DIY Cushion Cover from a Blanket

I originally published this tutorial on Crafting a Green World.

My family is SO hard on our stuff. We are the illustrated definition of not deserving nice things, because at any given time we are either muddy, actively painting, hosting five foster kittens from the local animal shelter, hosting thirteen teenagers from our Girl Scout troop, or just, you know, not paying attention to what we're doing. I'm the one who put a scorch mark in our (to be fair, at least 40-year-old) carpet by... well, I carried a pot of freshly popped popcorn directly from the stovetop and put it on the floor. Apparently that's very different from carrying a pan of piping hot Pizza Rolls directly from the oven and putting it on the floor. Who knew? 

So you might notice that here on CAGW I post a lot of tutorials for washable covers for furniture. I've got couch covers, chair covers, tablecloths and cozies of all kinds to attempt to save my stuff from the negligence of me and everyone around me. 

And the latest on the list? Cushion covers for my benches! It's easy to see why the hallway bench needs a cushion cover, because that's where everybody takes off their muddy boots and clay-covered sneakers and grimy yard Crocs. 

No matter what cushion you've got that needs a washable, reusable cover, I'm not going to judge you. Instead, I'm going to show you how to make that cover from any handy blanket that you've got in your stash. 

 Here's what you'll need!

• old blanket, quilt, bedspread, or similar piece of fabric. These thicker fabrics mimic upholstery weight fabric, so do a similar job holding up under wear and keeping spills from soaking through to the cushion below. They also tend to most often mimic the look of upholstery weight fabric, although there is no shame in covering a cushion in a vintage novelty He-Man bedspread, either! I had to work hard to convince myself to use this wool blanket that I thrifted (for $2.50!!!!!!!) instead of a vintage Sesame Street bed cover, and the only reason I decided against the Sesame Street cover is that the wool blanket is sturdier.
• patternmaking and cutting and sewing supplies. You'll need large-format paper to draw the cushion cover pattern, and all the usual suspects for measuring, cutting, and sewing.
• elastic. 
• bias tape (optional). With this wool blanket, I don't need it, but fabric that's prone to raveling will require it.

Step 1: Make a cushion cover pattern and use it to cut your fabric.

To make your cushion cover pattern, measure your cushion's length, width, and height. 

 To the length and width measurement, add .5", depending on the thickness of your fabric. My wool blanket is moderately thick, but if I was using one of those vintage 1980s bedspreads with lots of batting, I'd probably add more like 1". 

 Add a flap to each side of the cover pattern. Each flap should be the height of the cushion plus .5". 

 Lay out the pattern on your fabric and cut it out.

 

Step 2: Sew the cushion cover and add elastic.

With right sides together, sew the adjacent short sides of each of the flaps to each other, using a .25" seam allowance. Finger press the seams open. 

Measure approximately 6" of elastic for each corner of the cushion cover. Mark the center of each piece of elastic, then pin the center to the corner seam. 

Set your sewing machine to its widest zigzag and longest stitch length. Stretch the elastic, then zigzag it to the raw edge of the cushion cover, keeping it centered on the corner seam. This is exactly the way that you sew a fitted sheet! 

 Repeat for each corner of the cushion cover.

 

Step 3 (optional): Add bias tape.

If the raw edges of the cushion cover will tend to fray, encase them in double-fold bias tape. 

I like to have a spare of these types of home items, and to save space and time, I like to go ahead and put the spare on, as well. So although you can't see it (mwa-ha-ha!), underneath this wool blanket cushion cover is a second cushion cover, this time sewn from an unfinished vintage quilt top. It's a lot cuter but a lot less sturdy, which is why it's only the backup cover. 

However, whenever I'm emergency cleaning the house for imminent company, that nicer cover hiding underneath the plain, serviceable cover makes it super easy to whip off the plain cover, toss it in the dirty laundry, and have a cuter cover ready for company. It gets to show off for just as long as it takes to wash my workhorse cushion cover, then that cover goes back on top. So if you ever come visit me and you find yourself sitting on top of a sweet vintage quilt-covered bench cushion while you take off your filthy barn boots, then you know that you're VERY special!

