A long time ago, in Europe, furniture was not like our furniture is today. Most pieces were stuffed with straw or horsehair, then covered with finely woven textiles. These magnificent textiles were covered with flour sacks and other pieces of woven cloth when they were not in use to keep them looking new. Furniture was not exactly comfortable to sit on because the straw or horsehair would poke through, so they were covered with loose fabric slipcovers.

As time passed, European tradespeople who specialized in making covers for furniture , introduced their trade in America. Furniture changed over time as well. Cushions were stuffed with foam and feathers and fabric was stapled over springs and batting onto frames. Cotton or plastic slipcovers were used more often because summers were hot, there was no air conditioning and furniture needed protection. Thus advanced the art of slipcovering.

Slipcovering a piece of furniture generally means to change its overall look. The same is true for an item that has been re-upholstered. Either method can be used to change the fabric or skirt style, add decorative embellishments or completely alter the cushions and the pillows.

However, with slipcovers come many benefits. A key benefit is that a slipcover can be cleaned by washing or dry cleaning. Slipcovers are wonderful at protecting upholstery and keeping it looking new. Plus, folks just love the fact that they can remove their summer slipcovers in an instant to have their original upholstered furniture for winter.

So what does this mean? It means furniture can have many different slipcovers for the different seasons.

Those who sew garments or have sewing experience can usually sew a slipcover for a piece of furniture. Many who want a slipcover do it themselves to keep the cost of their project to a minimum. If one buys the supplies and does it themselves, then they don't have to pay someone else to do the labor. (Labor is usually half the cost of a slipcover.)

However, proper training in the basic principles for this artform, are important and will help in obtaining a more successful end result.

This is when beginners to this craft look for resources such as slipcover hot to classes and workshops as well as books and videos.

The bottom line is that sewing a slipcover is like fitting a garment. Furniture is similar to people; all have different shapes and sizes. One side slopes more, or is longer or shorter. The great thing about furniture is that is does not gain or lose weight, so once a piece of furniture has been fitted for its new garment all that is left to do is sew it together.

There is a myth that Slipcover workshops and classes can be taken at community colleges or trade schools. In reality there are very few slipcover classes offered on a regular basis anywhere. Most slipcover classes and workshops are being taught by professional slipcover instructors by request of customers in fabric stores and sewing machine centers. Slipcovers are being highlighted on HGTV and D-Y-I show these days. Thought sewing a slipcover is not quite as easy as they make it look on these programs, it is a skill many can acquire after taking classes or a hands-on. workshop.