How to Make Chair Covers on a Budget
Decorating your home doesn't have to deplete your entire budget. Spice up your dining room decor with simple and inexpensive chair covers; they're removable, washable and easy to make. Give your room a splash of color and cover up those chairs that have seen better days --- you'll be good to your budget and feel good about your home at the same time. You don't need a lot of sewing experience to make these chair covers, which can even be made with a no-sew option.
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Things You'll Need
- Measuring tape
- Chair
- Fabric
- Scissors
- Iron
- Ribbon
- Sewing machine and thread, or fabric glue
Instructions
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1
Measure the back of your dining room chair, from the top rail to the floor. Measure the front of the chair, from the top rail to the seat, then across the front of the seat and down to the floor. Add these two measurements together and add two inches; call this measurement A. Measure the width of the chair and also add two inches; call this measurement B. Measure from the top of the chair just to the seat; call this measurement C.
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2
Cut a length of fabric for each chair that measures A by B inches. To make this project budget-friendly, use fabric from the clearance bin at the craft store, or even use a sheet from your linen closet or a thrift-store shopping spree.
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3
Lay out the fabric, right side down, on a large work surface. Fold in the long edges by 1/2 inch and press with an iron, then fold by 1/2 inch again and press. Repeat this process on the short edges as well.
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4
Glue your hems down, or use a sewing machine to sew them. Start with the long sides; glue or sew the hems down to the main body of the fabric where you have folded them. Repeat this with the short sides and let the glue dry or trim your string.
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Cut eight strips of ribbon that are each 12 inches long. The ribbon you choose doesn't matter significantly, but it should be approximately 1/2 inch to 1.5 inches wide and coordinate with your chair fabric. Find the halfway point of the longest measurement of your fabric; measure four inches out from this point and place one strip of ribbon perpendicular to your seam in this spot. Repeat this on the opposite side of the fabric so that another strip of ribbon mirrors the first; the end of the ribbon should line up with the seam and the longest part of the ribbon should stick out of the sides of the fabric. Repeat this four inches from the center going in the other direction, then do it again four inches out from that on either side. Glue or sew the ribbon to the folded seams in these spots.
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Drape the fabric over the chair, right side up. Use the ribbons, now positioned on the sides of the chair back, to tie the fabric around the chair and hold your DIY chair covers in place.
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Tips & Warnings
For another style, try covering only the back of the chair and not the seat as well. To do this, simply seam up the sides of your fabric like a pillow case, and then slide it over the back of your chair.
References
- Photo Credit Jupiterimages/Goodshoot/Getty Images
