Do you have some furniture around your house that has seen better days?  Sturdy, but stained, out dated colors, ripped or starting to get worn out to the point that it’s time to cover it or get rid of it?  Well here’s how you can make your own customized slipcover and turn that chair or couch into a brand new looking one.  Best of all the slipcover is easy to take off and wash!

So I have this older recliner chair, it’s totally comfortable and sturdy and the thing I love most about it is how wide it is- making it perfect for cuddling kiddos.  The problem was that it was a light tan colored microfiber.  Although I love microfiber this chair didn’t have cushion covers that came off and can be thrown in the washing machine for easy cleaning.  So that leaves hand scrubbing…. ugh.  After years of scrubbing when it got bad enough, and it still didn’t ever look great I finally came to the conclusion that it needed to be covered.  Problem is- it’s a unusual size/shape AND reclines so that was almost impossible to find something to cover it.  What I did find that may work cost anywhere from $80-150 and that was just more than I was willing to pay.  So the next option was to sew my own cover.  I still have a few bolts of designer fabric from my mom (really wishing I would have grabbed more when she was moving and getting rid of it all).

I pulled out the design I liked best and got to work.
First I draped the fabric on the side of the chair, then started cutting making sure to leave room for movement and seams. (You can always take in the fabric and cut off excess but if you cut it too small you’ll have wasted some fabric)

As I cut each side to fit I would pin the parts together where the seams would be.  I pinned pleats where there needed to be as well to get a custom fit. Once it was all cut out and pinned together like a Frankenstein chair I started sewing.  I was a little nervous that it wouldn’t work (this was my first time).
Eventually it all came together.

For the front since the recliner part needs to be able to open up I just left the front flap open on each side so it hangs down but is open.  When the feet part of the recliner is up it shows the microfiber part underneath but that’s ok since it’s rarely up.  Also on the side where the handle for the recliner is I cut a slit from the bottom  so the cover could slide over and behind the handle.

After I had it sewn together I turned up the edges along the bottom and sewed those to give it a more finished look.

All in all it wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be.  You can do it!
I wish I had taken more pictures along the way- but I wasn’t sure it would even turn out at the time.