DIY Drapes from Upcycled Sheets and Lining Fabric

This tutorial was originally posted on Crafting a Green World.

Drapes are a surprisingly eco-friendly home furnishing! 

You might think of drapes as those heavy velvet beasts that hide the windows in your grandma's parlor, gathering dust and waiting for Scarlet O'Hara to come along and upcycle them into a dress. 

Drapes, however, do more than just look pretty (if you just want something to look pretty, you want curtains!). Drapes are lined, usually with a specifically light-blocking fabric, but any tightly-woven fabric will do in a pinch. Lined fabric keeps out the light bleed that can negatively affect your sleep, whether that's dawn's early light or your neighbor's *^&%#%&#!!#% end-of-the-driveway beacon that they have no business keeping on all freaking night and not even because it shines directly in your bedroom window. I mean, how about because of light pollution!?! Energy expenditures! Seriously, do they not care about their electric bill AT ALL?!? 

 Anyway, where was I.... oh, right! The lined fabric of drapes makes it great for light-proofing a room, and it also makes it great for insulation. No matter how eco-friendly your windows, they're still less insulated than, say, your walls. The extra layer of insulation that drapes provide is always going to keep indoor temperatures more consistent and allow your climate control to run more efficiently. 

Drapes are surprisingly easy to sew, even for a novice. All you need to know is how to sew a straight line! Here's everything that you need to make your own drapes:

Flat Sheets

There are a billion curtain width calculators online. However, they assume you're either going to buy new curtains or make your own from scratch. 

To use flat sheets for curtains, here's an easy rule of thumb: each flat sheet should be AT LEAST as wide as your window. Since you'll have two for each window, this is an easy way to make sure your curtains are at least double the width of your window. Check out my post on sheet sizes translated to fabric yardage to see the width of standard flat sheets. Remember, though, that sheets aren't always standard. If they're new, they'll probably shrink when you pre-wash them. Thrifted sheets have probably already shrunk. And if they're vintage, who knows? The only way to get an accurate measurement is to pre-wash your sheet and then physically measure it by hand. Drapes look even better when they're more than double the width of the window, so don't be afraid to go up an entire sheet size to get the look that you want. Just remember that you'll have to buy lining fabric to match. 

 Lining Fabric 

 Lining fabric is useful in several ways. It keeps a room darker when the drapes are closed, it adds another layer of insulation, and it prevents direct sunlight from fading the drapes. The bad news is that all readily-available, specifically-marketed-as-such lining or blackout material is essentially plastic. And because all fabric has some sort of weave, you're not going to get a true blackout effect with just fabric alone. 

Fortunately, if you don't need a room to be 100% dark with the curtains closed, you have a ton of out-of-the-box lining options. For instance, I really like the option of simply using another flat sheet as a curtain lining. If you buy two of the exact same flat sheets, one for the drapes and one for the lining, their sizing will match perfectly. Buy them in the same color to blend, or buy them in different colors to look cute! 

 A blanket is another lining option that gives good light blockage and good insulation. It's a little harder to make a blanket blend in and look like anything other than a blanket on your window. However, if it's hidden as the lining on the backside of an otherwise conventional-seeming curtain, it's easier to get away with. 

Curtain Rings

Clip-on rings are the solution with the least sewing required. These are also really handy if you're just evaluating potential looks, because you can clip your wannabe drapes up and then easily take them down again without much fuss. Alas, clip-on rings are super annoying when I want to wash my drapes, because I have to remeasure their placement on the drapes each time. It's only now occurring to me that what I should do is stitch a little x in matching thread where I want each clip to go! Okay, hold on... I'll be back in about an hour. 

 Yeah, that worked great. Do that. Okay, here's how to make your beautiful new drapes!

Step 1: Wash and Dry the Fabrics.

