went together pretty well actually, with no mess-ups and it was just as I sketched out before hand. The back is a large wonky log cabin block.

I also made a more feminine string quilted pillow to go along with it for my mother in-law to enjoy. It doesn't really match the purple and yellow one but I still like it a lot. The back is just a mustard colored print I picked up a while ago.

I love the way string blocks can end up looking so nicely done even if all the fabrics used are not necessarily the perfect match.
The pillow front is lined inside with white muslin and layered with cotton batting then I quilted it every 1/4".

Both pillow covers are about 16 1/2" square and fit an 18" pillow form from Joanns perfectly. To make the covers washable, I added invisible zippers to the bottom sides. I really love the way invisible zippers look (or don't look) after they are put in and don't detract from the pillow design at all. Plus, to me, they are quicker to sew into the pillow cover and nicer looking than the envelope style.