Close Enough for Rock & Roll

Having those bolts of beautiful new fabric staring me in the face all day was more than I could stand.

I had this chair hiding in the corner haphazardly covered with some leftover home dec. fabric from my kitchen windows. It was a freebie from a former neighbor and is a nice sturdy chair with unfortunate cosmetic problems.

You can't see the grime and spots on the seat in the picture. But trust me, it's there.

So I set to work.
I started taking pictures thinking that if all went well, I'd turn them into a Slipcover 101 tutorial. But suffice it to say, I'll show you the in-process pictures but you probably would do better with a good book on how to make slipcovers properly. I know I have one somewhere in my personal library. But I didn't have it here at the store yesterday so I just kind of "winged it."


Speaking of wings, I would strongly suggest that the beginner slipcover maker avoid wing chairs. Those curvy little ears up on the corner are a pain in the butt to fit properly. Hence, mine are "close enough for rock & roll" but won't be winning any blue ribbons at the Home Dec. Fair any time soon. (You'll notice a lack of close-up shots of the finished wings!)

Another, do as I say and not as I do item would be to make a "pattern" with muslin or an old sheet first before cutting into your good (read: expensive) fabric. I have another chair in the store that I made the slipcover for year ago and that is how I did that one.

But like I said, this was an impulse project and I figured it wouldn't get too much wear and tear or close inspection by the Slipcover Police. It did however reconfirm that I really don't want to sew for others. If I were making this for a client, I'd have to be perfect and that just takes all the joy out of it!

But hey. I think it looks pretty darn cute. I have a few steps to finish it off. It needs ties to keep the sides closed where I had to leave slits so it could be pulled on and off and it needs hemmed or some other finishing on the bottom. I'm still deciding if I want to trim it out with some funky rick-rack or a ruffle.

By the way, that is the Chandelier Lace in Persimmon from FreeSpirit's Tina Givens' ZaZu line.