The $3 bench, with a no sew padding cover "how to"

 

Our foyer has been in shambles since we moved in.  Shoes galore, and not much else.  I placed a cute linen lined basket in one corner to corral the chaos and added a sisal rug.  We eventually hung a mirror and rustic shelf.  I slowly decorated those and then came the $5 end table.  I adorned that with thrifty finds and pulled out another basket.  I continued to eye the pricey benches in pottery barn with their ample storage and fabric covered seats but refused to spend that much on a bench for the entryway.  Yes, it's the first room that you see when you enter our home, but it's also the room that we spend approximately five minutes in per day.

Enter the yard sale.  I had already found one great piece at this particular sale when I turned to my right and saw a  bunch of books piled high on a filthy, white bench with a dirty blue cover. I honestly didn't  think that it was for sale but of course I had to ask.  Luckily they responded with an enthusiastic, "yes!"  I asked how much they were selling it for and after considering the question for a good 30 seconds answered me with, "three dollars"... SOLD!

The bench needed a good scrubbing and the cover was just best tossed.  However, the padding inside was able to be salvaged.  I went to Joann's and searched through the outdoor fabrics for a heavy duty textile to keep up with E and his cleats, backpack and the occasional spill.  I narrowed it down to two.  I ended up going with a coral and cream pattern with a touch of blue and a 40% off sticker!  I then grabbed some unique stitch  (My new bff!!!!)

As with all of my projects, I let my materials simmer for a bit and waited for inspiration to strike. It finally did one evening at midnight and I got to scrubbing!  Once the bench itself was clean I could move on to the fun part, the cushion!  I can not stress how easy the unique stitch was to use btw.

Here's how I made the cushion:

#1  I laid the padding flat on the floor with my entire yardage of fabric under it. I cut all of the extra off  to save for another project.

#2   I then laid my padding onto the middle of my now cut fabric. I also made sure to flip it over right side up to ensure the pattern would be correct with the blue stripe directly in the middle when finished.

#3   I pulled one half over onto the padding and made an initial strip of glue onto the pad itself.  (I wasn't worried about getting the fabric on/off to clean, since I figure i'll be sick of it by the time it needs to be laundered.)

 

 

 

 

#4    I then pulled my fabric very tight before folding the other half over the padding.

 

 

#5    I folded a small piece under to hide the "seam." I then glued a strip of the unique stitch to this and pressed it firm.

 

#6      Then I took the ends and folded them down like wrapping a present and glued them down.

FYI after the first side was done I learned I should make a small slit out of the side fabric and cut out the excess to make the fold less bulky.

#7   I made another fold and glued that.

 

#8   Your side should now look like this!

 

Top view of the bench

 

and from the other end of the foyer!

 

 

It's definitely not pottery barn but I love it and it's price tag!


~Lauren




Linking today's post with: