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How My Kitchen Chairs Got a Makeover
Hello everyone! Another bright and sunny (not too cold) day here at Ekati. In this post I will show you how I (FINALLY) finished revamping the chairs in my kitchen. As some of you may remember I embarked on a quest to breathe new life into my drab kitchen chairs some time ago. Well, here are the results! I am really happy with the cushion covers. I ripped open the old covers, took out the stuffing and used it again in the new ones. I drafted the pattern for the new covers myself to be sure that it would fit the chairs properly. They are an awkward shape (not really square) and the old cushions flopped off the sides which looked really sloppy. I sewed box corners into them to help them keep a nice shape, although I am sure they will be getting squished down soon enough. The ties were THE WORST part of all as the fabric is a really stiff cotton canvas and was very difficult to turn inside out when sewn into a tiny tube. I would suggest using a lighter fabric if you make this project. In the end the hardwork paid off. What do you think of the cushions? Also, should I tuft the new ones the way the old ones were done? I appreciate your input!

Posted by Lydia H. Published See Lydia H.'s 20 projects »
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  • How to make a seat pad. Kitchen Chair Makeover - Step 1
    Step 1

    STEP 1:Painted chair with BLAH cushion cover.
    As you can see, the cushion is too big for the chair.

  • How to make a seat pad. Kitchen Chair Makeover - Step 2
    Step 2

    STEP 4: Sewing ties for covers. These were so hard to turn inside out!
    For each of the cushions you will need 4 sewn ties. Cut 1 inch pieces of fabric (as long as you want your tie to be, mine were 8 inches). With the right sides together, sew them into a tube.
    Now the hard part- they need to be turned inside out. You can buy a tool which does this from the fabric store or you can use a safety pin.

  • How to make a seat pad. Kitchen Chair Makeover - Step 3
    Step 3

    STEP 6: This is a close up of Box Corner.
    Once you have turned the cover inside out you will want to stuff it with batting/the old cushion filling etc. and then sew it up. Use small hand stitches so that it isn't noticeable.

  • How to make a seat pad. Kitchen Chair Makeover - Step 4
    Step 4

    STEP 7: Voila! Here is a side view of my finished cushion.

  • How to make a seat pad. Kitchen Chair Makeover - Step 5
    Step 5

    STEP 8: How do you think they turned out?

  • How to make a seat pad. Kitchen Chair Makeover - Step 6
    Step 6

    STEP 2: To start, I drafted a pattern for my chair cushion. This is not as daunting as it sounds!
    I measured the seat and drew this out on a piece of kraft paper. Next I added 1 inch along every side (this allows for the box shape) and then added 1cm seam allowance around the full pattern.

  • How to make a seat pad. Kitchen Chair Makeover - Step 7
    Step 7

    STEP 3: You will need to cut 2 pieces for every cushion that you want to make. Since I have four chairs I cut out 8 pieces. If your chair is square, you could consider cutting the pattern on the fold- but since mine is a crazy shape I needed to cut pieces individually.
    Now sew around all sides leaving a gap to turn the cushion inside out at the BACK of the cushion.

  • How to make a seat pad. Kitchen Chair Makeover - Step 8
    Step 8

    STEP 5: This is a box cushion, so you will need to make box corners. With your cushion inside out fold the corners together in the opposite way that you sewed them (the corners will stick out like in the photos above where all of my corners have been pinned).
    Now measure a 2 inch line ACROSS (not down from the corner) and mark it with fabric pen/chalk. Pin the corner together to keep it in place.
    Sew along these marked off lines.
    MAKE SURE that when you are sewing across the two BACK corners you sandwich the ties (2 per side) in between the fabric before sewing.
    Trim the excess fabric from the corner.

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Comments

EVEnl
EVEnl · Leidschenveen, Zuid-Holland, NL · 319 projects
Thank you for revising it Lydia! Owh yes, a bit out of order...I can see Happy but I will check again later. Great tutorial by the way ;)
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Lydia H.
Lydia H. · 20 projects
OK - EVEnl - I added more steps to make it more informative but at the moment they seem to be out of order.... I am trying to resolve this issue! Happy
Reply
Lydia H.
Lydia H. · 20 projects
I tend to agree with you EVEnl. Also, perhaps I will do a related tutorial then on how to do box corners, would it be helpful?
Reply
EVEnl
EVEnl · Leidschenveen, Zuid-Holland, NL · 319 projects
This is not realy a how to... it's a project.

The cover looks great! I think you should keep the cushion this way tufting it will make it look a bit old fashioned I think... but it does prevent the cushion from losing its shape.
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