Browsing through an old favorite decorating book a couple of days ago ~ Victoria Magazine’s Intimate Home ~ Creating a Private World
I found this settee with the front-sections RUCHED!
It was definitely a God-thing. (He does that sometimes.) I was in heaven! You know that feeling you get when you gasp, your mouth drops open and your eyes open wide? Yep, it was one of those ahah moments when I knew this was exactly how I wanted to finish my settee cover.
So… I was wrong… There will probably be five posts on Making a Settee Cover. Oh, well! It’s a woman’s prerogative, is it not, to change her mind? 😉
*Updated 2018* Making a Settee Cover, Part 1 Post 2 Post 3 Post 5 ~ Drop Cloth Settee Cover Reveal
So, I got busy making a paper pattern of my “arm-front.” I traced the sofa’s arm edge on both the front-side and the back-side of the paper. When you trace on the back side, just lay your pencil along the sofa’s side and press forward while pressing the paper inward. This will give a nice line that will be the same width as your sofa’s arms, perfect so your cover fits nicely in the front!
I retraced from the front, also, checking once in a while to see if what I was drawing was pretty close to what I had drawn on the back. It was. 🙂
I marked-in the sofa’s wooden piece and extended the drawing down to the “seat-deck’s” seam line. I really liked how the settee in the photograph had a lot of ruching!
I knew that without much texture to the painter’s drop cloth that this cover was going to need something. Theruching is it!
Make the paper pattern by pinning it to the couch while tracing.
Couch’s 1980’s/1990’s wood ornamentation
Re-adding this photograph. 🙂
Update 2018 ~ I had photos for you sharing more on ruching but I guess when I transferred the post from Weebly they didn’t come over.
How to make ruching
Measure the length of the line going around the outside edge of the couch arm and double it. Cut your fabric width leaving 1/2″ extra for the side and inner seams to the inset piece. Cut your inset fabric piece by creating a separate pattern piece and laying on your fabric to your desired placement. Here I wanted certain Battenburg lace parts showing. Cut the insert with 1/2″ seam allowances. Gather the ruching pin to the inset piece and the sofa arm while pinned on the settee ~ this requires you to have most of the rest of the sofa pieces already sewn together. *Plus having the welting already sewn in place along the settee’s arm edging if using. *Adjust your gathers as you go. Seems to me I pinned to the sofa first then to the inset piece so I wouldn’t have to keep readjusting the gathers…
On a final note about welting,
here are a few more photos as I am placing the welting into the “back seam.” 🙂
p.s I would love it if you’d “Share me!” Thank-you!
French Ethereal is a lifestyle blog sharing tips on decorating, table settings, crafts, gardening, DIY and travel. I love an elegant Shabby Chic/Old World French decor all decorated with Faith. <3
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