Last Friday evening, I was really pleased as I had a bit of spare time to whip up a couple of cushion covers.
They are for my son, George, as I'd promised to make him some for his student house in Cheltenham (it was looking a bit sparse on home comfort front!)
I knew this fabric was perfect for George as he has visited all the featured cities...New York, Paris, London, Rome.....twice as many as me!!
I had been out shopping (and lunching) with my mum and sisters on Friday daytime (it's a hard life!) and picked up a couple of nice cushion inners.
The method of making these cushion covers is so quick and easy I thought I'd show you how......
This is my very first tutorial so please bear with me.....
Gulp!
My cushion inners are 20"/51cm square and the tutorial is based on this size. It can easily be adapted to other sizes by adjusting the measurements slightly. It works best with sizes of 16"-20".
This was the method I used then.
It's so great for a quick and easy solution to brightening up a dark or dull corner with a new cushion in next to no time ( about half an hour).....
To make an easy cushion cover, you will need:
20"/51cm length of full width (44"/110cm) fabric
Thread
20"/51cm Cushion inner
Sewing machine
Rotary cutter/scissors
Ruler/Measuring Tape
Pinking shears (optional)
Basic sewing machine skills
I like my covers to be slightly snug so this cover will measure 19"/48cm square when completed.
Take your fabric which should measure 20"/51cm by approximately 44"/110cm.
Now depending on how easy you want to make this, here you have a choice. I like the selvedges of some fabrics. And some fabrics have a pattern that goes right to the edge of the fabric so that you can hardly see the selvedge.
If you like the selvedge or you have a fabric with a selvedge that doesn't show, you can just leave them as they are.
If you don't like the selvedge or don't want them showing, you can sew a simple hem by folding the selvedge over and sewing in place.
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| Fold the selvedge over and sew in place |
The fabric I used for George's cushion covers has one 'unsightly' selvedge and the other one is good. I will place the 'unsightly' one on the inside so it won't be showing so I'm not going to worry about sewing them.
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| Good selvedge |
Put a pin in the centre of the longest edge of your fabric. This should be about 22"/56cm from the selvedge (may vary slightly depending on the width of your fabric and whether you've sewn a hem on the selvedges).
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| Mark the centre with a pin |
Press your fabric.
Lay the fabric right side up on a flat surface.
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| Lay the fabric right side up |
From your centre pin, measure 9.5"/24cm towards one of the selvedges and mark with a pin (my pin is the white one)
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| Measure 9.5"/24cm from central pin and mark with another pin |
Then measure 9.5" from the central pin towards the other selvedge and mark this point with another pin (turquoise pin).
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| Measure 9.5"/24cm from central pin to the other side and mark with another pin |
Remove the centre pin. The length of fabric between the remaining 2 pins (white and turquoise) should be 19"/48cm.
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| 19"/48cm between remaining pins |
If you are leaving the selvedges unsewn, fold the selvedge that you want showing on the back of the cushion over towards the centre..........
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| Fold over towards the centre |
................so that the fold is at the nearest pin.
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| Fold at nearest pin |
Straighten and smooth so the fabric edges line up.
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| Line up the fabric |
(If you have sewn the selvedges, it doesn't matter which side you fold.)
Repeat this process with the other side.
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| Fold at pin and line up fabric |
The width should measure 19"/48cm.
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| Width across 19"/48cm |
Remove the 2 marker pins.
Pin the openings at the top and bottom.
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Pin the openings at the top and bottom.
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Sew along the top and bottom using a half inch/1.25cm seam removing pins as you sew.
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| Sew top and bottom |
Finish the raw edges of the seams with pinking shears if you like!
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| Pink the raw edges |
Turn the cover the right way round.........
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| Turn cover right way round |
and push the corners out gently from the inside with a blunt object.
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| Push out corners gently |
Press.
Pop your inner inside the cover and le voila!!
I told you it was quick and easy!
You can now sit back and enjoy your new cushion!
After making George's cushion covers, I made another one to brighten up our sofa!
I hope my tutorial made sense!
Maggie xx
