Great chairs zipdee, but not sure about mattlesse covering the plaid. Maybe Deb or Rhapsdy can answer that question.

It is so plaid now that it is almost difficult to see the lines of the chair.

If you already have the fabric, maybe take a swatch to see if the plaid would glare through?

Thanks JGBM and Paint Chips. I don't have the actual fabric, but I do have lots of mattlesse coverlets I could bring to drap over to see if they covered.

I think what I like most about these chairs, is they are very simple lined and straight forward. I'm a rather novice seamstress, with sadly a low frustration level. *LOL* So I need to stick to chairs I think I'd be able to conquer.

I'm not against having the slipcovers professionally done, but I thought if I can teach myself how, then I can change them on whim.

I would suggest that you make a muslim 'slip' for the chair and ottoman. First of all, it would give you something to play with, give you a pattern for your mattlesse, and with the muslim under the mattlesse, I think it would completely cover the plaid. And - if you can't seem to get it right, then you still have the mattlesse to have them professionally done. Good luck!

zipdee, check with a near by community college. They often have classes for things like upholstery/slipcovers where you bring your own chair and learn on it.

I think the idea of doing a practice slipcover in a muslin or other inexpensive fabric is a great idea. It will give you practice, but also consider doing it in a dark color, rather than a light one. The dark will hide the plaid better.

I see it in white or off white prewashed denim (best coverage), or even in a fun 50's MCM fabric. If you are bold, how about some Amy Butler fabric --- very 'you' I dare say! :-)

If you are doing slipcovers -- would you consider taking the old skirt off. Don't know what kind of legs you got under there -- but if the legs are pretty, you can do a nifty tight slipcover w/o skirt. Something like this....

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For me the most difficult part of doing slipcover is the zipper & piping. If you can do those 2 things, the rest is pretty easy. The examples above have over stitching instead of piping (which makes it a lot easier to do & looks more modern, IMO).

Here is a link that might be useful: link to amy butler fabric --

Holleygarden and Les .. I think the idea of doing a practice slipcover out of inexpensive fabric, to used as a pattern for the real, is an awesome idea!

JGTBM .. I've looked and looked for an upholstery class locally, but none of the collages or even shops offer them. I'd love to take a class!

Bellaflora, I really like the look of both of those chairs. I would remove the skirt and let the legs show from under the slipcover, probably like the first you put up. I'm totally, totally in love with the Amy Butler fabrics and have looked at them many times. I think for my sewing abilities, it might be easier for me to match up a very simple pattern on the slipcovers and save the beautiful Amy Butler fabrics for some awesome pillows. Now if I decide to have the slipcovers made, I'd be much more apt to go with the wonderful pattern fabrics.

There are no coincidences in life. My niece just asked me today about upholstering or slipcovering a sofa she has. Researching for her on Google (on page 15 or something!), I came across a picture of MY slipcovers from an old thread here! Then I just happen to open this thread - and I'm not one to start at the top and work my way down, I pick threads to read pretty haphazardly.

Zip here is an old old picture of of the the chairs that were slipcovered. The fabric is a very dark, heavy tapestry and it's completely obscurred by the slipcover as you can see.

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I LOVE the look of the ones Bella posted - so very good looking!

zipdee--I use old bed sheets to make pattern for my slipcovers. It's cheaper than muslin because it's free!! :-D Also, the width is larger than normal fabric width so it's easier to make pattern out of it.

This is what I do when I need to make a slipcover from scratch.

1. Measure & roughly cut the fabric to the approx. size.
2. Drape the pieces of fabric against the sofa and stitch the seam together (with raw edges on the outside).
3. Repeat for the whole sofa. When done, it looks like you have the slipcover on w/ the wrong side out.

4. Turn right side out and put back on to make sure it fits.

5. Trim the rough edge off (leaving a/b 1/4"-1/2" outside the stitched seam). Then, remove the basting and use this as the pattern for the real fabric.

It's not difficult to do at all. Especially because your chair does not have a lot of curve. I use this technique to make slipcovers for everything and it's been fool proof!

Maybe you can use a solid fabric (grey/white/taupe etc. prewashed denim?) and then make accent pillows with AB fabric. Her fabric is so pretty, isn't it? :-D

Zipdee, I'm a wingback fan. If I had room for another chair, that's what it would be.

My sofa and matching chair can't be slipcovered. :(

Dlm .. How cool, I was hoping you'd see this post. Thanks so much for posting your before and after pictures! Your chairs turned out just beautiful! It's so great to know the fabric completely covered the tapastry!

Bellaflora, thank you for the instructions. I copied them and placed them in word for when I get ready to tackle slipcovers.

Oceanna, I love windbacks too .. I think I'll have to work up to a chair with harder lines like that though.