How to Design Your Own Stadium Chair

Avoid cold, hard stadium bleachers with your own stadium chair

Many an avid sports fan has felt the discomfort of cold, hard bleacher seating, which can distract from the enjoyment of the sport, particularly on cold winter nights. A little padding can help your backside stay warm and comfortable, and if you add a back to the chair, you can save your own back the aches of pains that come from hours of sitting with no support. Store-bought stadium chairs can be expensive, however, with some raw materials and a little creativity, you can design your own stadium chair and save yourself some dough.

Things You'll Need

• Vinyl/cloth material
• Vinyl thread
• Measuring stick
• Scissors
• 2 14-inch pieces of foam cell
• Sewing machine / heavy-duty sewing needle
• Fabric marker
• hook-and-loop fasteners

Instructions

1. Measure the chosen material. Take out the material you purchased for your stadium chair and measure four 16- by 16-inch squares, using a fabric marker to mark the parameters of each square and guide you when it comes time to cut out the squares.

2. Cut out the squares. Using a pair of scissors, carefully cut along your previously marked lines and remove the four squares from the fabric.

3. Sew the seat cushion together. Pick up two of the square pieces of fabric and hold them inside out, so the sides of the fabric you want showing on the outside of the seat cushion are facing each other. Using a sewing machine or heavy-duty needle, sew together three of the sides, leaving the fourth side open. On one of the sewn sides, leave about a 1-inch margin of extra fabric outside of the stitch; this is where you will connect the seat cushion with the back cushion. Repeat this process with the remaining two squares of fabric to create the back cushion.

4. Apply strips of hook-and-loop fasteners to the open ends of each cushion. Glue or sew a long strip of hook-and-loop fasteners to the inside top and inside bottom lip of the cushion on the end you haven't yet sewn.

5. Insert a 14-inch block of foam cell into each cushion. Once you have the foam in place, press the hook-and-loop fasteners on the open ends together to close each cushion.

Tips & Warnings

• For added back support, particularly if the stadium bleachers don't have seat backs, you can sew a strip of thick fabric or rope to both sides of the seat cushion and the back cushion.

References

• Customcarinteriorsecrets.com: Making a Stadium Cushion Seat