We are in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic and to keep from going stir crazy, I have been knocking out some projects that have been sitting in my basket of “someday” projects. Today’s project was to recover our chaise lounge patio cushion. Before you quit reading because you think it’s a “too difficult” sewing project, let me reassure you that if you have some experience with a sewing machine and you have a bit of patience for lots of pinning, this project will not be too difficult. Even though I’m covering a Chaise Lounge cushion, the steps will apply to any size cushion.
Here are the steps:
1) If the cushion has an old slipcover on it, you are especially lucky! Take it off the cushion and use a seam ripper to take it apart. Once you get a partial opening in the seam, you can try giving it a good tug and the seam may come apart easily if the thread is older or the cushion has been in the sun. If you have to sit down and rip it open with the seam ripper, put on some good music and it might just be the therapy you need. If the cushion has a zipper, there is no need to take that out. Now that you have all the pieces separated, you can lay them out to use as your pattern.
If you do not have a pattern and you are starting from scratch, you will need to get some craft paper or I have used packing paper sheets (anything that is larger than the needed cushion size. Lay the paper on the chair seat or surface you want to make a cushion for and trace onto the paper. We will discuss the sides of the cushion after we get the main pieces cut.
2) Lay out the new fabric and since you need a top and bottom to your cushion, you can double your fabric.
***Important to remember to fold over with right sides together (pretty sides facing each other) and if there is a directional pattern (called a nap in sewing terminology), make sure the pattern is facing the same direction on both pieces.***
Now lay your pattern or old cushion piece on top of the new doubled fabric and pin it all the way around. You can also use pattern weights. Now cut around the pieces accurately. I used pinking shears as my fabric easily ravels, and the shears help keep the fabric from raveling. Using a pin or fabric marker (make sure it is safe for your fabric and will disappear or wash out easily), mark the center edge of each top and bottom piece by folding the fabric in half to find the center.
3) (Without Zipper) Cutting the side pieces. A zipper is a nice closure so that the cover can be washed, but if you prefer not to have a zipper, then measure your cushion height and add one inch for seam allowances. Then you will be cutting a strip of fabric which is that measurement (height of cushion) by the circumference of the cushion plus 2-3 inches.
3) (With Zipper) If you want a zipper, make sure it is long enough that your cushion will squeeze through the opening. A pre-made cushion is a great guide and most zippers take up one side of the cushion and wrap a few inches around the side. I purchase bulk zippers that are one long strip that I cut to length and add the pull to it, and I will add a link for them at the end. Once you have the length needed, that will be the length of fabric you cut and you will need two pieces that length. The width should be the same as the height of your cushion plus seam allowances. This will give you plenty of extra width to create a fold over your zipper and make it look professional.
4) (Without Zipper) Now sew the short ends of the side piece together using a standard 5/8” seam allowance, so that it creates a continuous loop of fabric. We can now begin pinning this strip (right sides together) to one side of the main cushion top or bottom. I like to place the seam in the back side of a chair cushion, but don’t start at the seam. Fold the strip to find the middle opposite of the seam and mark both sides of the strip with a pin or fabric marker. This step will ensure that your side piece will be evenly matched from top to bottom. Now find the front of the cushion and the mark or pin you placed before and match the marks of the cushion and side strip center and begin pinning to the front of the cushion. Use extra pins around curves and continue around the cushion in both directions until you have the extra fabric and the seam in the back fold the extra fabric over and pin all the folded layers smoothly onto the cushion. At this point you can take the pinned pieces and sew them together carefully taking out the pins as you go. Do not sew over pins as they can break a needle, or your pins and worse case fly off and stick you. (Quoting my Mother, “Someone could lose an eye!”) Once you have sewn those pieces together, it’s time to pin the other main piece onto the sides. This may seem impossible, but be patient here. Lay the main fabric piece down with the right side up. Find the pin or mark for the center of the strip to match the center of the front of the cushion. With right sides together, carefully pin around. You will need to leave an opening large enough to insert the cushion. I like to mark that opening so I don’t sew all the way around. Do what works for you. I do recommend that the opening NOT be where the back seam is folder over. Just too much bulk of fabric to deal with. Once pinned you can sew this seam together in the same manner as the other. Make sure the flat large piece of the cushion is on the bottom as you sew.
4) (With Zipper) Fold over a seam allowance along the long sides of each strip and iron. Sew in a zipper using your preferred method. Some like to baste the two sides together, then place the zipper underneath and sew. I usually just sew both sides of the fabric separately (see video below). I used a beige zipper as that was what I had and knew it would be covered by a fold. It shows better for the tutorial, but I would normally match the zipper close to the color of the fabric.
Once the zipper is in place, create a fold from one side to cover the zipper and press. Now sew down the side to secure the fold, but not too close to the zipper. Also sew across the short ends to secure the fold. Make sure the zipper pull is out of the way (unzipped a bit). Holding the two sides of the zipper close together with pins, sew slowly over teeth of the zipper slowly. Now you have your zipper segment finished and you are ready to attach it to the other side piece. Sew together the short ends. The zipper section will be wider than the plain side piece, so match one side and you can trim the other side once both ends are sewn. Now you should have a continuous loop of fabric and can begin pinning it to the main cushion pieces. MAKE SURE YOU LEAVE THE ZIPPER OPEN A BIT FOR TURNING. Now begin pinning this strip (right sides together) to one side of the main cushion top or bottom. I like to place the zipper seam in the back side of a chair cushion, but don’t start there. Fold the strip to find the middle opposite of the zippered seam and mark both sides of the strip with a pin or fabric marker. This step will ensure that your side piece will be evenly matched from top to bottom. Now find the front of the cushion and the mark or pin you placed before and match the marks of the cushion and side strip center and begin pinning to the front of the cushion. Use extra pins around curves and continue around the cushion in both directions until you have the extra fabric and the seam in the back fold the extra fabric over and pin all the folded layers smoothly onto the cushion. At this point you can take the pinned pieces and sew them together carefully taking out the pins as you go. Do not sew over pins as they can break a needle, or your pins and worse case fly off and stick you. (Quoting my Mother, “Someone could lose an eye!”) Once you have sewn those pieces together, it’s time to pin the other main piece onto the sides. This may seem impossible, but be patient here. Lay the main fabric piece down with the right side up. Find the pin or mark for the center of the strip to match the center of the front of the cushion. With right sides together, carefully pin around. You will need to leave that zipper opened a bit to be able to turn it right side up.
5) Once pinned you can sew this seam together in the same manner as the other. Make sure the flat large piece of the cushion is on the bottom as you sew.
Once sewn, take a close look for any puckers or seams that did not catch. If needed, take the seam out to repair and trust me, even the best seamstresses have issues with seams at times.
6) Once everything looks good, we need to clip the curves to allow the seams to lay nicely around the curves. Make small clips pointing your scissors towards the seam, but being careful, DO NOT CUT THROUGH THE SEAM. Clip around about an inch apart.
7) Now turn the cushion right side out. Insert the cushion. If you did not use a zipper, you will need to hand stitch the opening closed using a ladder stitch or whip stitch.
“Ta Da” Enjoy your custom slip covered cushion!
A step by step tutorial and video to help you construct a custom slipcover for your cushions.