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The Making of a Slipcover: A Lost Art
Today in this world of fast everything, most of us just don't
have the time (nor patience) to do an all consuming job of making
a slipcover. We go buy them and not always are they what we want.
They are generic in most cases and just don't work on the
furniture right or look professional. If you can find the time
and feel creative, you can produce a masterpiece for an old (or
new) piece of furniture that needs a change to correspond with a
new room update. The slipcover will produce a sense of
confirmation and beauty for "you", the person doing the work. A
job well done is always good for growing self- confidence and
character!
I owned a very busy tailor shop and I was use to "custom
fitting" my clients and worked the slipcovers the same way. When
one was finished, it was hard to tell if the piece had been
re-upholstered or slip covered. What a great feeling it was to
see the finished piece!
So with that said, I have a few techniques for you to use that
will make this lost art of slipcover making a bit easier.
Start with a simple furniture piece. A good example would be
an ottoman, simple dining chair or a toaster! Look at the piece,
see where the natural lines are? That is where the seams will be
for the slipcover. Scratch out a picture of your furniture piece,
this will help as you take measurements for pieces. Measure width
and length, add an extra 1¼" to width and length for seams.
Write each piece size down on drawing to reference from. Make
sure you have your closure type figured out. You will need to add
extra material for overlapping if using velcro or ties and
zippers. Where will your closures be? Do you even need one on
this slip cover? All of this needs to be calculated into original
diagram of furniture piece. We will tailor fit these pieces to
the furniture INSIDE OUT. You will end up with all your slipcover
pieces being odd sized squares or rectangles, etc. This is easier
for quick marking and cutting instead of attempting to cut the
exact shape of each piece. There will be some extra material in
certain areas (which you will cut away) but it gives you room for
making a few mistakes! Remember, the art of slip covers and
upholstery is very forgiving!
If you are using denim or heavy cotton or anything that does
not have to be dry-cleaned for your slipcover, I suggest you
preshrink the material. You can wash and dry it later many times
without shrinkage (a great option if you have small children and
newer furniture). Choose a solid color. Sheets or curtains (even
older ones found at Goodwill if you're on a budget) can work for
making slipcovers and you may find them on sale to make the cost
less. Cording can be covered and added into prominent seams of
the slipcover if you want to add some detail. Most of your
material to cover cording with will come from the leftover inches
at the sides going along the length. They will be long pieces
sewn together on a mitered seam. Cording material width is 1
¼". Cutting everything with pinking scissors will eliminate
(to a certain degree) having to serge or finish the edge of
raveling fabric.
You will "railroad" your slipcover measurements by marking
them (and eventually cutting), going length wise on fabric and
then side by side across the width of fabric. If you have an
exceptionally wide piece you will "railroad" it going length of
material instead of across, thus avoiding seams. Visualize how
the sizes will lay out on the fabric, using drawings here will be
very helpful. Example: If you use 60" width material, you will
get at least 3 dining chair slipcover backs across, if they are
16" - 18" wide. They could run 36" - 48" in length down the
material. Then you will need to figure the inside back, seat, and
sides or skirting (remember, if you are doing 2 or more of same,
times each piece by the number you are doing). Depending on how
much turn up you want for the hem will depend on how much extra
you add on side or skirting measurement. Figure out how much
material you will need by calculating the length of longest
slipcover pieces, adding them together and divide by 36" for
yardage. Make sure to utilize the most from your fabric. There
are cheat sheets at some material stores that give basic yardage
for upholstering & slip covering furniture , see if you can
find one, their priceless!
Once you have all your measurements for your slip cover
pieces, start with the largest sizes and mark everything out on
your fabric, WRONG SIDE. You will need a yardstick or longer,
measuring tool. A large square is good to have also. (Any
hardware store should carry the tools) Label all pieces; i.e.
back back, front back, seat, sides or skirting, etc. Cut your
pieces.
Holding your slipcover pieces up to the furniture piece INSIDE
OUT, pin the seams together about every 2 inches lengthwise along
the seam. Make sure to center your pieces over furniture so you
have equal seam allowance on sides, edges, etc. Back-back to
front-back, pin. Seat to front-back, pin and so on. Sew these
pieces together. Once you start sewing, your seams will only be
about 3/8" instead of the full 5/8". This gives the slipcover a
tiny bit of room to move when finished. I recommend getting some
T-pins to use when you are making slipcovers for larger
upholstered pieces, you can stick them into the furniture and
they will hold the slipcover fabric in place when fitting the
pieces together.
Normally, I will pin fit the whole slipcover together inside
out on the furniture piece, then go sew, removing pins along the
way. This is similar to a puzzle, make sure to sew all seams that
dead end into other seams first. Once you have it sewn together,
turn it right side out and fit it. Check for areas that may be a
bit off and correct. From experience I can tell you it is usually
pretty good if you can sew a straight seam. You can put some
masking tape on your sewing machine face plate and mark 3/8" over
from the needle to help with this. Complete all finishing
touches, stand back and take a picture!
This is a wonderful way to grow patience, skill and redecorate
for less. There is time involved, but you will have a great sense
of accomplishing a lost art! Have fun!
There is more to this than what I have here, but you should be
able to get a pretty good idea of what to do and how. There are
some very good books you can get from your public library and
material/craft stores to help you and I would be happy to help,
if you mail me at the address below.
About the Author:
Robin Hall has been a successful Tailor by trade in the Midwest
with over 30 years in business. She has sewn everything from
leather, to clothes and alterations including home décor
items. She has just started an online home décor store where
you will find a little bit of everything including great tips on
decorating and home improvement. Please stop by and see us/her at
http://www.coollampsnstuff.com
or send email with questions to [email protected]
 MORE RESOURCES updated Wed. September / 27 / 2023
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