Making chair covers with your own hands

A chair cover can solve several problems at the same time: freshen up the interior, protect the chair from dirt, or, conversely, cover up scuffs or other flaws. You can buy a ready-made version, but it is not cheap, and you will have to choose a model for a long time. Therefore, making chair covers with your own hands is so popular.

The choice of material will depend on many factors. Chair covers can be used for different purposes. You can sew them only for the holidays and put them on furniture before the arrival of guests. Covers for every day will differ from the holiday ones both in color and style.

In addition, the room itself plays a role. If the chair is in the nursery, you can choose a fabric of bright colors, for a living room of a classic design, it is worth choosing light and noble shades, for kitchens in the spirit of country or Provence - a material in a cage or a flower.

Regardless of the color, the fabric for the covers should be:

• Durable and resistant to wear and tear (covers will have to withstand a lot of stress).
• Do not crumble on the cuts, since even the treated seams of such fabrics will creep from constant friction.
• Easy to clean, non-absorbent.
• Easy to iron.
• Minimally collecting dust (for this reason, wool and velvety fabrics such as synthetic velvet, velor are not suitable for covers).

These requirements are maximally matched by:

• Cotton fabrics: satin, twill, denim, just a thick cotton canvas.
• Dense silky fabrics: satin, brocade, silk gabardine.
• Linen is a smooth fabric or fabric of a coarse weave like a canvas.
• Supplex fabrics are fabrics that stretch equally both along the share thread and along the weft thread.
• Furniture fabrics - flock, microfiber and others.

Each of these materials has its own characteristics.

Cotton options are inexpensive, however, they absorb dirt and fade quickly enough. A cotton cover can be sewn onto a child's or school chair - it will be a short-lived option, but the child's skin will breathe and sweat will be absorbed.

Denim covers will create an unusual accent in the interior - such products are suitable for country interiors, loft spaces and others.

Silky to the touch, it is better to put shiny fabrics on ceremonial covers. They are quite slippery, and it will not be very comfortable to sit on them every day. At the same time, covers made of these materials are quite durable. These fabrics drape well, forming heavy and beautiful folds, bows.

Linen options are durable and convenient in that flax has the ability to self-cleaning. Stains do not eat much into such fabric, so linen products "live" longer. Unbleached coarse linen is perfect for rustic or eco-style kitchens or living rooms. In this case, the material will look expensive. Linen of a finer workmanship, originally painted, is suitable for a living room in a classic style.

Materials (edit) supplex good in that the cover of them can be precisely "put" on the chair. Due to their high extensibility, they take any shape. It is from such materials that ready-made universal covers are made that are suitable for different models of chairs and armchairs. They look less presentable than options made from natural fabrics. But they are durable, do not wrinkle and are easily erased.

Furniture fabrics difficult to sew and cut. To work with them, you need a reliable sewing machine, thick threads and an appropriate needle.Usually they are low-stretch and do not drape, but such a cover will look like a full-fledged chair upholstery. In care, these materials are convenient in that they need cleaning, not washing. They can be cleaned with a brush directly on the chair - they can withstand quite a lot of such operations.

The fabric should match the chair. Upholstery fabrics are best suited for upholstered chairs that are already upholstered in leather or fabric and have some volume. Expensive silk or linen materials do not need to be used to upholster cheap plastic chairs and stools. Such furniture is best covered with a modest cotton fabric.

Regardless of which case model you prefer to sew, you will need to measure and record:

• back length;
• back width;
• seat length;
• seat width;
• length from seat to floor if you want to completely cover the legs;
• the length from the seat down as much as you want.

If you want the legs to be completely closed, for example, with a ruffle, then you need to calculate its length as follows: in the finished form, the cover should not reach the floor at least 1 cm.This is necessary so that the chair is easy to move, and the lower edge of the cover does not get dirty and was not damaged.

It is necessary to calculate the consumption of fabric taking into account that the parts are laid out along the share line. That is, the parts should be laid out with a length parallel to the share thread (the main sign of the share thread is the edge, which always goes along the share thread).

If you plan to make a ruffle along the bottom of the cover, it is imperative to calculate its width. Shallow folds are obtained with a calculation of 1: 1.5, when you need to add half to the finished frill width. For example, in finished form, the width of the ruffle will be 70 cm, which means that in order to lay light folds, you need to cut out the part at the rate of 70 cm + 35 cm = 105 cm.

There are folds proportions 1: 2 (in our example it will be 70 + 70), 1: 2.5 (70 + 105), 1: 3 (70 + 140) cm and so on. The most frequent and dense folds are obtained with a 1: 4 layout.

Usually, furniture covers are sewn from several layers of fabric. That is, only the main - external - material will not be enough. You will definitely need cushioning materials (synthetic winterizer, foam rubber), and lining material.

Chair covers come in one piece or separate. The one-piece model covers the entire seat and the entire back, while the back and seat parts are sewn together. A separate option is a backrest cover and a soft seat with a skirt (ruffle) of any length. In principle, the details of the cut for both options will be the same, with the only difference being whether they will be sewn together.

For a split cover, you need to cut out the details of the top and seat. On paper, you need to build a detail that is identical in shape to the shape of the back of a chair - it can be a rectangle or a rectangle with a rounded top. In size, it should be exactly like the back.

Such a part with seam allowances must be cut out of the main fabric, cushioning material (padding polyester) and lining.

For sitting on paper, a piece is built that is identical to the seat of a chair - square, round, trapezoidal. With allowances, it is cut from the main, cushioning and lining materials.

