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DIY Recovering Outdoor Cushions

There is always something to do in the garden and that does not always involve plants. I like to have various places to sit in our yard and I am continually looking to add more chairs or benches to our landscape. Some of our outdoor furniture have cushions. I prefer to have cushions because they make the furniture more comfortable but the downfall to them is that eventually the weather or our pets will get to them and they will need to be replaced and that can get expensive.

We were given this set of chairs from my parents. The frames are metal and are holding up really well to the elements. The cushions however have reached their limit. They lasted a really long time but the fabric is giving up. The foam is still in great shape so my thought is to recover the foam and save us a little bit of money. If you have priced replacement outdoor cushions, they can be pretty pricey and I was looking into all of the options I have for these chairs. I could buy brand new cushions (which I have done in the past with other chairs), I could buy new foam and fabric and make new cushions (this priced out to be about the same as buying all new cushions), or since the the foam is still in good shape, I could just buy new outdoor fabric and recover. That is the option I decided to go this time around. I lucked out big time at Joann’s Fabric Store, the outdoor fabric was on sale for $5 a yard instead of $20 a yard. I needed 4 yards so this project only cost me $20.

I love to sew but I am not very good at it. So, if I can complete this project, trust me…you can too! On this project I used my sewing machine and hand sewed the closures. If you do not have a sewing machine you can still do this project. I hand sewed all of our cushions in our travel trailer because I did not have a sewing machine at that time. Just make sure you have a strong needle if you will be doing most of the sewing by hand.

Let’s Get Started!

This project can be completed in a weekend. It is a great project to work on when you need a break from the garden, or it is too hot or too cold to be outside. This was the case for me this weekend. Not only did I want to recover the cushions before the foam deteriorated but the temperatures this weekend were around 105 degrees and I did not want to be outside in the garden.

The items I used to complete recovering the outdoor cushions are:

  • A sewing machine: not necessary but helpful
  • Outdoor fabric
  • Thread
  • Needles and pins
  • Yard stick
  • Fabric measuring tape
  • A good pair of scissors

Tips for picking out fabric.

  • Pick an outdoor fabric. They have UV protectant to help extend the life of the fabric, the fabric is heavier than regular cotton and they are water resistant.
  • Pick a solid color or pattern that you do not need to worry about lining things up carefully. The material I picked has a random, squiggly line pattern to it and it really was nice not to worry about the direction the material needed to go. To optimize my fabric and to minimize waste, I had to rotate the direction of the fabric from the top cushion to the bottom cushion. Luckily, I had picked a fabric with a design that did not matter or show that I rotated the direction of the fabric. This made measurements and figuring things out so much easier!

How I Recovered Our Outdoor Cushions

Here are the cushions I will be recovering. As you can see, the fabric in the front is falling apart. The rest of the fabric and foam are in pretty good shape. I will be keeping the original fabric on and will just be putting the new fabric over the top.
Since these cushions will be coming in the house I sprayed them down really good and let them dry for the day.
And I washed the frames. These frames are in excellent shape!
Now that everything is clean, I made my measurements. The top cushion covers were fairly easy to make. I just measured with the thought that I was basically making a pillow case. Make sure when you measure you leave room for the space that the sewing machine will require. I like to leave between 1/4″ – 1/2″. This time I allowed an extra 1/2″ around the edge. I am going to use the sewing machine for the two sides and top. I will hand sew the bottom using a whip stitch. Here is a link to an excellent tutorial on the whip stitch.
Now that I have the covers measured and cut I am ready to sew. Make sure to have the sides that will be facing outside, facing each other. When the sewing is complete, the cover will be turned right side out.
This is why you want to leave room for the sewing machine on the measurements. This is called seam allowance. It is the space needed between your sewing line and the edge of the fabric.
The first cover is all done! Now I will put the cushion in the cover and pin up for hand sewing.
All pinned ready to hand sew! I will complete this process one more time for the other top cushion and begin working on the bottom cushions.
So the bottom cushion covers are going to be a tad bit trickier. The front of the cushion is wider than the back of the cushion and I will need to sew up the sides. I had the idea of still making this like a pillow case but also kind of like wrapping a present. I first wrapped the material for the top, bottom, front side and back side of the cushion. I made my measurements and cuts and then focused on the measurements and cuts for the sides. I will use the sewing machine for sewing the sides on and then hand stitch the back.
Here is the completed cover. It is more like a pocket. Since the front of the cushion is wider than the back, I am going to pull the extra fabric (like I would wrapping a present) and sew up the extra material by hand.
Here it is all pinned up and ready for me to hand sew. I used a quick whip stitch again.
All done! I am really happy with how these cushion covers turned out! We have been enjoying them since I completed the project. The new fabric is so much more comfortable than the old scratchy fabric.

I hope this has helped you become more comfortable with tackling a project similar to this. Trust me, I have very little sewing experience and if I can complete this project, you can too!

Happy desert gardening and garden projects!


Joy Simper has a full time job as a home schooling stay at home mom. She is the one that holds the house and yard together and keeps the kids in line. She enjoys gardening, including seed starting and propagating plants.


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