Where has the summer gone?! I’m not wishing summer away but I have to admit that I am a little excited for the cooler mornings and evenings but still warm days. It’s a welcome change.
It has been a busy summer of travel, leisure lake life and just catching a breath. Things tend to slow down work-wise in the summer as people entertain and travel as well, so it’s a win-win for me.
And just like that…we are in fall. Our attentions turn to sprucing up our home for the trifecta of holiday’s (Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas) and accessing our outdoor furniture for next year (if you are smart). This little respite had me completing a few of my own home projects. More on that later!
Recently I was contacted by a repeat client to make another custom outdoor recliner cushion when I realized I had not shared this project. Last year I was commissioned by them to completely recover all of their outdoor furniture. Their cushions still looked fine but they were ready to change the color to align more with lake living and brighten up their outdoor space.
They chose a patterned outdoor fabric and a coordinating solid fabric from Greenhouse Fabrics in the blue hues. The pattern would also help to hide any dirt or dog hair.
Once that was settled, I went to work making new covers for eight top cushions, eight bottom cushions, four ottoman cushions, fourteen chairs cushions for their outdoor tables in the solid blue, a bench cushion and four accent pillows. The tops all needed extra filling and ottomans needed new foam to replace a thick Dacron core.
They also had two new metal recliner chairs that they had ordered online that came with a one piece blue cushion. And although they were brand new, they were uncomfortable. They were looking for something with a little more substance. We decided it was best to separate the top cushion from the bottom cushion to accommodate the thickness that they wanted and for ease in construction.
I deconstructed the bottom cushion to use as a template to create new bottom cushion with a thicker higher quality foam foam wrapped in Dacron. What a big difference.
Instead of making a button-tufted back cushion, I decided to make it more like a overstuffed pillow top with two sections. They definitely wanted a softer landing than the 2” flat original cushion. The cushion was constructed in parts. The back cushion panel would hold the original two inch foam core. I then added another pocket to the front that would divide into two sections each stuffed with batting. The two sections would act as a baffling so that the filling would be comfortable but not settle into the bottom. It took a little trial and error as well as making a template before actually figuring this design out. They loved it and over the next year decided to add two more recliners.
One final project I completed for them was their outdoor bed swing. Unfortunately I didn’t get a before picture or a completed installed picture. Below are the pictures of the cushions as if they were installed on their lower deck overlooking the lake. They chose a beautiful striped Sunbrella fabric, Ascend Spa. My client actually takes naps on this bed swing and so wanted a couple of zippered pillow cases for her pillows.
They are all set and now can fully enjoy their beautiful lake inspired blue outdoor furniture for years to come.
Denise
detailsbydenise.com 