Wednesday, February 16, 2011

woven slipcover

You know how something goes ping in your brain and you're on to something?

. . . weave some cloth onto the ottoman said the voices. I scrambled for cloth, some linens and cottons, and grabbed the pins and scissors. Honestly, within minutes one woven slipcover was in the works. (Admittedly, I had been thinking about my contemporary woven boro class over at spirit cloth!)

The main piece is a cream-colored curtain panel from a rummage sale with tabs removed and sized to the width of the ottoman. I took the scissors to it on both sides, cutting to create the warp, then made random slits in the top and wove tan linen strips across.

The linen strips are long enough to be the warp on the ends.

The blue and tan linen strips took a while to prepare -- linen is hard to rip!  Then every strip needed to be ironed because it was curling so much from ripping.

Stitching has only just begun. I slide a book under the area I'm working on so as to not stitch the slipcover to the upholstery.

It will take a lot of pinning and stitching. And a lot of patience.
I hope I'm not crazy for starting this one. I hear voices after all.


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14 comments:

  1. helenFebruary 16, 2011 at 9:39 AM

    The patience and persistence will pay off, you have a great start. At least your voices give nice results in your work. Ha!

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  2. deanna7treesFebruary 16, 2011 at 9:48 AM

    your doing a great job on this. just think of the end result. it will all be worth it.

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  3. judeFebruary 16, 2011 at 9:54 AM

    glad you are thinking!

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  4. ShishiFebruary 16, 2011 at 11:31 AM

    Very cool! This is a great idea for updating an old look. I'm looking forward to seeing it's progress!

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  5. PeggyFebruary 16, 2011 at 11:51 AM

    Helen, Deanna, Jude & Shishi -- thanks for the encouragement. I'll need it as I sit in the lotus position for hours stitching! Ha.

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  6. grace Forrest~MaestasFebruary 16, 2011 at 12:59 PM

    i really really love this...the
    colors, the combination of fabrics.
    it reminds me so much of things
    i was forever trying to make in
    my "other life"...back when i
    wanted beautiful furniture. i once
    started a similar cover for my
    grandmother's old overstuffed
    couch. there was and might still
    be a great place in Minneapolis,
    Ragstock, that had huge tables and
    giant bins of cloth...lots of old
    upolstry stuff...what is it called,
    chintz?..no...anyway...like your
    curtain fabric here....cotton and
    very textured like embossed...
    oh Wha...i don't ever know the
    names of fabrics...anyway...i
    love this a lot.

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  7. SuzannaFebruary 16, 2011 at 2:45 PM

    What a good idea...am looking forward to watching it evolve! Happy stitching...

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  8. PeggyFebruary 16, 2011 at 3:06 PM

    Grace, I think I know what you mean -- it's sort of got a chabby chic-ish feel with these colors. They are very soothing, I like their vibe especially for the bedroom that this ottoman/bench is in. Thanks! Are you from Minneapolis? We used to shop there when I was a kid. And I used the other curtain panel like this as a lining in a bag. I'll be sad when it's all used up.

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  9. PeggyFebruary 16, 2011 at 3:07 PM

    Thanks, Suzanna. Yes, I'll be stitching on this for a while!!

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  10. Nat PalaskasFebruary 16, 2011 at 5:48 PM

    You are certainly on to something (great). The base fabric speak for itself. I just love the idea so much I'm looking for that ottoman seat - Hugs Nat

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  11. MarieFebruary 16, 2011 at 8:11 PM

    The voices were right : )
    It is already looking fabulous!
    You have chosen some of my favorite colors
    to weave and love that spot of light blue along
    the bottom edge.

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  12. PeggyFebruary 16, 2011 at 10:22 PM

    Thanks, Nat! This was actually a gift and I know it was from Bed, Bath & Beyond a few years ago.

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  13. PeggyFebruary 16, 2011 at 10:24 PM

    Marie, yes, they usually are right, aren't they? Thanks for the kind words.

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  14. deb gFebruary 17, 2011 at 6:43 AM

    So much fun! There are so many possibilities to explore...

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