  

 Even if your fabric is new, pre-wash it using the same method you plan to use when you wash your finished drapes. Drying your fabric can be tricky, because that's when fabric gets wrinkled. For wrinkle-free fabric, find a place where you can hang it to dry. Outside on the clothesline is ideal, of course, but I'd rather hang my fabric over the shower rod for an entire day to dry it without wrinkles than throw it in the dryer for an hour then spend three hours ironing.

Step 2: Measure and Cut Any Curtain Fabric.

 If you're using only flat sheets or blankets and therefore don't have to cut anything to size, then you're all set for the next step, you Lucky Duck! 

 Although I used two king-sized sheets for the curtain fabric, I used store-bought fabric for the lining. Above, then, is a photo of my family room after I shoved all the furniture aside and vacuumed the floor. Pretend you don't see the wrinkles, because I'll go live in the chicken coop before I iron all that. Speak this mantra with me: gravity will pull the wrinkles out after the drapes are hung.

Step 3: Sew the Lining Fabric to the Curtain Fabric.

 

Don't forget: we don't see those wrinkles! If you've got enough floor space, backing any large piece of fabric is fairly straightforward. First, tape down the edges of the bottom fabric, pulling it taut as you go. Next, lay the top fabric over it, pulling it taut and lining up the edges with the bottom fabric. Trim to size, then pin together. Finally, remove the tape. 

 I don't usually pin when I'm just sewing a simple, straight seam, but it's more necessary when the two pieces I'm sewing together are so large. It's too easy to get tangled up, otherwise! Here's my secret pro tip for sewing the lining fabric to the curtain fabric: if there are no raw edges (or if the raw edges won't ravel), only sew them together at the top.

Step 4: Clip on the Curtain Rings.

 Drapes are heavy, so they need support every few inches. Clip-on curtain rings are an easy solution, quick to remove and replace and simple to adjust. Eyeball the placement until they look evenly spaced, then clip them onto the drapes and mount the drapes on their curtain rod. 

These DIY drapes are a huge improvement over the vertical blinds that used to live there. During the day, the room is much brighter with drapes that can be completely pushed aside. When I'm asleep, the drapes do a much better job blocking the neighbor's light pollution and the annoyingly early sunrises. Next up, my kid wants her bedroom curtains upgraded to these light-blocking drapes, too. Her window also faces the neighbor's house!

The Harper Tunic, a Second Try--And This Time It Fits!

 

The bad news first: fewer kittens fit in your pockets when your Harper Tunic actually fits!

Although to be fair, the kittens, themselves, are bigger now, too. Look at these nearly seven-week-old chonkers!

The lightest of them (our picky Pickle!), is about one pound, 10 ounces currently, so we'll probably have these foster babies for another couple of weeks. 

With my first try at the Harper Tunic, I took the advice that if I was between sizes, I should size up, but the finished tunic was just too roomy.

This time, I cut the pattern down to an OSP, and I love it!

I also love sewing this tunic. It's got some nice details, but is overall quite quick and easy to sew. My fabric of choice was a $5 thrifted sheet, the perfect price so that if, as with my first tunic, I didn't love it, I hadn't thrown too much money at it. I've got enough leftover from the sheet to sew some other projects, although not enough for another garment.

Don't you love a nice spiral of tidy double-fold bias tape?

Also as with my first tunic, I sewed a second pocket onto the front. When I tried the first tunic on, I just wasn't feeling the asymmetry, so I added the second pocket to this tunic as a matter of course:

Good thing, because the pockets are my absolute favorite part of this garment! I can hold so many kittens, sure, but also gardening shears, oregano sprigs, and sunflower cuttings:

It's also VERY comfy, but alas, it's still not anymore flattering than it was with my first try. I, personally, don't care, but as we were getting ready to go out the other day, both Matt and Will each asked me separately if this was what I was planning to wear:

It most certainly was! Here I am in a McDonald's parking lot, waiting for my French fries and Diet Coke:

