Connect with your social network account

[Mtl_Biker]

No, I don't want to cover my cat! :) But I want to make a cover so that my cat can enjoy a new bar stool. I just replaced my old bar stools with new quite modern and very shiny and slippery bar stools. With the old stools I often placed a folded up towel on top and the cat would jump on and curl up to watch me work in the kitchen. Well the cat HATES the new stools because a towel just slides right off when he jumps up and he falls off. He's actually more than a little pissed off at me right now.

I'm new to sewing, only having started at the beginning of Covid when I was forced to isolate at home due to business closures here. I discovered sewing and now I have 2 and a half industrial sewing machines. (The half is a Sailrite LSZ-1 walking foot portable.) Anyway, what I've been making is masks to start, then all kinds of bags... firewood totes, wine totes, boat bags and a lot of purses using interfaced cotton, Sunbrella, Cordura, waxed canvas and more recently leather.

All that's to say that I'm not a total novice when it comes to sewing, but I have never really designed anything from scratch. I've always found patterns for free or purchase. And I've never recovered a sofa or chair.

What I'd like to do now is make a cover for these slippery bar stools (photo attached) which I could slip over the top of the chair and fasten either with velcro or just via an elastic around the base. I've got some nice comfy (according to the cat) flannel and I could back it with suede to help it stay in place, but I have no idea at all how to design that cover.

Any tips on how I should approach this? How to get started? I'm at a loss right now. All I really want is something that would help to keep the cat from falling off.

Thanks for any help.

IMG_9691.JPG (76.63 KiB) Viewed 1447 times

[John]

This is not really in my wheel house but I feel like getting a cover to look good and hold that shape would be difficult without gluing it down. Have you considered making a thin cushion the fits in to the bottom part of the seat. It could be attached with Velcro and would be comfortable for you as well.

[Mtl_Biker]

@John - Thanks. That's actually a good idea, except I don't want to attach velcro to the seating surfaces and whatever I make I want to easily be able to move it from chair to chair. (Depending on which side of the counter the cat wants to sit... he's the master of the house after all.)

Maybe I should have asked my question differently, for example, how do you prototype a project? I've never done anything like this before so I'm just sort of thinking out loud... Start with some cheap fabric, cut out the pieces and stitch with a loose basting stitch. See if it fits. If not, make changes. If it does, remove the basting stitches and cut out the proper fabric.

I'm thinking there should be one fairly round piece for the actual seating surface, another for the back and sides (I hesitate to call that a gusset) and with a stitch at the top attaching to yet a third cut of fabric for the back that goes all around to the front and maybe have a hem on that with a drawstring to tighten it in place. Does that sound like the right way to proceed?

[John]

You could sew some of that slip stop rubber stuff to the bottom that is meant for placing under area rugs to stop them from sliding around.
Custom things like this are really all up to your imagination.

[H2814D]

That would be a great project to use the masking tape method on. Look it up, if you haven't already completed this project. Seams along the sharp-edged upper and bottom of the seat portions of the seat. I think it would work well, for what you are trying to do.