The ruffle is cut out as a simple rectangle of the length you need (taking into account the allowance). In finished width, it should be equal to the sum of the three sides of the seat (front, left and right). When constructing a pattern, you need to lay the material on the folds according to the formula described above.

For one-piece models, the details of the back and seat are similarly cut out, only the front of the back and the rear will be different in length, since the front will be sewn to the seat, and the back will simply hang down. For festive options with bows, triangular strings are cut at the back, which will be sewn into the side seams.

For those who are completely unfamiliar with the construction of patterns on paper, there is a life hack - a dummy technique.It is necessary to glue the chair with a "cover" made of newspapers and scotch tape. Then - cut into parts. The resulting pieces will be patterns without taking into account the seam allowances.

An important stage before cutting is fabric decating. This operation is necessary to prevent shrinkage of the fabric after washing. If you are using cotton, denim or linen that will shrink after washing, be sure to design it.

This is done like this:

• wet a single piece of fabric with water;
• dry naturally and iron with a warm iron.

The patterns must be laid out on the fabric along the shared thread. Such a layout is always less economical, but it is necessary to do just that, because the part cut along the weft will be skewed during the sewing process.

If it is a horizontal stripe, then all the details should be cut so that the stripes are horizontal. If, for example, flowers are depicted on the material, then all the details should be cut out so that the stems "look" down and so on.

Cutting is carried out taking into account the seam allowances. On the side and upper part of the back, you need to make wide allowances - 5-8 cm. This is necessary so that the cover passes through the thickness of the chair. On all other seams, it is enough to make allowances of 1.5 cm, and along the lower edge - 3 cm.

The sewing technology is individual in each case, but in general the sequence is as follows:

• First, you need to fold the main and lining material with the wrong sides to each other, laying it with padding polyester, if planned. Parts can be neatly joined along the edge with hand stitches or machine stitches so they don't move. Then - fold the back details with the right sides to each other and sew with a regular stitch, leaving 1.5 cm from the edge. It is advisable to process the cut by hand with an "over the edge" seam, overlock or zigzag stitch. If the fabric is synthetic and peels off heavily, the edges can be gently burned with a lighter.
• If strings are sewn into the side seams of the back of the cover, they must be made in advance. Details are folded right sides to each other, grinded and turned inside out. It is imperative to iron the strings so that their edges are neat. Then the strings are inserted into the side seams of the back and sewn with one seam.
• Then the skirt is made. It is cut out, the bottom cut is processed with an overlock or zigzag, a 3 cm allowance is ironed inward and secured with a machine stitch. For elegant options made of delicate fabrics, you can not sew the bottom on a typewriter, but fix this edge with an adhesive "cobweb", which is glued with an iron. The pleats are laid on the skirt according to the proportion, fixed on top with hand stitching.

You can simply run hand stitches along the entire ruff and then gather by pulling on the thread on both sides. The main thing is that in length it corresponds to the sum of the three sides of the seat, to which it will be sewn.

• Next, the main part and the seat gasket are fastened together. Then the main fabric and seat pad are folded face to face. The skirt is also inserted there, cut to cut. The seam needs to be pinned and sewn on three sides (left, right and front). Unscrew the part through the remaining unsecured cut.
• Chip back and seat parts together, grind and process the seam.

The highchair cover is best made of thick cotton materials. The fabric will be breathable and easy to wash. At the same time, it will not be a pity to change the cover when it becomes unusable.

On the highchair for babies, you can choose water-repellent synthetic fabrics that will be easy to clean. Since each chair has its own design, you can build a pattern only by circling the old cover on paper. Carefully consider in which places on the finished cover there are seams - some of them can be omitted, but in those places where the cover is bent, the pattern will need to be cut and added seam allowances.

The sewing process will be something like this:

• Fasten the base fabric with the interlining along the edge.
• Fold face to face with lining.
• Sew to the edge, leaving 20-25 cm unstitched on the side for turning inside out.
• Unscrew the cover, straighten it, tuck the unsewn edges inward and sew on a typewriter or by hand.
• Be sure to mark where the seat belt slots will be in the cover. In these places you need to cut holes and overcast them manually or on a typewriter using the buttonhole function.

Chair covers are usually trimmed with ruffles, bows, ribbons. You can use edging, soutache, lace. It is advisable to sew pockets for napkins or other trifles on kitchen covers.

For highchairs, you can use thermal appliqués.

Covered buttons look very nice on any covers. To do this, take the buttons "on the leg" and cover it with pieces of the main fabric of the cover. There are special "close-fitting" buttons, in which the upper part is disassembled - the fabric can simply be clamped between the button parts. Buttons are always made in the atelier.

An example of how bright fabric can work wonders. A simple bar stool is "dressed" in the simplest cover made of bright textured fabric. Ideal for ethno-interiors.

An old chair can also be updated by creating a cover for it. Such chairs look especially good in country houses and in the country. The shape of the cover follows the shape of the backrest, seat and armrests. The skirt reaches almost to the floor.

A simple and attractive variant of covers for every day - the seat is made with an elastic band. This model of the cover will tightly fit the chair and will not slip.

The cozy hygge-style interior cover can be knitted! The knitted cover is not very practical, but it is convenient because the knitted cover stretches tightly. In this version, a long cloth is knitted like a scarf. On top of the back, the piece is bent and sewn on the sides, and on the seat it is simply folded.

How to sew separate chair covers, see the next video.