After that, I wore my new tunic to the Museum of Miniature Houses (yay for Smithsonian's Museum Day!), then to IKEA for dorm stuff for Will, then to Trader Joe's for almost every single seasonal autumn product they had in stock, and then back home to lie around drinking pumpkin cider and eating Halloween Joe Joe's while my brand-new vanilla pumpkin candle burned and kittens used my body as a battleground:

That's probably all the Harper Tunics that I need for myself, although I do have the short-sleeved version printed out, and I could see myself sewing it up next summer when it's hot but I miss my giant pockets. Will's also somewhere in the middle of piecing together a Harper Tunic pattern of her own (oh, the hell of all those 8.5"x11" pieces of paper that must be trimmed, lined up, and taped together!!!), so that will be a fun beginner sewing project for me to help her with.

And then we can go out and about with our matching unflattering but comfy tunics!!!

The Harper Tunic: My First Try

 

The good news: this Harper Tunic is easily the most comfortable item of clothing that I own, second only to my four-year-old Black Panther-branded jersey knit jammy pants.

The bad news: it's so roomy that it's probably unwearable on any occasion in which I care what I look like. That's not many occasions, true, but it's not none occasions!

Even though I've been sewing constantly for 18 years (my first project was a ring sling for tiny baby Will!), I can count on one hand the articles of clothing that I have actually sewn for myself---including that ring sling! I've sewn countless garments for the kids, and even a few things for Matt, but I am very much a novice, still, at sewing for my own body.

For the Harper Tunic, I'm on the cusp between the OSP and OSP2 sizes. The Chest measurement for the OSP is 38"-45", and the OSP2 is 45"-52"; my chest measurement is 45". I'm solidly in the OSP2 range with a Waist measurement of 42.5", but I'm again on the cusp between two sizes with my Hip measurement of 49"; the OSP is 42"-49", and the OSP2 is 49"-56". I read somewhere as I was researching this pattern that I should opt for the larger size if I was between measurements, so that's what I did. 

I sewed this tunic from an $8 cotton sheet from Goodwill--Goodwill's prices have gotten RIDICULOUS, so please don't tell them that their sheet prices are still reasonable, lest they up those, too, and I lose my favorite source of affordable fabric! This was mostly intended to be a muslin, so I'm not super sad that I don't love it. Instead, it's like a bonus that it's wearable at all, even if its entire lifespan will be spent with me doing kitchen and yardwork.

Because look at those pockets!

I added a matching pocket on the opposite side of the tunic, and now I have enough room in my pockets to fit five five-week-old kittens:

I mean, they don't hate it...

My next step will be to cut down my pattern to the smaller size and try it again--I've got a $4 dark red sheet already picked out for it, so I'm pretty stoked. Will is still in the process of assembling her Harper Tunic pattern--so far, her sewing lessons have consisted of the fact that cutting and assembling pdf patterns SUCK!!!!!--but I think I'm going to have her cut her pattern down another size, too, as she is also on the cusp of two sizes and unlike me, she would majorly loathe wearing an oversized shirt.

I mean, she's also probably going to loathe wearing matching shirts with her mother, but to be honest, she's kind of oblivious so there's a good chance she won't even notice...

The Road Map Quilt is Finished!

 

Quilts intended to be given for a specific holiday are the BEST, because you have to finish them!

And that's how the giant denim log cabin quilt that I've been dreaming of for my own bed is still a WIP several years old, with the extra-wide red flannel that I bought to back it narrowly escaping from being accidentally used in every new project I think up, but this quilt, intended as a car play mat for my baby niece's birthday, went from idea to reality in the space of a single summer. 

It also happened to get WAY overengineered in the process, but whatever.

To see the quilt design as I thought it up and pieced it, check out this post where I show off my finished road map quilt top. 

After it was pieced, I needed to think up a few applique embellishments. I wanted the embellishments to hint at the purpose for each area--the park, the neighborhoods, the construction zones, the parking lots, the rivers, the roads, the oceans, the dino dig sites--without being too prescriptive. I wanted features that were naturally stationary, so no animals or vehicles. I had trouble figuring out all the pieces that I wanted, and I had trouble clearly explaining my vision, which led to the fun game of people trying to help me by suggesting ideas, and me going, "No. No. No. Nuh-uh. Not that. Um, no. Nope. Not that, either." 

