January 6, 2010

Lovin' Slipcovers



Lovely cat Zoe shredded our Ethan Allen chaise for years.  I couldn't part with the chaise, I love the curves of the roll back and the legs.  With about 6 yards of white cotton twill, cotton twill piping (pre-made from fabric store) and 2 days of sewing, I was able to transform the chaise back to a respectable state.  Zoe still loves it but only for lounging on, no longer as a nail filer. For some reason, once I slipcover a piece of furniture, she will leave it alone.  I guess the looseness of the fabric is no longer appealing for her cat scratching needs.

Although I did not document the slipcover making procedure, I do have the following tips:
  • Choose a fabric that is easy to work with, preferably without patterns that need lining up
  • Buy more fabric than you need.  If you run out, you may not be able to find more from the same dye lot.  Even with white twill, there can be a difference in shades
  • Choose a fabric where you can find pre-made matching piping, piping is a must for a finished look, though not difficult, it is time consuming to make matching piping
  • Prewash and dry fabric
  • I don't make patterns, I just start with the biggest section of the furniture piece and pin and sew from there
  • Use velcro for the cushion covers
  • Go to your local library, search "slipcovers" in books for step by step instructions
  • Just get started, if you are able to make pillows, you can make a slipcover for any piece of furniture
My next slipcover project will be the large sofa in the living room.  I promise to better document the steps with photos.  Now I just have to find the right fabric and lots of it!

1 comment:

Unknown said...

Really looking good ~ maybe "declaw" cat(s)??!