Our bean bags were resembling pancakes. Everyone is complaining the wooden floor is hard. And yet again the dreaded words “chairs”, “settee” and “sofa” were creeping into the conversation. Something had to be done.
I’m uninclined to waste money on furnishings, I’d rather be out walking the hills than parked on my backside. So I had a look around the house for what we did have that might be re-used. I came across a pile of out-grown T shirts, too good to give away, some with great pictures on them, lots of memories of holidays past when a favourite T shirt was worn by my boys almost until it was standing up all by itself and had to be prised off their backs to be washed. And I have a bag of washed rough sheep fleece that I was making into felt items, but had gone off felting as last time I did it I got very cold and wet.
So I made a giant long sausage cushion – about 9ft long – that can coils around and act as a lovely comfy coily chair.
The completed end
It’s warm, the T shirt designs bring back happy memories for everyone, and we’ve recycled things that were just lying around into something that is needed. Win, win. And the conversation about chairs and sofas can cease…until the next time.
So – the pattern-
Cut any number of material pieces, about 30 inches wide and any length you like (mine went from 9 inches to 18 inches). Tack together on the width, sew leaving a 1/2 seam (use strong cotten or double sew it). Join the long length to make a long tube. Turn right side out, stuff from both ends with about 16 lbs of scrap material, (waste wool in my case) or 16lb of polyester fibre (used for stuffing cushions/soft toys – you can get about 10kg of this from ebay for c £31).
Using button thread, several strands, gather 1 inch from the end and pull the gathers as tightly together as possible, tucking raw edges under the inside of the cushion. Knot securely.
The Tassels: Cut cardboard 9 inches by 12 inches. Lay a 2 yard length of doubled yarn across the 9 inch width of cardboard (for tying). Wind the 40z skein of 4 ply or double knitting yarn lengthwise around the cardboard, using all but 2 yards of yarn. Slip loops off board, tie securely with doubled length of yarn.
Wind remainder of yarn around tassel, 2 inches from the top. Tie securely. Clip the loops. Knot top (tied) ends together about 4 inches above tassel “head”, trim end and sew knot securely into end of cushion. FINITO!! Tis but the work of a few hours!
And it worked so well I dug out an old hammock (that we can’t use anymore as there is no where to hang it), sewed that together and stuffed that too!!
seawitchtales 