Wow……what a week of sickies. We have all been ill here in this house. We need him to stay healthy…….and at work! All 3 kids had a cold last week and then at the beginning of this week, I somehow was blasted with the body-aching, hot/cold flashing flu. Then, one by one, each of the kiddos started getting fevers and joined in on the party. He and his BFF bottle of hand-sanitizer are doing just fine! Anyway, I had plans to put up the tutorial for recovering my re-upholstered chair project. And also, the fabric dolls that won the vote. But this bug that took over our house changed those plans. I know some of you have been checking in to hopefully find those little dolls. But I’ll put them up next week. But just for a little something to see…..and maybe a quick little project to work on, here’s a simple one that you can tackle in a snap. Oh wait…..unless zippers freak you out. Zippers don’t have to be so scary. And if you haven’t tried them yet (or haven’t tried them in a long while)…….just give it another whirl.
Seriously, try this zipper tutorial and just see what happens. You may really surprise yourself. And then, practice that new skill and whip up a quick little Zippered Pillow Cover. (Which is great for taking on/off for cleaning, etc.) And really, there are several ways to make a zippered pillow cover. Invisible zippers, zippers along the back, zipper flaps, etc. Especially ones that are much fancier. But I made this in, oh, 15 minutes and didn’t need fancy. I just made the quickest thing that came to mind, stuffed it with my pillow insert……then done. And really, it’s a very simple version. And works great if you have basic skills and just want something simple to feel successful making. (But if I still haven’t convinced you to give zippers a try, you can always make an Envelope Closure Pillow Cover. And if you want to keep that zipper hidden, just place it on the bottom, and no one will ever see it. Now you know……and the Zippered Pillow Cover is no longer a mystery.
**And yeah, now you have seen a sneak peek of the re-upholstered chair. Measure your pillow insert (or an old pillow you’d like to cover) from one side seam to the other and add 1/2 inch to all sides. My little pillow was 14×14 inches, so I cut out two squares that were 15 x 15 inches. I used a thin cotton fabric and I wanted to thicken it up……so I ironed some fusible interfacing to the “wrong” side of the fabric, to stiffen it up. If you are using a thicker upholstery fabric, you won’t need to thicken it up. Then, place your squares together (with right sides together) and sew them together along one side, using a 1/2 inch seam allowance. Then, open up that seam and iron the fabric back open and flat. Then, install your zipper on the “wrong” side of the fabric. (Need help installing a zipper??) Now……you can do what I did and install your zipper beginning a 1/2 inch from one end and stopping a 1/2 inch from the other end. But then your zipper will become part of two of your corners.
It works fine but to get 2 crisp corners without the zipper interfering (and possibly making it more difficult for beginners) start and stop the zipper 1 inch inch from each corner. The 2 black arrows below are showing where 1 inch would be. Then, when you unpick your seam from the other side to let your zipper out, only unpick where you zipper is and leave the 1 inch at each end sewn. Otherwise, just do it like me……and it will still work out just fine. Here’s a view from the “right” side. Then, place the squares back together with “right” sides together and sew all the way around the other 3 sides, using a 1/2 inch seam allowance. HOWEVER, be sure to leave the zipper unzipped halfway. Otherwise, you’ll sew it up and won’t be able to unzip it. Then, trim down the edges and bit and zig-zag the raw edges…..or serge them. Now, turn right side out, poke the corners out, and iron flat. And now, you’re ready to stuff with your insert.Not too painful, right?
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But you can always use a little extra help with protecting your patio cushions. Apply a spray on fabric protectant to really reinforce the natural attributes in the fabric. Just like you rotate your mattress, flip your outdoor pillows from time to time so that wear and tear is equally applied to both sides – increasing the life span of your gorgeous investments. Don’t forget to bring the patio cushions inside for a thorough cleaning in the washing machine. Don’t let anything spoil the day—pick up a wide assortment of outdoor patio cushions at JCPenney and spend quality time outside! Shop Bench Cushions>>> Shop Patio Chair Cushions>>> Shop Patio Seat Cushions>>> Shop Chair Cushions >>> Shop Rocking Chair Cushions >>>Log In to Your Richmond Pro Lab Account 2 Day In-Lab Turnaround To order these products, view our Ordering Software page for a solution that meets your needs. View our complete Price Guide for pricing and more information.