Slipcover Design Contest and slipcover summit

http://www.slipcoversummit.com is the site for info on this week's slipcover summit.  An annual event for professional and would-be professional slipcover makers, it is happening in Nashville this year. Hosts are Anna Davis and Linda Willken.

Slipcover Summit and Slipcover Network organizer and chairman is Karen Erickson.

New fabric sources

http://www.sourapplefabrics.com/ A new fabric source is offering fabrics and also custom made items, like slipcovers, bedding ensembles, pillows, and window coverings.  They offer do-it-yourself items, designer info, and full service help. 
The front page is in "shockwave" format and I couldn't get the "sign up" buttons to work so I was not able to go any further on their site.  If anybody figures this out, please let me know.


At http://www.housefabric.com/categorysubview.asp?CategoryID=97&CategorySubID=200 you can see denims, canvas, embossed cottons and twills, all good for making slipcovers in any style. Prices are from $8.95 to $10.95 a yard. They offer hundreds of styles from companies like P. Kaufman, Robert Allen, Waverly, Kravet and Duralee.  Also outdoor fabrics.

It's not a new site, but Fabrics.net offers articles on fabrics of all kinds, from vintage quilting to covering barstools. This is an information site, the kind we like.

That's all for now.  Share your favorite fabric site info?

estimating yardage for slipcovers

There is a particularly complete and easy-to-understand method for estimating how much fabric you will need for a slipcover.from Claudia Buchanan

A classic upholstery yardage chart  is another good way to go. Since slips take more than upholstery you will want to add a couple of yards, or maybe three if you are matching a pattern.  But this chart is a good one to copy or download for future reference.

I have always used the yardage estimates that I learned years ago from Mr. Bazer.  That yardage chart, along with my labor prices is available on my primary website.

One-way stripes and prints are always going to require more fabric than solid color fabrics do.  If I have a central pattern for each cushion and for inside and outside back, I add about 50% to any estimate for yardage.  That is, if my cushions are wider than half a fabric width, (27") or if the pattern is a dropped pattern.  To put it another way, I need more fabric if I have to cut each side of a cushion out of the middle of a pattern or stripe.

Another reason to add 50% to your yardage estimate is if the fabric is less than 48 inches wide.  Some expensive prints have very wide margins on the side and so the fabric width doesn't matter.  For instance, if there is a border printed on one or both sides of the print.