the writing oasis - part ii

My little loveseat turned bench of writing dreams is really coming together. Last weekend I devote (way too many) hours to recovering the bottom cushions that came with the loveseat. I've decided to ditch the top two and replace them with oversized pillows, instead, and not because I'm lazy, but because I like that look.
 There was a lot of trial and error with this project. Like how I tried to use my sister's sewing machine, but couldn't figure out how to correctly thread the bobbin. And then I had to call my mom and ask if I could borrow it. And there was a lot of ironing. So much ironing. Which is why the rest of this post will basically be photos from my adventures in making these bench cushions.

I figure this is one of those projects that is best told through pictures, because quite frankly I'm not a pro at what I'm doing. Anything I tell you will probably not be the best practice, and I'd hate to lead you lovely readers astray.

Step 1: Remove old covers. Step 2: Measure dimensions so I can
Step 3: Cut the green indoor/outdoor furniture fabric. For each cushion
I cut two large pieces for the top and bottom and for thinner pieces
to comprise the sides.

Step 4: Iron the fabric to get all of the wrinkles out of it.

Step 5: Iron creases to serve as marking for where I'll
eventually being sewing these puppies together.

Step 6: Realize that I'll spend the majority of my time making these cushions
ironing, ironing, ironing. I think at one point I started comparing myself
to Cinderella, because I'd spent so much time at the ironing board.

Step 7: After finally getting my hands on my mom's
trusty sewing machine (the one I learned to sew on)
I got to work stitching the pieces together. It was at
this point I decided my hours of ironing paid off,
because this part took very little time.

Step 8: Sew together one of the ends by hand after slipping
the cushion inside. Note: I actually hemmed these
edges before I did this part, and found the end result
was much better.

Step 9: Step back to admire my handiwork (and try to ignore that it
looks a bit wrinkly), before repeating Steps 7-8.

Step 10: Put those cushions on the bench and decide that the color choice
was a perfect match for the white paint. Now it just needs some pillows.

This week I'm working on pillows to accompany the bench, which should make it a pretty comfy place to write. Though this bench is by no means perfect, I'm starting to get pretty excited about how it will fit into my outdoor writing oasis.

Now if I could only decide on where I want to live...

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