Dining Chair Slipcover Tutorial

For those who have been waiting for a tutorial on how I made my dining room chair slipcovers, the wait is over.  I got the green light from my editor at Cottages and Bungalows to share the tutorial I wrote for them on my blog, since the issue is no longer sold on newsstands.  If you would like to order a back issue of the April 2011 magazine, visit Beckett Media's website.

Here's the chair before...

1. Prewash fabric in warm water and dry on high heat. Measure top and perimeter of seat. Cut fabric seat pieces to size, leaving a generous inch seam allowance on each side.

2. Cut skirt pieces to six inches wide by twice the length of the chair’s perimeter. For example, if the chair’s perimeter is 72”, cut a piece of fabric to 6” x 144”. It may be necessary to piece several fabric lengths together. To make one long skirt piece, simply place right sides of fabric together and sew. Make a ½” inch hem along bottom edge of skirt.

3. Make custom piping long enough to run around the perimeter of each chair seat. Cut strips of fabric in 2” widths, wrap around cotton cord and sew using a zipper foot.

4. Place fabric right side down on chair. Pin piping to seat fabric right-side-down with all raw edges pointing in the same direction. Remember the slipcover is being assembled inside out. Pin tightly to the seat edge for a snug-fitting slipcover. Cross piping where edges meet. Trim excess fabric, leaving approximately ½”. Sew piping to seat fabric, removing the pins along the way.

5. Place slipcover right-side down onto chair again and pin skirt fabric in place. Start on one side, adding pleats as desired. Make sure all raw edges are facing the same direction while pinning. To create a box pleat, fold fabric over itself left to right. On the left side of that pleat, fold fabric over itself right to left. Pin pleats into place. For most chairs, two pleats each on the front and both sides, plus one pleat on each front corner will work well. Cut skirt to create a split where the chair back meets the seat. Sew a ¼” hem on both sides of the split to prevent fraying. Pin the back section of the skirt into place, creating one box pleat centered on chair back. Hem both sides. Sew skirt into place using a zipper foot.

6. Cut ribbons to four 15” lengths and sew on both sides of each slit. Using sharp scissors cut ribbon ends at an angle and apply a bead of fray blocking glue. Allow glue to dry, trim any loose threads and press if desired.