Anyone who has made a cushioned seat knows how expensive foam and batting can be! I have wanted to put a window seat cushion in this nook for 3 years but have never taken the plunge because the price for foam is SO expensive! 
A few weeks ago I was at TJ Maxx wondering about my window bench when I spotted two dog beds on clearance. The reels in my brain were spinning and I bought them in hopes that I could make them into a window bench.
It took me a few weeks to find fabric I liked, so in the meantime the doggie beds were used daily like this:
These girls played on these every time we were in the kitchen. I may have to buy some more to replace these two, who knew they would be so fun?!
Sewing Deets:
This project is definitely not for a faint-hearted sewer. Piping (the rolled look at the edges of the cushion) can be difficult, as well as putting in a zipper, and figuring the dimensions for your space… what I am trying to say is you need to be comfortable with sewing :).
My space was 18″ deep and I was THRILLED when I pulled out the batting bags and discovered that I could cut them into 18″ bags without re-sewing two of the bags! Each dog bed had three 9″ batting bags that were sewn together. I seriously got lucky here!
I then connected the 3 separate sacks (seen above) into one long cushion.
The New Window Seat Cushion Cover
I was very careful as I pulled apart the outer fabric for the dog beds to see how they sewed everything together. I re-used the piping, and one of the zippers for my new covering.
My window seat dimensions were 18″ deep X 85″ long X 5 1/2″ tall. I used 3.5 yards, but if I could do it again, I would get 4 yards. I was seriously left with 3 extra inches! It made me a little nervous, no wiggle room!
I love how it turned out. The lumpiness gives it some interest and depth rather than a hard-looking, flat foam. If you want to use a doggie bed but do NOT like the super lumpy look, that is OK! I purposefully made my batting lumpy-looking, but you can definitely make yours more uniform.
So here is a little cost break-down:
Dog Bed Version – $60
2 Doggie Beds – $30
3.5 yards fabric – $30
VS.
Foam Pad Version – $124
5 inch Foam Pad (with a 50% off coupon) – $ 94
3.5 yards fabric – $30
I am finding it takes years to get all of those ideas in my head into reality, and that is okay. I’m enjoying the process – making our house, into our home.
So go tackle those projects that have been on your “To-Do” for waaaay too long!
