Re-Covering Your Ironing Board

My ironing board is used heavily, as I am a quilter and crafty grrrrl.  It was not new when I got it, and the ugly cover has since been gifted with bits of fused fabric, stains from my ancient rusty iron (I finally upgraded to a lovely Rowenta) as well as some other stains – I iron in my kitchen, so sometimes it will wind up being used as an extra bit of counter space while I cook.  I hated my old sloppy cover – It went from merely dull to approaching disgusting, and in addition, it didn’t seem to want to stay on the board.  So the other day, as I pressed some binding strips, I decided it was time to re-cover it.

This is a delightfully easy project – I read the directions somewhere online a few months ago, and although I don’t remember where I read them, I was able to do the whole project in less than an hour just from what I remembered.  So I’ll just tell you how I did it, and you can try it out!

You’ll need:

Warm & Natural Cotton Batting – a half yard of 120” wide batting was enough for my board, which seems about average-sized.

Cotton Quilting Fabric - I used about 1-3/4  yards.

Cord or Ribbon - It should be between 1/8” and ¼” thick, and it needs to be strong, flexible and hold a knot. You can find this at Pacific Fabrics stores and you will need about 4 yards.

Thread

Marking pen

Scissors

Sewing Machine in good working order (or sewing hands in good working order.)

Directions:

Take the icky, old, or just boring cover off of your board.  This can be burned, or given to the dumpster, or used as an odd Halloween costume.  Just get it off! Lay your batting out on the floor – 120” wide batting usually comes folded in half – leave it folded, so you have two layers.  Lay your ironing board face down and trace around it, adding an extra 2” all the way around.  Cut out this shape from both layers of batting.   (If you like an extra-cushy board, just add another layer or two of batting.) 

Now lay out your fabric.  Place your cut batting on it, and use it as a template, but again, add about 2” all the way around – so your fabric piece should be about 4” larger on all sides than your ironing board.  When you come to the square edges on the wide end of your board, curve the corners, cutting off the square corners.

Take one end of your cording and pin it about 1” in from one of the edges of your fabric (wrong side) – it doesn’t really matter where, but this is where you are going to wind up having a bow when you tie on your cover, so wherever you would like it to be.  Mine is on the side, I checked my mom’s and hers is on the wide end.  Both seem to work fine. Fold the edge of your fabric over the cord and sew at least ½” from the edge of your fabric, taking care not to catch the cord in your stitches.  (In other words, make a simple casing around the edge for your cord.)  When you come to places where the edge curves, you will need to pucker and gather the cut edge of the fabric to make the casing lay flat- this does not need to be particularly beautiful, since you will likely never spend time looking under your ironing board.  Stop and backstitch about 2” from where you started stitching.

Lay your two layers of batting on top of your bare ironing board.  It may slip a bit as you put on the cover – I managed to make it work through persistence and sheer force of will, but I thought it might be an easy solution to use some double-sided tape or even spray adhesive to make it stick better if you don’t feel like dealing with the shifting and don’t mind having a little sticky stuff on your ironing board base.  Then place your fabric cover over it and start to pull on the ends of your cord, pulling the fabric tight over the batting and the ironing board.  You will likely need to help distribute the gathers so they lie flat on top – most of the gathers will end up towards the pointy and wide ends of your board, not along the side.  When you have pulled it tightly enough that is smooth and tight, tie a tight, double knot bow. 

Wow – isn’t your ironing board gorgeous?  I may use mine as a cocktail table, I like it so very much.  And see how nicely it matches my kitchen cabinets?  (Don’t look at those dishes in the sink – who has time to clean when there is so much good stuff to sew?) I'd love to see yours! When it's done, send a picture to me at annabeth@pacificfabrics.com. Have fun!

- Anna-Beth

Comments

[Anna-Beth]

I just went out and checked other ironing boards - and Nancy's right! They are 54", so my original 1/2 yd of 90" would not work for most people! The directions are being changed to reflect this. Thank you so much Nancy!

[Anna-Beth]

I wonder if my board is small? I know it was a 90" piece, and I had a couple of inches left, so I think my board is only 40" wide - Which seems right, since when I iron quilting fabric, I have to shift it to the side to iron the full width. So I guess everyone should measure their ironing boards first, before shopping. PacFab does have wider battings - I think their widest is 120", which would be the perfect width for the larger 54" size. If they have the larger board size, they will need a little more fabric, too - to have four inches on all sides, they need at least 62", so just 1 3/4 yds would make it right. Thanks Nancy!

[Nancy from the Eastside]

What a simple way to cover your ironing board! Cute too. I am having a little trouble on the math end of it. If you are using batting that is 90" wide folded double, by 18" wide that gives you a 45" by 18" wide piece. My ironing board, which I believe is a standard size is 54" long. Might you have used a 108" or wider piece of batting doubled????

[Anna-Beth]

That's a great question - I happened to prewash mine, because it came from my towering stash, which is usually washed when I bring it home. After asking the 4th Ave PacFab crew for advice, I think that you really should prewash - steam can cause shrinkage , and if it shrinks irregularly, it could stretch and even tear your cover.

[Carly]

I just covered mine, and it's fabulous! Guess where I got the fabric?? :0 I used hemp yarn for the tie. Worked great!

[Busydebbie]

Did you have to prewash your fabric?