AFTER
BEFORE
Thanks for visiting! You can see lots more makeovers here at Between Naps on the Porch with Metamorphosis Monday and here at It's So Very Cheri with It's So Very Creative.
Here is the rest of the chair. You can see
PART 1 here I think if you have ever made a dress, clothes for your children, or any kind of sewing that consists of putting pieces together, you can do this. It just takes patience and time.
NOTE Remember you will be cutting a right side and left side for some of these pieces. When cutting those, be sure you have your fabric wrong or right sides together. Don't cut them going the same way.
MAKING THE PATTERN click on any of the pictures to get a closer look. And the easiest thing to do, is follow the existing pieces and seams of the chair when making the pattern.
First of all, get some muslin or even an old sheet to make a pattern. Nothing too strechy or flimsy though.
Also if you plan to wash your new slipcover, be sure to prewash all of the fabric. I wash mine in sections. This way helps cut down on the wrinkles.
If you have "T" pins for this it makes it much easier. You can find them at fabric and sewing stores.
Pin a piece of fabric on the chair and draw in the cracks. I use my fingers to feel and follow along. When you cut out the pattern pieces; don't cut right on the line. You will want to be able to see it.
(I folded back the fabric so you could see where I end the piece.)
OUTSIDE WING
Below is how it will look. Cut this out showing the tracing line. Being perfect will come when you actually cut
the slipcover fabric.
OUTSIDE SIDE BASE- Use the T pins to hold the fabric and trace in the cracks. Here's where you have to use your imagination. Notice how I stopped it right at the "roll' of the side of the arm. I folded back the fabric so you could see.
You will see in the next 2 pictures what I"m talking about.
Here's 1 picture of it.
And here's where it shows it all. This will make a clean seam down this side when you attach the botttom front.
INSIDE ARM- I always mark arrows, cutting hints to myself, and top and bottom hints all over my pattern. It helps when cutting.
ATTENTION- I marked 5 inch tuck...This was too much. Cut about 2-3 inches of tuck. Maybe a little more if your chair doesn't have a separate cushion.
BELOW-I did this wrap around area to meet with the outside piece in a straight sewing line. You will see farther down how this all meets up. It will become more clear when you see all of the pieces together.

This little piece below looks like a panty shield. Cute. I had to cut another one though. My first one didn't seem to fit together with the other arm pieces when I went to fit it together.
Does it all make sense now? See how the pieces fit!?! Next we'll make that front bottom piece. Notice in the picture ABOVE, the darts and the way the piece goes straight across the seat. That's the way we'll make ours. See where the little panty shield fits in. And remember to mark those arrows!
Click the inside arm picture above and notice I always make an arrow at the top of the arm. It helps when you try to layout all of the pattern pieces on the chair.
BOTTOM FRONT-
First step--- Measure from end to end. ( arm area all the way across the front to the other arm area.)And then the depth up the bottom front to the seat section. If you aren't making a skirt, measure all the way to the floor on all pieces. Mark these measurements on the pattern and cut what will be a long rectangle. Or strip of fabric. Lay it in place on the chair. Pin at the arm, gently bring it across the front and pin on the other side by the other arm area.
It will look like this pic on the left. Now pinch up the darts at the corners. Just work with the fabric until you have it where you want it. Pin close to the seat. Do both sides.
Cut a seam allowance above the pins.
Here's what the piece will look like. When I cut out this piece, I fold the pattern and lay it on the folded slipcover fabric. It seems to cut better this way.
When you sew this piece. Sew each dart and that's it for that piece! Easy huh?
INSIDE BACK- In this picture, I jsut lay the fabric over the chair and mark just inside the crease. Remember I wrote 5 in. tuck. Again that was too much. I had to cut some of mine off. When you cut the added tuck area, you will have to be sure to narrow it at the top of the chair/wing area. There's not much tuck area up there.
INSIDE WING-

Do the same type of pinning and marking as the other pieces. It will be bunchy going around the curve. This is where the darts will be. I make mine facing down. I go ahead and pin them and then cut the excess off while its still pinned on the chair. Make some marks between the dart area like the picture below.
Click the picture to see the detail. I laid the piece out so you could see the way it will look. When you sew the real piece on, you can put the pins back in and machine baste the darts in place first.
THE SEAT For the seat, measure the back, front, and depth. The front will be only up to that rectangle piece we made the darts on earlier. Mark the pattern fabric and cut; adding the extra tuck fabric on the 3 inside areas. Again make your arrows to show the front and back direction.
Note.. I also make a small mark at the top of the pieces of slipcover fabric pieces. They all look alike when you have them all sitting there. It's hard to tell the outside, and inside back pieces apart. And which way is up or down.
OUTSIDE BACK Cut the back piece like this.
You can see the picture below how to cut the extra tuck in allowance. But remember I cut too much. 2-3 inches is plenty.
Then the next picture is where I folded the back piece pattern in half, length wise and cut 2 separate pieces so it's open down the middle. Be sure to cut it a little wider and finish the edges with a serger machine or zig zag stich, so you can fold it back and put in the buttons and button holes. I add about 2 inches. You can cut some off. But you can't put it back on. I also always add about 2 inches to the width of the back piece if I'm add ing a zipper. This way you make sure you have enough fabric to pull the corner together. Again. You can cut some off, but you can't put any back on.

This is how some of the pieces will look while cutting out the fabric. A little too much tuck though. But you have to cut the extra like this. Below is a picture of the Back piece being cut for the buttons. Fold the pattern length wise, and extra added. In other words...this is the wide back piece folded in half.
Am I repeating myself too much???
Here is another option (a sofa I'm working on) A zipper. Just turn under the open seam down one side of the chair. Make sure the zipper is upside down. Opens from the bottom up.
A funny thing happens as you're sewing the slipcover. It starts morphing into this giant thing you keep dragging over to the sewing machine as you work. I start by sewing the inside wing piece to the inside arm piece. Pinning everything as you go.
Then I add the outside wing piece. You can add cording (see here
here for directions) I add it to the cushions and a few other areas on the chair. You can take it back to the chair to fit those darts at the top of the wing. Pin the pieces to fit together, and sew.
Now find that side piece and pin and sew it to the inside arm, and outside wing. I know this probably sounds so confusing. "outside, inside, wing, base.... Just ask questions anytime. See how it grows.
Sew the outer back piece to the inside back piece across the top of the chair, and follow the seam down the back sides. One side if putting in a zipper. And if you're doing the buttons, fold back the button area, and sew to the inside back piece (up at the top. SEE PIC BELOW) with those pieces overlapped. Sew each back piece down the sides, leaving the middle open. See below. Yea, down therer. :
This picture shows the way some of the pieces fit together.

Next
Next sew the seat section along the bottom back, and along the 2 arm inside pieces.
Then you can sew on that bottom front piece. Pin up the sides (there at the bottom of the chair), across the little area in front of the arm, and across the seat. Then follow the rest of the way across. Sew.
If you are adding a skirt, measure the lengths from leg corner to leg corner around 3 sides. At this point you can cut to make sure the chair cover is even all the way around. I measure from the floor up. I mark with a pencil on the cover all the way around about every 4 inches. Then I cut off the excess all the way around following the little marks. Also, I line the skirt pieces with a thin muslin or sheet that matches. For the skirt section that meets up with the buttons or zipper, you have to get those measurements. Put the zipper all the way down through the skirt. Remember to put the "pull" at the bottom.
As always... Ask questions! If I can explain it in writing where it makes sense, I will be more than happy to!
Let me know how it goes if you try this!
Kelly