Sweet Slipcover Success

Those of you who have been following our home renovation posts may remember that I had several unfinished projects in the dining room. One of those projects stood out like a sore thumb.

That un-slip covered yellow chair has been giving me the stink eye for over a year.  Nana gave us those chairs, when they were headed toward a certain death at the county dump. They are from circa 1967 and are really nice sturdy chairs, despite their dated look, which made them excellent candidates for slipcovers

They originally had a tufted back and some buttons on the arms. I removed the back cushions, all the buttons, and the skirts from the bottom of the chairs to give them a more modern and simple look. I originally wanted to have the chairs reupholstered, but it was going to be too pricey for me.

Necessity breeds invention, people.

I got brave and decided that I would slipcover them (and that Nana and Mama would help me.) We did the first chair at my parents' house and then I brought the pair home to do the second one by myself.

But the truth is that slip covering is not for the faint of heart. I left the chair alone for a year, hoping that someone would volunteer to come help or do it for me. I just couldn't bring myself to tackle the second one, which is very uncharacteristic of me...I really like to finish projects.

But this week I kicked it into high gear and decided that it was time to get this thing DONE!

I got out all of my supplies and patterns and started cutting and sewing like a crazy woman.

This second chair turned out to be a much more simple task than I had imagined. Since I had already made the pattern and had the experience of completing one slip cover tucked in my belt, I found this go round much easier.

For the record I made my pattern using an old sheet and I bought my slipcover fabric from Wal-Mart. It is a natural colored cotton-duck fabric that is inexpensive and available anywhere. I think I paid 4 dollars a yard for it...maybe less. I don't remember... it was so long ago.

I chose a durable inexpensive material, because I needed so much yardage-- this project was suppose to save me money, remember? I probably spent less than $65 to slipcover both chairs. Not bad, huh?

After some quality time spent with this old girl over several days (and after one year) here we are:

Two slip covered chairs. [Cue the Hallelujah Chorus]

 

Adios, mustard yellow velvet! Your time is up!

All I have left to do is hem the skirt. I just couldn't wait any longer to show you.

"See Mama! See Nana! I told you I was getting it done! Aren't you proud?"

This one actually looks much better than the first one that I sewed oh so long ago. It fits tighter and the seams are much more neat. I did some fiiiiine sewing right here, y'all.

Fine. Sewing. IfIdosaysomyself.

All the chairs need now is a pillow or two. I stole this one from the laundry room just to get the full effect.

Have you ever made a slipcover? Would you like to? If you have basic sewing skills, a little time and patience, as well as a heart full of courage, you could definitely slipcover!

Here are some resources that I highly recommend:

• Sew, Mama, Sew! has an awesome 3 part tutorial about how to draft and make a slipcover for any type of chair. I used this tutorial when making my slipcovers and it was very helpful.

• Kristi at Pink and Polka Dot is known as the "Slipcover Whisperer." She has an ebook tutorial for crafting your own custom slipcover. I didn't use this, but I've seen some amazing results from people using her instructions.

• Also, there are many tools online for helping your estimate the yardage necessary for creating your slipcover. This is very helpful for figuring out costs and supplies if you are thinking about slip covering.

I also recommend a lot of chocolate cake and a can-do attitude. Maybe a helpful Mama and Nana, too.

Go forth and slipcover.

Melissa

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