How to Make a Padded Rocking Chair Cover Set
- 1). Measure the seat of the rocking chair from front to back and from side to side inside the arms of the chair. Measure the rocking chair's back between the arms of the chair and from the top down to the seat.
- 2). Transfer and mark the dimensions of the rocking chair seat onto the two-inch-thick furniture foam with a marking pen.
- 3). Cut along the marks with the bread knife. To start the cut, hold the bread knife perpendicular to the shortage of the foam at the place where the drawing of the rocking chair seat comes closest to the edge of the foam. Cut straight into the foam until you reach the outline, turn the blade of the bread knife and follow the outline until you've cut the piece completely free. Repeat this process to cut a piece of foam for the back of the rocking chair except subtract 2 inches from the distance from the top of the chair to the base for the height of the foam.
- 4). Cut eight 12-inch long by 1-inch wide strips of material from one edge of the fabric. Take one strip of the material and fold it lengthwise right sides together. Sew a seam line 1/4-inch from the raw edges all along the length of the strip creating an open-ended tube. Turn the tube inside out, tuck the raw edges of the material into the tube and sew across the ends. Repeat with the other seven strips of material to create the ties you'll use to secure the cushions in place on the rocking chair.
- 5). Fold your material right sides together and insert the foam between the two layers of material so that the front edge of the foam is nestled into the fold. Insert pins through both layers of material, parallel to the edge of the foam, all around the outside of the furniture foam creating a tight pocket around the foam. Draw a line 1/2-inch outside of the pin line with a marking pen.
- 6). Cut along the line. Unpin one side of the seat cushion cover and remove the foam.
- 7). Insert two pairs of the ties you created, 3 inches from either edge, into the back seam line of the cushion cover. The ties should be positioned so that 1 inch sticks outside of the seam with the majority of the tie on the inside of the cover so that when you turn the cover inside out the majority of the tie will be on the outside. Sew along the pin line around one side and across the back of the seat cushion cover sewing directly over the four ties. Turn the corner of the third side and stop. Reinforce the seam line by sewing back and forth over this area three times.
- 8). Turn the material right side out. Insert the foam into the open side of the cover you created. Hand stitch a seam closing the open side of the seat cover together using a whipstitch.
- 9). Fold the material right sides together and insert the piece of foam for the back of the chair with a long side of the foam nestled into the fold of the material. Repeat the process you used to cover the seat cover, sewing the ties into the top edge of the cushion cover and leaving the bottom edge to be hand stitched.
