Originally Posted by AnitaSt (Post 4861574)

Measurements for Arm Covers

The arm covers are constructed the same way….they are a rectangle with a little front panel. You need three measurements:

7. The length of the arm. On my chair the length was 21 inches. Figure 6.

8. The width of the arm cover. Drape your tape measure over the arm and decide how much drop you want on the inside and the outside. Mine are pretty narrow because I was short on fabric…next time I’ll make them a little wider. Figure 7.

9. The length of the little front panel. This will depend on the shape of the arm on your chair. Measure to the point you want the cover to end. For safety, cut this piece at least a couple of inches longer than your measurement. Figure 8 shows what can happen if you don’t….my panel was a little too short and I had to trim the rectangle.


Pinning and Fitting

This part is the same as making a custom slipcover by draping and cutting the fabric on the chair.

10. Drape the cover rectangle on the chair with the back edge at the point you determined in Step 1. You can place your quilted fabric right side up or right side down. Figure 9.

11. With right sides together, pin the side panel rectangle to the edges of the cover rectangle. In Figure 10, the squiggly line shows where it is pinned to the edge of the rectangle. Then trim the excess so that the side panel now curves to match the draped cover rectangle. Figure 11.

12. Do the same thing for the opposite side panel.

14. The arm covers are pinned and fitted the same way. Drape the arm cover over the arm, pin the front panel to the arm cover then trim to create the curve. Figure 12.

Assembling
13. Stitch side panels to the rectangle. I used a ½ inch seam. Be sure to secure the stitching well at the point where the side panel meets the front part of the chair cover. This point takes a lot of stress when the chair is reclined. In Figure 13.

14. I zig-zagged the seam allowances to prevent raveling. You could serge them or even cover them with binding. Using the binding would make the cover reversible.

15. The arm covers are assembled the same way as the chair cover.

Binding

Use your preferred method of binding for the chair cover and the arm covers.

The only unusual part of the binding is the inside corner created where the side panel meets the chair cover rectangle. I followed the method described by Bonnie Hunter at this link. There are other methods but they tell you to clip the seam at the intersection. Because this point gets a lot of stress and pulling, I didn’t want to risk clipping the seam. Bias binding makes it MUCH easier to turn the inside corner, but it can be done with straight-grain binding also.

That’s it….you’re ready for the inspector! Post questions or PM me. Thanks for liking my project!

Anita