Leather Cushion Slipcover

This project was to slipcover the seat and back cushions from a red leather chair.  Adding to the fun was the fact the cushions were attached with a zip-apart connector to keep them from slipping.  So instead of a zippered or overlapped opening, I would need to leave an open edge where the connector was attached to each piece.

Here is the "before" picture.  The seat cushion is on the left, the back cushion on the right.  They are unzipped at the moment, but you can see the flap on the seat cushion that zips to the bottom of the back cushion.

Since the back cushion was an odd shape, I first made a pattern out of muslin.  I cut pieces of the muslin and pinned them together to fit.  When I got the fit right, I marked the seams with chalk.

I unpinned the muslin and cut proper seam allowances next to the chalk lines.  The next step was to baste the pieces together and do a test (left).

Making a pattern like this is a lot of trouble, not the least of which is undoing the basting so you can use the pattern to cut out the face fabric (which is actually spread out underneath the cushion in these pictures).  But if this client ever needs another slipcover for these pieces, I will be able to use the pattern again!

Cutting out pieces for both cushions and their cording took some planning due to the size of the pieces and the fabric design having an "up."  And I wanted to ensure the seat cushion and back cushion lined up, design-wise.

Here is the finished top.  The slipcover fit snugly, but not too snugly. You can't see it here, but the bottom edge of this cushion is open to allow the connector to attach.

 Here is the finished seat.  I also made a muslin pattern for it.

 The two pieces connected together.  They turned out well, I thought.