I hope you are all enjoying the holiday season. I’ve enjoyed the time off and have sewn quite a few things for my boys in my spare time…footballs, football pillow cases, owl pillows out of my grandpas shirts from a tutorial that my sister found at sewing republic blog. I’ve also made a few purses for gifts, I got the inspiration from theboytrifecta blog. I even bought fabric yesterday to redo my front room slipcovers…hopefully I’ll have some time next week to get them done before I start back to work.
Don’t think all I have done is sew with my time off. We have been to the cabin and the boys are working on perfecting their sledding run. We went and saw the lights at temple square. We’ve been to some holiday parties. We are heading to the firestation tonight to have Christmas dinner with Heber since he works on Christmas. I’ve been out running the neighborhood in the snow…all bundled up of course.
Tomorrow we are celebrating my baby sister’s birthday at the cabin…sledding, hot chocolate, and my famous chocolate cake (tip…undercook your cake by 3-5 minutes, it may sink and look ugly, but it will be super moist and yummy and a huge hit!). She was born on Christmas Eve. I still remember being about 5 years old and my dad taking us to the hospital on Christmas day to meet our new sister. I think it was different back then, I just remember my dad holding me up to look through the window to see my mom holding Nikki. Happy Birthday Sis!!
Anyhow onto the slipcover makeover.
Here is the before of the room. My client had already slipcovered these couches before and had removed the back cushions that were coming off already. She replaced them with big Euro pillows. She decided to go with a white denim and will probably add a chair in black and white ticking stripe after the holidays and the christmas tree is gone.
Before of the couch…when cutting off the back cushions, cut outside the seam so you still have fabric covering the springs. If you unpick the original seam holding on the cushion, you’ll be left with a huge hole and exposed springs or batting.
Here is the after, we threw a couple pillows on from the bedroom to add some color until she gets her pillows made.
Another after shot
You can’t go wrong with neutral slipcovers…you can always change your look with pillows.
Hey, I need to come get a video from you…I will do that after Christmas if that is okay. Let me know when the best time will be for you…
Also, I am looking to buy a serger and wanted your opinion. What do you think is the best brand and how much do I probably need to spend for a good one. Thanks! Have a Merry Christmas
Hi Shelley,
I was wondering your opinion on the long term use of using denim or twill for slip covers, I’ve noticed you use this type of fabric a lot. I was just at my mother’s house over the holidays and she has a Pottery Barn couch and slip cover in a twill fabric. It hasn’t worn well. Despite washing in cold, drying on low (and not drying all the way) they continually shrink, they don’t hold their place, and the zippers have broken.
I also have pottery barn couches with slipcovers. Mine are not twill, they are a chenille and I’ve had no problems. Which is why I wondered your thoughts on the fabric? I’m hesitant to want to go through all the effort of sewing slip covers only to have the fabric be a poor choice.
I know there are various “grades” of fabric so I wondered if this is a factor in what you work with.
And as a side note for April: I have a Bernina Serger and love it! But it was about $1500. I often wished I’d kept the original Bernina serger my husband gave me…it was the top of the line 5 thread serger. I thought it was too much of a machine for me, but now I wished I’d kept it.
Usually the life of a slipcover made in denim/ twill is about 5-6 years…depending on how much you wash them. If it’s a low use area they can last 10 years or more. If you are concerned about shrinking, prewash your fabric twice in hot water and dry on high and then after they are made, wash in cold and dry on low or hang out to dry. Normally after about 5-6years I am ready for a change.
Some chenille can work well, others not so much. If it’s too thick, stiff or has sticky uholstry back (dryclean only) they are hard to sew and don’t drape well over the curves of the couch. Also you can be going through 6-8 layers while attatching the skirt at the corners. So if you aren’t using an industrial machine this doesn’t work so well. You can always opt to do no skirt with really thick fabric. Just mark the bottom and sew piping along the bottom.
If you do choose to go with a chenille make sure the weave it tight and not loose, otherwise the nap will wear off and it will wear thin on the cushions faster than twill/ denim.
With the zippers…make sure to put ones in that are plenty long, so you aren’t putting pressure on them while you are trying to stuff the cushions. Or be careful and try to bend the foam while inserting into the cushion cover instead of trying to stretch the cushion cover, which leads to ripped seams and broken zippers.
That ruffle purse is awesome! I want to make one. Thanks for the link Shelley.
I know that house! I read her blog and haven’t visited in a long while. Looks great – I love love love it.