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syllabus

Dropcloth slipcover questions

syllabus
13 years ago

Has anyone made (or had made) a slipcover from a painters dropcloth? If so:

Did you use the 8 or 10 oz. weight?

Did you wash it before constructing? How much shrinkage would you say there was and did the weave tighten up some?

Are you happy with your finished product?

I have inherited an old chair that needs a makeover and I'm torn between trying to DYI a cover or trying to find someone to pay to do it. I went looking for a twill or denim and didn't love any of the available colors. I know I could probably find fabric online - but the very thought of searching and ordering swatches exhausts me to even think about. The dropcloths have a great texture, the oatmeal color is perfect and the price is great.

Any feedback will be welcomed! Thanks!

Comments (6)

  • franksmom_2010
    13 years ago

    I have a pair of futon chairs in our living room that I used dropcloths to make slipcovers for. The cushions are just a rectangle, not attached to the frame, so I did a super easy pillowcase-style cover.

    I don't recall what the weight of the fabric was, but I'd say it shrank less than 10%. Definitely wash before sewing, as the texture chenges, as well. When it's washed, it looks more like a heavy weight linen, and less like a canvas than it does prior to washing.

    Ours wears like iron, as those chairs get sat in, eat in, spilled on, cat covered, and who knows what else on a daily basis. I just pull them off and throw them in the wash when they get grubby, and they've always come out looking great.

    I love the color, too. It's dark enough that it doesn't show every speck of stuff that gets on it, but it's light enough and neutral enough that it works well with most any color. That was best $16 I've spent on the house!

    I've been contemplating making a sofa-sized slipcover. I'm sure the sewing is going to be more complicated, but I haven't been really happy with any of the ready made slipcovers I've tried.

  • luckygal
    13 years ago

    I've never made a slipcover from a painter's drop cloth altho have made a floor length table cloth and curtains. I prefer not to have to dry clean things unless absolutely essential so always wash most fabrics at least once before sewing. That said, I would recommend washing several times and even drying in the dryer (which I may not have done) as the tablecloth shrunk a bit more after further washings.

    However, all painter's drop cloths are not the same - I've bought several that were different weights.

    I've even washed upholstery fabrics before using so they can later be washed. Almost all survived very well and I was glad to know upfront about the one that didn't. The fabric was a free sample so not much loss.

    IMO painter's drop cloths are one of the biggest bargains in fabric. As you said they have "great texture, the oatmeal color is perfect and the price is great".

  • magnaverde
    13 years ago

    Hi Syllabus.

    I didn't use a dropcloth--mine isn't that sort of place--but I sewed a slipcover for my camelback sofa (out of a pre-made one-size-fits-all Surefit matelasse slipcover whose baggy look I didn't like and which I tore apart & recut) and I'm perfectly happy with the results.

    That is, I'd be perfectly happy if I had been smart enough to PRE-SHRINK the fabric before I started, but, sorry to say, I wasn't. Nobody told me about that. Oh, well. Live & learn. After all, this was my first sewing project ever, sans experience, sans directions, sans pattern, sans machine. On the other hand, sometimes ignorance really is bliss, bcause my innocent failure to pre-shrink the fabric is what completely eliminated the baggy look I was trying to avoid in the first place. In fact, it's so tight that the only way to get my slipcover onto my sofa at all is to put it on wet & let it dry in place, like a pair of tight jeans. Any tighter and my sofa would have muffin top.

    Regards,
    Magnaverde.

  • syllabus
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    Magna! It looks fabulous and luscious! Got to love that washed texture! We have a matelasse bedspread and IâÂÂm forever grateful for having bought the king size for our queen bed. It dragged for a while, but once or twice washed it was the perfect drop & texture. I covet a matelasse slip and toyed w/ buying a couple of clearance bedspreads, but decided to go more in the twill or linen look direction for this chair.

    Frank and Lucky - LoweâÂÂs sells the two different weights and my plan was to wash/dry before cutting. Now I know to do that a couple of times! ItâÂÂs great to hear your results. Will swing by a HD this week and take a look at their brand.

    IâÂÂve made curtains, pillows, covered some cushions, but never done something as adventurous as this. My DH thinks I can do a good job, but IâÂÂm wonderingâ¦..

    But then... it's sort of ironic to pay so little for the fabric and then pay another seamstress big bucks for such a homely little chair. I'm very frugal - but have learned expensive lessons over the years and am now willing to pay for some things as I get older.

  • ladyamity
    13 years ago

    I don't think I ever looked at, nor did I notice on the packaging 'weight' of fabric when I was looking at fabric dropcloths.

    Ho-De had two types....blue and a sort of ecru color.
    I picked the ecru.

    And I didn't make slipcovers......window panels.

    Yes, I washed them first and used lots of Downy Liquid Softener during the rinse cycle.

    Those panels, when a breeze is coming through the screen...they move beautifully, just like an expensive fabric would. Not too light, not too heavy. Perfect.

    I've also used the Rit Dye on dropcloth fabric.
    Two boxes of Rit per large dropcloth.
    Again, washed first, then put into the washer just as they came out after final rinse.....damp. I had the dye already mixed in the washing machine. Set the fabric in gently making sure all fabric was under water.

    Toward the end of the wash cycle, I stopped the machine and allowed the fabric to soak in the dye for about an hour. Started the machine back up and let it just run through the rest of the cycle.
    Beautiful, soft-flowing-in-a-breeze, pink window panels for my sister's all-things-breast-cancer room.

    (After dying anything in your washing machine, run a full load, hot water, with a cup of straight bleach. I've never had a problem with anything washed after dying)