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How to Make a Felt Chair Cover

There are times when the ordinary dining chair just will not do. For a special event such as a wedding or an important anniversary celebration, the guests of honor deserve seats worthy of the occasion. Although felt chair covers will not be a long-term solution -- dining chair covers must be washable, after all -- they can be easily made and cleverly decorated for the special event. Cover a pair of existing dining chairs or craft a cover for folding bridge chairs. You can also apply the same method to create "thrones" for your royal couple from two vintage wooden armchairs.

Things You'll Need

Felt yardage
Scissors
Tailor's chalk
Craft glue
Fabric trims
Ribbon
Stencils
Contrasting felt
Artificial flower sprays

Instructions

- 1
  Measure the length and width of the chair seat and cut a paper pattern to correspond to those dimensions. Add four inches all around for an overhang.
- 2
  Measure the widest part of the chair back; you will need to have a piece of felt that is one inch wider to allow for half-inch seams. Measure the height from the seat to the top of the back and double it to determine the length of felt you need to cover the front and back of the chair. If you choose to extend the felt lower at the back of the chair, add the number of inches to the length measurement.
- 3
  Cut felt fabric with scissors or pinking shears to correspond to your measurements taken for the seat and back of the chair.
- 4
  Position the seat cover on the chair. With tailor's chalk, mark the back of the seat where you can attach the ties to hold the cover in place. If necessary, cut a slit in the felt at each back corner to fit properly. Add optional fringe or trimming around the edge with glue or machine sewing. Glue two 12-inch lengths of one-inch wide ribbon to each marked point and tie in bows at the back of the chair.
- 5
  Fold in half the length of felt for the chair back. There is no need to turn the fabric inside out. Glue the felt strips together at each side or sew it with a long machine stitch.
- 6
  Create appliques by stenciling motifs on contrasting felt; cut them out with pinking shears and embellish the chairs with them. A wedding cake decorated with small flowers and sequins, pink hearts, silhouettes of the bride and groom, a black top hat and a glittering tiara would be appropriate. Equally festive would be wreaths or festoons of artificial flowers held in place with tulle and ribbons.

Sewing