1. Finish both short ends with a double-fold hem: press 1 cm to the wrong side, press 1 cm again, and stitch close to the inner fold (Module 6, Hems by machine). Look for: an even hem width all the way across – this edge shows on the finished cover.
2. Set up a test. On a folded scrap of the same cloth, check your stitch length (2.5 mm) and tension, as in Module 4, Stitch length, width and tension. Adjust until the stitch looks the same both sides. Look for: no loops underneath, no puckering.
3. