Chair covers: beautiful ideas in the photo and the original workshop
When designers say “play with textiles”, most often they mean replacing curtains or decorative pillows with a sofa. Everything else is considered complex, painstaking and long to implement. But if you are “on you” with a sewing machine, why don’t you try changing clothes and chairs? For example, come up with an interesting style of covers for them.
Cover Features
Chair covers solve several problems: functional, protective, aesthetic. They can be for holidays and special occasions, everyday and even seasonal. Moreover, furniture covers are back in fashion today. Wraps are often used in the living room, dining room, children's rooms. This is a great way to protect new furniture from dirt and damage (for example, from scratching pets), and if the chairs have lost their former aesthetics, they are easy to put on in beautiful covers.
Interior style and textile for covers: creating a harmonious composition
To sew a cover with your own hands, you will need about two meters of fabric. Agree, this is much cheaper than buying new furniture, especially since in this way you can emphasize the style of the interior. So, covers made of cotton material are appropriate in country interiors or Provence.
In the English style, capes with buttons or stripes look organically.
Coarse burlap covers are a great option for eco-style.
And to give the interior a modern touch, denim is suitable, and even in harmony with wood.
In the design of classic interiors, it is better to use noble solemn covers. They give an aristocratic accent appropriate to the style. Here you need to choose a fabric of a calm shade.
The highlight of the design of themed events and holidays will be the covers of the corresponding design.
Note: give preference to dense and strong fabrics that can withstand constant washing and loads. This is especially true for chairs in the kitchen and dining room.
Varieties of models of chair covers
- covers that fit tightly on chairs;
- Cape covers
- loose covers.
The first type is more complicated in execution, in comparison with the others. This requires a professional approach to sewing on strictly measured patterns.
For wedding or holiday covers, two other types are perfect, especially if the chairs are of different shapes. You can also use bows, brooches, organza, ribbons as decor. There is a wide field for imagination. It can be said that loose covers and cape covers are universal.
Choose fabric
Not all textiles are suitable for covers. It should be tight enough and look exquisite. Most popular:
- crepe satin is an excellent option for creating folds, assemblies and a spectacular look;
- supplex or lycra - dense, elastic fabric, stretches well in all directions;
- gabardine - despite the fact that the fabric is quite thin, it has excellent elasticity and density.
Keep in mind that to create a harmonious interior, chair covers must be combined in style and color with a tablecloth and curtains.
How to sew chair covers with your own hands?
Of course, with this task you can contact the master, but if you decide to sew the case yourself, listen to our tips and tricks.
It is not necessary to use expensive textiles. Old curtains or tablecloths are great. The most important thing is to make a pattern correctly. To do this, take accurate measurements - to determine the widest and narrowest sections, draw a diagram and mark them in the picture.It is very important to consider the option for shrinkage of the fabric and leave about 3 mm for allowances for the seams.
It is necessary to measure the length, width of the chair, the depth of the seat, as well as the width of the seat and back. There are different options for covers, so before you begin, you should determine which one is best for you. Covers come in:
- seat and backrest (separate and integral);
- only to the back;
- just for the seat.
As for design and decor, here you need to proceed from the stylistic direction of the interior, as well as for what purpose covers will be used - only on holidays or for every day.
Dress up chairs in “dresses”: an original workshop
Covers with fluffy skirts will add a special flair to the familiar dining room or living room. We offer to sew them with your own hands. So, prepare:
- sewing machine;
- the main fabric is a light shade (cotton, tapestry or linen);
- additional fabric for the seat cover of the future cover (in our example - a blue tapestry);
- scissors, threads;
- notebook for sketches;
- ruler or centimeter.
Step 1. Measurements and sketch.
It is important to consider the shape and size of the seat, the width and height of the back, the length of the cover from the seat to the floor, the height of the legs.
Step 2. Tailoring the seats.
Taking into account the measurements, we cut out a fragment of the contour, leaving 2 spare centimeters on each side.
Step 3. Tailoring the skirts
From the fabric we cut out a long strip, the width of which will be equal to the distance from the seat to the floor, and the length is three widths of the chair so that this strip can completely cover the bottom of the chair in front. This is the base of the skirt.
Sew frills from two strips of fabric to the base. Each of them is 2/3 of the base. To get a uniform or curly fold, you can put the fabric on the curtain tape and just pull the strings.
Step 4. Sewing the back of the case
In the first photo, the design of the back is clearly visible: in fact, the pattern consists of 3 parts that need to be sewn, not forgetting the allowances. We cut out the back and front of the back, as well as the frill - a kind of train, which is sewn by analogy with the frills on the front skirt.
The train can be made a frill in one tier, or you can maintain an exact line and make it two-tier.
Step 5. Connect the back and seat
Combine the front of the back with the front of the seat and shorten. Skirt details are also truncated.
Tip: to create the aesthetics of Shabby Chic, it is better to leave the edges of the frills unprocessed, even more fluffing them.
Voila - the elegant case is ready. Sew a couple more to create a “formal ensemble” and embellish the living room for a dinner party.