Fun fact: that's actually my pet peeve when people do that to ME, so sorry!

I never did end up happy with my choices for the river (I don't think the piers look like piers) or the construction zones (I think these cones are oversized compared to the other elements)--

--but I love how everything else turned out. I used all stash for the applique pieces, and almost all materials upcycled from other garments, so I think there's a lot of fun texture variety that will appeal to a toddler. 

There's toweling for the beach!

And work pants, quilting cotton, and bias tape for the houses!

I like the idea that this will be both a play mat and a snuggly quilt. The cotton batting will be comfy on little knees, and cozy on little sleepyheads!

I don't know why I can never have any peace when I'm working on the floor. These photos are just a glimpse of ALL THE DRAMA that took place on this spot.

Jones was in the way and screaming his head off, so Syd thought she'd distract him by giving him some catnip off the hanging planter in the window. 

It distracted him, alright, but only to the extent that he rolled and ran around screaming all over my quilt that I was trying to trim, hollering for more catnip. 

And then Spots heard him and she came hunting for catnip, too, and then they both started hallucinating mice under the quilt and attacking it.

Here it is two episodes of Surviving Antarctica later:

During this time, I also learned that Will does NOT think that traveling on foot through Antarctica is a legitimate path of exploration, and especially not if you fly to the continent. And if you do go there and get stuck and nearly die, you nevertheless have no business asking a whaling vessel or a tug boat to pause its legitimate business to come save you and your crew, because you knew full well what you were getting everyone into.

So that's that, everyone! Please consult with Will before planning your next trek.

I barely had enough of that stash cotton batting for this quilt, and I'm going to be very sad the next time I start a new quilt and find myself having to buy new batting. But that's a problem for Future Julie! Present Julie also found a grey flat sheet in the stash that matches the grey flannel roads perfectly. I'd been holding onto that sheet because I thought it was the one that I was going to use to make the final blackout curtain in my bedroom, but I compared it to the other two curtains and it doesn't quite match, so

1. Where is the sheet that matches, so I can make that curtain?
2. Where did this sheet come from, and what did I intend to use it for?

Well, whatever it was meant to be, it's a quilt back now!

When it comes to quilting the lines on grey flannel roads, it's Frixion pens for the win!

I didn't even iron the marks away, just washed and dried the quilt and those marks and the chalk marks on the black flannel roads disappeared like magic!

A back-to-front blanket binding...

... and my road map quilt is finished!

But, of course, the most important question: is it fun?

Better get out the Hot Wheels and see:

It's fun!!!

Here are some cars parked in the bias tape parking lot:

And here are some in the park, parked by the waffle shirt and inside-out sweatshirt tree:

Because our baby niece lives in California, Matt designed her a palm tree, and I made it from some T-shirt and dress pants fabric and put it in the park:

The construction cones are blocking off the construction zone so that non-work vehicles stay out:

There are a couple of houses already in the neighborhoods, just waiting for some building block and LEGO neighbors:

And if you ever want to do some paleontology, this is the place to do it!

After work, you can drive to the beach to relax:

You might remember that for a while I was super worried that the quilt would be, just, ridiculously big--like, her parents have to have enough floor space to lay it down, for goodness' sake!--but now that it's finished, I don't think it's too large:

I mean, it IS pretty big--that's Matt's head just barely visible over the top of it, so it's a good six feet!

But the child simply HAS to have enough room to spread out. It's no fun if you can't spread out!

Syd suggested that for upcoming holidays, I should create quilts with different small world themes to connect to this one. Like, you could drive to the outer space quilt to the north, or the deep ocean quilt to the south. Perhaps a mountain range to the east, complete with castle and dragon?

Thinking up new ideas might be the best part of handmade presents!