The Glider is Finished!

I did it! :-) So, backstory, this was my sister's glider which she got about 7 years ago when my first niece was born. Well, I was super excited to inherit it (thanks Laura!) but I wanted to give it a little update for Little Man's room, since the walls were going to be green and this color just wasn't going to work. Okay, sidebar, what color do you think this chair is? What's that, a greenish color? Yes, I agree, it has a shade of green to it! Apparently, you and I are the only ones that think that...Jason thinks we should get our eyes checked.

So, here's the play by play...I'm not going to call this a "tutorial" b/c I basically just made up how to do it. I looked at a few other blogs with tutorials and everyone had a little different idea so I sort of went with my own thing.

Okay, so I decided to go with a navy blue thin corduroy material which pretty much matches some of the fabric on Little Man's bedding. Originally, I thought I would have to rip off the old fabric, but then I realized if this little project backfires I at least want a cushion I can sit in so I didn't want to completely destroy the thing! So, I decided to try to make slipcovers for each cushion. Here's the steps I took:

I cut out the fabric and pinned it around the existing cushions, leaving the bottom edge open so I could slip it on and off. For the bottom, I pinned a hem so I could attach the two sides together with velcro.

It was a little hard to get the cushion out of the opening without undoing all the pins but somehow I managed. I also sewed four little straps to use as ties at the top, and then sewed those into the seam as I was going around. It was really a shot in the dark, so when I went to put the cushion back in and it actually fit I was in shock! :-) As you can see, I opted to just go straight across the cushion, rather than trying to incorporate any of the designs that were in the original - that way it could slip on and off easily and I figure it's just me, Jason and Little Man who are really going to see it and they don't care. :-) So, here is my first success...now on to the bottom cushion.

More pinning...I also outlined the pins with chalk in case any pins came out and also to make it easier to follow since I was working with gathered fabric around the corners.

And it worked again!

 Here is where I inserted the cushions - I made a hem and sewed on pieces of velcro so the front and back could attach at the bottom. The cushions meet at the back of the chair so you can't see this when it's sitting in the chair frame.

I also attached this fabric to the ottoman that goes with the chair, just using a staple gun all the way around. Super easy!

And here's my finished product! The arms were the hardest thing - I didn't take any action pictures but I made those a slipcover as well, closing the hem with little snaps on each side, and sewing velcro on the inside piece of fabric in order for it to wrap around and stay attached to the arm. I made this little pillow too since I felt like it was kind of plain. But honestly, it turned out better than I expected so I'm thrilled! Just promise you won't look too closely at the seams if you see it in person! ;-)

Whew! We're also making a window cornice with the extra fabric but we've not put it up yet...those pictures will be coming soon!