4TH TIME'S THE CHARM?

This is the fourth slipcover I've made for this chaise.  With 3 large dogs, slipcovers are a way of life for Kim Kelly.  And linen is one of her favorite fabrics in the world.

This is a tiny black and white check, though the entire time I was working with it, I kept thinking it was a dark navy blue.  I also kept thinking what a nice dress it would make.

In her house, it indeed looks like it's black.

I did the small ruffle on the cushion in place of welting.  I also made the skirt a little less gathered than I normally do.

In its new home.

Same chaise, earlier cover.

And this was the very first slipcover I did for it.  I do not have a picture of the other one, the one that Kim sent home with me in April so that I could take it apart and use it as the pattern to make the new one.

A 'WILD' SLIPCOVER FOR SCOUT

I delivered this slipcover to Kim Kelly on Saint Simons Island last week.  Since I was already going to be in Georgia for the Masters, I brought it with me instead of shipping it.  Her house is being photographed for a national magazine and this particular chaise needed a new cover badly.  It may or may not make it in the magazine because it is a lot brighter than most everything else.  No matter.

I am not a fan of any animal print.  I think they look fine on animals, but no place else.  That's just me.  Lots of people, including Kim, love them.  That being said, I do like the way this turned out and think it looks really good on the chaise.  This fabric is an outdoor fabric and will hold up better than the previous cover I made out of regular cotton.

Because the fabric is so 'wild,' the buttons hardly show.  In this case, they are more than just a decorative touch.  They are needed to get the slipcover on and off the chaise.

Scout, looking pretty, on her new chaise!

SLIPCOVERING LEATHER

It has been years, like almost 20, since I did slipcovers for leather furniture.  The first time I did it, the pieces had no loose back or loose seat cushions, and this made for a true slip cover -- in that it slipped because there was nothing to grab onto.  I swore then that I would never do it again.  And I didn't, until now.

My clients wanted to have this sofa and loveseat slipcovered.  I explained to them why it might not be such a good idea, but they really liked these pieces and wanted to do it anyway.  Since they were in the process of moving away from Coronado, and to make it a little easier for me, I went ahead and cut a pattern using a fabric I had, while the furniture was still close by.  All they needed to do was find a fabric they liked and I would then make the slipcovers.

Jump ahead three years, and they still had not decided on a fabric.  And by this time, they had moved back to Coronado.  Finally, they found a heavy linen that they loved and ordered it.

Because they like a 'cleaner,' non-wrinkled look, they decided against having me wash the fabric, and will have the covers dry-cleaned.

Both pieces got the buttons down the back, more for the look than out of necessity in getting the slipcover on and off.  And the wrinkles here will fall out in time.  It is very difficult, oh yeah, impossible, to fold a slipcover, so wrinkles do occur.  The overall look and feel, though, is not that of linen, but of a heavier fabric.

The 'new' sofa and 'new' loveseat with their existing throw pillows.

Although these turned out nicely, and having loose seat and back cushions definitely helps, I still would discourage slipcovering leather.  The important thing, though, as always, is my clients were happy with the finished product and can still enjoy the furniture they love.

KHAKI DENIM W/BLACK & WHITE WELTING

For these slipcovers (there were two sofas, facing each other in the family room) I used a light khaki denim, a black and white stripe for the welting and pillows and a box-pleated skirt.

The box-pleated skirt gives it a totally different look than a tailored or gathered skirt. It is also a much bigger pain to make.

Neither back shows since both are pushed against a wall, but it still looks cool with the buttons in the black and white fabric.

I also learned a HUGE lesson when I did these slipcovers. When I went to cut, I did not realize that the two sofas were different sizes. They looked the same. Luckily, I cut the sofa and measured the cushions on the one that was slightly larger. When I went to install the finished slipcovers, one fit perfectly and the other was too big. Well, I couldn't figure out what I had done wrong when my client happen to mention that the sofas were not, in fact, the same size. They just looked like they were. (A fine time to point this out, I thought.) I was not happy, but like I said, at least I had a finished cover to cut down, not to try to make larger. It was the same with the cushion covers. It is never easy to fix mistakes, but it is far easier to fix ones I've made than to try to fix someone else's. Now, if there are two seemingly identical pieces of furniture, you better believe I make sure they are instead of just assuming they are. Lesson learned!