How to Cover a Padded Cornice

With common tools recovering a padded cornice board is a quick way to refresh your window treatments.

Padded cornice boards are an easy way to add a tailored look to your home decor. Recovering an existing cornice board can quickly update the look of a room. With your favorite material and a few common tools, this quick project is easy on the budget as well. Choose from heavier materials, such as decorator fabrics, for this project. Heavier fabrics hold staples without tearing, as can often happen with thinner materials such as light cottons.

Things You'll Need

• Flat head screwdriver
• Material
• Scissors
• Staple gun
• Staples

Instructions

1. Remove the padded cornice from the window and lay it face down on a flat surface. Use a flat head screwdriver to gently pry up the staples that are holding the existing material in place. Remove the material but do not loosen the padding if at all possible.

2. Lay the new material wrong side up on a flat surface. Place the padded cornice board on top of the material. Center the board so that the material runs the entire length of the board, it is important to have material long enough so that no seams will be necessary.

3. Find the approximate center of the board. Make a one-half-inch fold at the top edge of the material, then position the folded edge on the board 3 inches below the top of the board. Secure the material in place by stapling. Continue attaching the material to the top of the board in this manner, working from the center and alternating sides. Pull the material taut as you work to create an even, wrinkle-free cover.

4. Smooth the material to avoid wrinkles when you have reached the ends of the board. Fold the material up over the bottom edge of the padded board. If there is more material than needed to make the 3 inch edge on the back of the board, cut the material to size with scissors. Begin folding and securing the material to the bottom edge of the board by stapling from the center to the sides as you did the top edge. Stop when you reach the ends.

5. Create a fold to neatly cover the ends of the board. This can be done in the same manner as gift wrapping a box. Fold the top and bottom edges in to form a point then wrap the point over the side of the board and staple in place with several evenly spaced staples. No part of the padding should be seen and any wrinkles or creases should be worked out before securing the material.

Tips & Warnings

• When recovering a more elaborately shaped cornice box, remove the original covering to use as a template for cutting the new material.

References

• Definitions for Types of Fabrics, Textiles, Materials

Resources

• "Window Treatments Idea Book"; Sue Sampson and Ellen Delucia; September 2006.