Loose covers for sunbeds?

For anything to do with the garden and pool
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enid
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Post by enid »

I think the pillow case idea is easier to execute than the elasticated covers.
lorca
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Post by lorca »

I made pillowcase ones too - with the short flap on the outside so it fits over the top of the lounger. I´m not sure I explained that very clearly :oops: but they´re very easy to make!
If not now, when?
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pepsipuss
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Post by pepsipuss »

lorca wrote:I made pillowcase ones too - with the short flap on the outside so it fits over the top of the lounger. I´m not sure I explained that very clearly :oops: but they´re very easy to make!
Me too except I did not think about it till half way through them!! :oops: When I have the time and energy I will re-do the first lot.
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The Olive Grove
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Post by The Olive Grove »

My Lidl ones seem to have lasted OK this year - bought them last year but didn't use them until this. I reckon if they only last one season as long as I can replace them I don't mind. I've got a sewing machine but neither the time nor the inclination to make them. :oops:
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Jimbo
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Post by Jimbo »

pepsipuss wrote:
lorca wrote:I made pillowcase ones too - with the short flap on the outside so it fits over the top of the lounger. I´m not sure I explained that very clearly :oops: but they´re very easy to make!
Me too except I did not think about it till half way through them!! :oops: When I have the time and energy I will re-do the first lot.
This thread - and the helpful responses from the girls (natch!) who know about arcane stuff like sewing - set me to work. Using a local closed forum, I've managed to track down half a dozen potential 'toothless grannies with Singers' for my task (actually, some are pretty high-powered with huge industrial machines). Next - harder - I have to decide on a suitable fabric and what to pay my chosen 'granny'.

If I supply and deliver the fabric and collect the finished covers, I'm wondering if an hourly charge might be the fairest way to go? Or should I charge by the batch - 8 to start and more to follow? I'm attracted by Pepsi's and lorca's 'envelopes with a flap' which look simple to make (but what do I know?) - any rough ball-park of how long it should take to fabricate such a cover from cutting to boxing? Half an hour? Half a day?

If anybody in SW France wants the contact details of a 'granny' for a similar project, just PM me.

Jim
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pepsipuss
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Post by pepsipuss »

We work on the principle of never paying anyone for any sort of manual labour by the hour if we can possibly avoid it, so would go for piece work if at all possible.

Provided they have a decent sized cutting table, an experienced seamstress ought to be able to easily produce 8 finished items within a 3-4 hour period. The envelope style means no zips and therefore much quicker.

I avoid doing box-style (where you have a separate gusset round the side) even for thickish lounger cushions because that makes the time much longer and also makes the envelope harder to do, although if they are thick cushions it looks a lot more professional. Being a bit cack-handed :oops: I would take a lot longer to do that but a professional might not.

Wish I were in SW France so I could get your girls doing my next lot as I am getting very bored with them!
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Post by Jimbo »

Thanks Pepsi, that's very helpful. I'd thought that around 10 euros per cover (cut and stitch only) seemed reasonable (given that I can buy a whole lounger cushion locally for 17 euros) but it's good to have you confirm this.

Is it better to have plain (looks classier) or patterned (hides marks better) fabric? And does everything coloured always fade in the sunshine?

Jim
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Post by pepsipuss »

Everything coloured will undoubtedly fade. I am steeling myself to re-do the whole lot when the current batch (floral design) are no longer acceptable which is probably as soon as the next two washes.

I am going to replace with plain cream. They will show dirty marks worse but the coloured ones needed a lot of washing anyway. Plain all over colours, particularly dark ones, don't just fade, they also show water marks as soon as someone sits on them in a wet swimsuit.
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Post by Jimbo »

Starting to get some fabric feedback from my grannies. Light coloured cotton (and heavy cotton called 'ticking' - new one on me) are getting the thumbs up as easier to remove stains with regular washing. 100% polyester has also been suggested? Patterned fabric (but small pattern that doesn't have to be matched) is also popular as disguising stains and resisting fading? And what about shrinking - should the covers be made a generous size to combat this?

I also have the opportunity of buying fabric from France or the UK at present. Does it make a difference?

Could I soon be running a loose cover sweatshop in SW France?

Jim
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enid
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Post by enid »

ours are made from towelling - personally I would hate patterned fabric
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Post by Jimbo »

enid wrote:ours are made from towelling - personally I would hate patterned fabric
Towelling - hadn't thought of that, Enid (although the towelling ones we bought from Lidl last year quickly went baggy and faded). Presumably towelling comes in big rolls - how thick and do you go for light or dark colours? No, I dislike patterns too, but I'm open to suggestions - all our pool/garden cushions are now patterned and, as they are replaced regularly, we always end up with an odd mix.

Jim
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enid
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Post by enid »

you can get towelling in lots of thicknesses . Ours are pale blue - I think a lighter colour best. They have one or two marks but they don't show in the overall look and guests ldo comment on them
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Post by pepsipuss »

enid wrote:you can get towelling in lots of thicknesses . Ours are pale blue - I think a lighter colour best. They have one or two marks but they don't show in the overall look and guests ldo comment on them
I think towelling is the best if you can get it at a reasonable price. Pretty expensive here and no colour choice but I am happy with cream so am going to get that next time.

I would avoid anything that is not at least 50% cotton and my preference would be as near 100% as possible - some towelling for this purpose has a bit of lycra for stretch which is fine.

I did buy some of the Lidl towelling ones once - disastrous as you say, Jim.
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Post by Jimbo »

Supplementary technical question for Pepsi and lorca:

I was impressed with your neat idea for a pillowcase-like design with a flap that would double as a retainer by being hooked over the top of the chair. But does this mean that only one side of the cover can be used? Or is there a modification that you've incorporated to enable both sides to be used? Sorry, probably glaringly obvious to you girls, but I'm only a bloke in a strange land!

Jim
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pepsipuss
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Post by pepsipuss »

Jimbo wrote:Supplementary technical question for Pepsi and lorca:

I was impressed with your neat idea for a pillowcase-like design with a flap that would double as a retainer by being hooked over the top of the chair. But does this mean that only one side of the cover can be used? Or is there a modification that you've incorporated to enable both sides to be used? Sorry, probably glaringly obvious to you girls, but I'm only a bloke in a strange land!

Jim
Unfortunately that is the case Jim, but it might be able to be designed so that the flap doubles back on itself and goes over the other side as well. I will play with a small piece of fabric later on and see if it works. It would probably defeat my machine if it was in towelling but someone with a more industrial machine would be able to get it through.
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