Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Seat Covers!

So, my poor Rodeo has a very ratty driver's seat. The hole in it has been growing and growing, and I got fed up with it earlier this week. The solution was obvious, seat covers. But I am a college student and those cost big buck. So what did I do? I headed over to Good Will and found an AWESOME set of sheets! This total project cost me about $8, because I already had a sewing machine and thread, and in addition to the sheets, I bought some more pins to pin the sheets the right way. I have not yet purchased the string/rope to tighten the bottom, but that won't be too costly.

I believe the sheets are a full set, and as such have A LOT of sheet to deal with! Twin sheets may work, but I would suggest trying it out with a set you own before buying some. Most of the excess sheet was at the bottom, any way. And, I would suggest washing sheets first if you got them from a thrift store.



Step 1
Lay the sheet out on your car seat inside out. If one side is darker than the other, you want the lighter side up, so that as you sew where you pin, you're sewing the seam inside the cover. My sheet had a design, and I wanted this to be centered and straight, so I had to be very careful as I pinned the sheet. Solid sheets are probably much easier to work with. But, who wants easy when they do this the first time? With the flat sheet, I used the already hemmed edge at the top as the hole for my detachable headrest.If you have detachable headrests like I do, make sure to take this in to account when pinning. Get the top of your sheet situated before moving on. I put pins through the sheet into the seat to hold it in place, only at the top, though!

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Step 2
I then pulled one edge of the sheet around the inside edge (beside the console) to the outer edge (by the door) of the seat. This got tricky at the bottom. I pulled as much around as I could and began pinning. Again, I had a design on my sheet, so this was a bit tedious to keep it straight! I also pinned the sheet in to rounded corners along the top of the seat so that it would be nice and smooth when finished!

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Step 3
Once your back of the seat is covered, you can move around. I next moved to pin the outer edge (the one towards the door. I put a line of pins in the sheet where I wanted the bottom edege to be. Keep in mind, leave room for a hem that will have some string/rope for tightening the bottom and holding the cover in place.

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Step 4
I then pinned along the front two corners of the seat. This is probably not neccessary, but I wanted it to look nice and neat once finished! I also pinned another hem line in the front, just so I'd know where to cut the excess sheet.

Step 5
This is the tricky part. Unless you have removed your seat, it is very hard to get to the opposite side to determine the proper length for that side. I trimmed the excess sheet off the back and front sides, then saved this side for last. I shoved the sheet down, then used a highlighter to mark where I wanted to cut, then pulled the sheet back out and cut. You could, of course take it off, turn it right side in, and pin it on the easy to access side, but I thought of this long after the fact, haha.

Step 6
Mark where you want to sew. I almost didn't do this, but I'm glad I did! I used a highlighter to mark where I planned the seams to go. This was very useful one I got the sheet inside. It's hard to envision what it looks like when it isn't held in the right shape by the seat. I followed my highlighted lines when sewing, and it worked out great!

Step 7
Lay your string out along the bottom edge, pin the hem around it. Sew the hem, careful not to sew in your string. I actually did sew in in the front middle on purpose. That way, when I wash it it won't come out!

Step 8
Remove any pins. No one wants to sit on that

Step 9
Flip right side out and place it on your car seat.

Step 10
If all went well, you have a car seat cover! If nothing went well..at least you tried! Sit back and admire your hard work. Brag to someone. I called my mom and told her.

Step 11
Think of all the wonderful crafts you can do with the left over fabric!

It's very possible to use the first cover as a pattern for the other seat. As of yet, I have not done this because I spent all afternoon on the first one :P And I'm also hoping I may be lucky enough that I cut the fabric in such a way that I'll have enough for the back seat. If not, oh well!

Here's the finished product! Well, the corners anyway. I neglected to take a full picture, and it is now dark out.

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