Dixieland Dancer hit the nail on the head ( again!...becoming a bit of a habit....we are agreeing too much, but I kind of like it!!!)
This is soooooo a dominance behaviour.

Take every cushion your dog has access to away and shut the doors to the bedrooms. Leave one cushion that you are not too keen on, you know, the least favourite, on the sofa all the time.
Agree with all other people in the house that when this behaviour happens that you have one topic of conversation that you don't discuss at any other time. Try baseball, football, insurance....anything! If you have an argument to settle this is the ideal time to discuss it as it will make you laugh, however strongly you feel about it, because it is such a false conversation.
As soon as the dog appears with the cushion you sart to talk about your chosen topic. Only look at the people in the room and totally ignore the dog - don't look at or speak to the dog no matter what it does.
BEWARE! This will work but you have to be committed.....it may take two hours for the dog to understand that it's behaviour is getting it nowhere. Especially as the behaviour has been a sure fire way for the dog to centre attention on it for so long.
Be strong and do this for two weeks and your dog will not even remember that cushions mean recognition. I promise.
Prepare yourselves in advance, it is not as easy as it sounds. Even a quick look to see what the dog is doing gives the dog the recognition it is working for.
You have to keep this up every time, remembering that the behaviour is likely to get worse before it gets better.
The first time you are succesful in ignoring the behaviour will be the longest (remember don't look, don't speak to the dog) and the periods of attention seeking with this method will shorten dramatically after that.

You can acknowledge and praise the dog, even if you have been talking about insurance for three and half hours, only if the dog has been lying down and not chewing the cushion or holding it for ten mimutes.

It's tougher on you than it is on the dog and it works if you can manage the total ignore.

Oh yeah, if you are on your own in the house it gets harder to ignore....but if you want to stop the behaviour start making and drinking lots of tea, read a lot and wear earphones if you listen to music!