Envelope Cushion Cover (no skills required!)

I bought a new sofa recently, after my beloved second hand sofa that served me well for about 7 years finally gave up on me.

I fancied some new cushions, but couldn’t quite find anything I liked at the right price. While browsing the haberdashery stall in a local market, I found some printed cottons that I thought would look great, so thought I’d have a go at making my own.

I was surprised at how easy this actually was to make, I think I was done in about 15 minutes! It’s extremely basic, but I didn’t want to have to fiddle around with zips or buttons, so went for the envelope style, which actually looks really neat.

I didn’t expect this to work as well at it did on a first attempt, so didn’t take many photos as I went along, but here’s a quick step-by-step guide:

Materials required:
1/2 metre of whatever fabric takes your fancy
Small scatter cushion pad (I got mine from eBay)
Tape measure
Pins
Scissors
Sewing machine or needle and thread

1. Cut the fabric to about 2 1/2 times the length of your cushion.
2. Neaten the 2 shorter raw edges by turning the fabric over 1 inch, and sew.

3. With right sides together, fold the fabric like and envelope, so that you’re neatened edges overlap, and your cushion fits comfortably on the fabric.

4. If the fabric is a lot wider than the cushion, trim the raw edges so that the fabric will fit nicely round the cushion. Remember to leave a seam allowance.

5. Sew the raw edges of the fabric.

6. Turn inside out and insert cushion!

7.Find more pretty fabric and make far more cushions than you will ever need…