I had a unique project to work on this week. One of our friends purchased seat covers for their vehicle and they wanted patches sewn to the headrest portion.
Here are the patches sewn on and you can see what the covers looked like before. They were made of a stretchy material backed with foam on the front. The back was a thin polyester knit and the bottom had elastic. Once I looked at the construction, I knew that taking the side seam apart would make it much easier.
The patches were actually a gift I made for my friends. I sent them in the mail as a surprise to Texas and thought they would be able to have them installed there. Well, I recently made a trip to Texas and the patches travelled back with me along with the seat covers. Life is weird sometimes isn't it? NO worries. I really enjoyed doing the project because I got to see how good they looked with the bright blue color they chose.
When I was looking at the covers I did however notice that the foam material although stretchy was fragile. You can see it beginning to split in several areas. So I knew I needed to be extra gentle as I took the outer seam apart.
A Seam ripper was the best tool to use and after I started with the point, I switched to the ball so the material would not become more damaged.
I only opened the seam enough to fit under the foot of my sewing machine. Pins helped place the patches and I used a ruler to ensure even placement.
I used a 75/11 needle in my sewing machine and made sure to start with the needle down. The seam was sewn inside the satin edge with matching thread and bobbin all around the perimeter.
Here is a close up of the seam. It is barely visible as long as you use the matching thread colors.
Once I had the patch sewn to the cover, I used some clips to hold the fabric edges together so I could repair the opened seam.
I set my Serger up for a four thread overlock and stitched along the edge. I was very careful to keep the trimming to a minimum along the knife edge. My bamboo skewer helped me guide the fabric also.
I used a large needle to run the thread tails through the seam also. This will help it keep from raveling.
Here are the completed covers ready to be installed.
I had to try them out so I could send pictures along before they were shipped back to Texas. I think someone got a car ride as well.
 |  |
I have a video you can watch below that shows all of the steps. Maybe it will inspire you to sew a patch to a seat cover as well. This method will work for just about anything as long as you can fit it under your sewing foot and your machine will sew it. I hope you have enjoyed this post, share what you learn and are generous with what you create. Someone will appreciate your hard work.
