Tutorial : Adding Piping to a Cushion

I love to make home furnishings, anything from curtains and blinds to cushions and doorstops. Being able to make your own home accessories means that you can create a decoration scheme that is truly unique to you, in your own personal style!

One of my favourite projects is making cushions. Cushions (or pillows as you might call them) can be a super quick make and they allow you to add accent colour to your home without going to massive expense. If you really love hot pink, but not sure you could get away with it on a grand scale then featuring it on a cushion is a great way of testing the waters!

When I make cushions I always like to add piping as I think it really finishes off the design and makes them look more polished. You can buy ready made piping and there are some great options available or you can make your own.

If you’d like to make your own piping, I have a tutorial that takes you through the process step by step including how to measure your piping cord so that you cut your bias strips exactly the right size, allowing you to add it to your project with ease.

In this tutorial I’ll share with you how, once you have made your piping, you can add it to your cushion project.

* for tips on how to make piping with a seam allowance to match the seam allowance of your project, see my FREE tutorial on how to make your own piping

Step 2 : Taking piping around the corners

Because you will have made your piping with bias strips, bending it to go around the corners will be relatively easy, however it will still need a little help.

Snip into the seam allowance of the piping in a few places to allow the piping to curve more easily. Take care not to snip past the stitching line on the piping.

If you curve tightly around the corner, the end result on your cushion corner will be more rounded. If you push the piping seam allowance a little more up into the corner of the seam allowance of the cushion front the resulting corner will be more ‘square’. See the images below for an idea of how the two different corners look throughout the construction process.

Rounded Corners:

Squared Corners:

Once you have added piping to your cushion front you can move on to adding your cushion back and any closure that you are thinking of using.

Sometimes I am after a quick and simple make and will go for an envelope backing. It’s also a really great option if you are new at sewing as it’s a lovely simple method! If you want to push yourself a little you could add a button and a buttonhole to your envelope backed cushion.

Another option for your cushion back is to add a zipper. You can add it to the centre of your cushion back, or you could add it to one of the sides, right up against the piping. When I add a zipper next to the piping I like to work with a 5/8″ seam allowance.

There are some great Christmas cushions/pillows on the website, all of which look fabulous with a bit of piping! Have a look at the Snowman and Reindeer cushions to see how a striped fabric can be used to great effect (remember, the fabric has been cut on the bias, creating a candy cane type look).