It all started with a dog! Well sort of, I've wanted a new sectional since we bought our home in 2018. Hubby convinced me to wait and I'm glad I listened. I wouldn't have purchased one that fit our current family needs. Insert new puppy along with a growing kid and everything needs to be washable. The hunt for a slipcover sectional began. Our current sectional is nearly 11ft and of course, I fell in love with the Restoration Hardware Cloud Slipcover Sectional. It's 10k+ price tag didn't love me back. So to Pinterest I went, because minus the rounded arms, I like the shape of our sectional. Pinterest is where I stumbled upon the drop cloth for upholstery world.
I will start with reasons I love drop cloth for a slipcover:
It comes with two types of finished edge. This is so invaluable for cutting down your hemming work.
It is washable, dyeable and even takes bleach well. Also, it has a linen like feel to it and once bleached softens nicely. My family loves the way it feels.
It rips in a straight line. Sounds like a weird thing but a useful thing when using for sewing.
It is very affordable. I purchased mine on Amazon but it can be purchases at most hardware stores. One 9x12ft is under $25. One yard of upholstery fabric ranges from $20-$60 a YARD. You can do the math.
It takes stains well, my dog has already put her paw print on it and daughter spilled chocolate. Both stains have wiped away with ease. I didn't even have to wash it
Below are some pics and a few tips of my process. I am not going to do a step by step guide because I had to use several different techniques for the unique shape our sectional.
Before
The sectional was a dark green/brown color and the back pillows were too large.
After
So bright and airy now!
This is one of the finished edges I referenced. It does not fray in the wash. This is the edge you see all around the bottom of the sectional.
This is the other finished edge. Some would think you'd use this as the bottom or exposed edge, I didn't because the hem color was not the same on all of the drop cloths I ordered. Also I didn't like the look of it.
Tip: Order all you'll need at the same time. I ordered my sets separately and each pack came with the same color hem. Also, order extra, as drop cloth isn't intended for upholstery one pack came with a weird faint white stripping through it. I can't say for 100% it didn't happen during my washing bleaching process though.
Here is the link to the drop cloth I purchased.
Affiliate Disclosure This blog, while project from the heart, also contains affiliate marketing. Links within this post may create commission for the blogger/owner.
My Process
I created the arms first, this was the hardest. Something I didn't understand in the tutorials I read/watched, when you pin one arm, once sewn and flipped over it will be for the other arm. Read that twice. So you'll need to pin and fit many times on both sides. The good thing is many sofa arms are identical so this isn't a problem. Mine was a challenge because one arm is the chaise. So they in fact are not identical. LOL
After the arms, you are basically wrapping the fabric around the backs.
Cushions
For the back cushions I bought large pillows from Joann Fabric and extra polyfil stuffing. I used the flip over method for making the back cushions and all the pillows. This is the easiest method and doesn't require a zipper or velcro.
For the seat cushions, I replaced the batting. Once I removed the old cushion fabric, the batting didn't smell fresh to me. I removed it and replaced it with new batting from Joann Fabric. I unfortunately didn't get a picture of this part. There are many ways you can make the cushions, you can do box, flip over or cloud. I chose cloud like because I like the relax style. See the inspiration pics.
This method requires sewing two pieces of fabric together and leaving and opening in the back. I currently have it folded and its working just fine, even with my 4yr old jumping on on them. I will add velcro closures soon, just for my extra security.
I stuffed extra polyfil in cushions as well to make them extra fluffy.
Here are some pictures of the throw pillows I also made. They are definitely not perfect but I'm happy with them for now. I purchased this remnant upholstery fabric on clearance. I was so excited.
This first picture is the drop cloth with my drawings on it using the paint marker from my Shiplap wall. Because again, why not?
See not perfect but no one sees that side.
This is the side you see. LOL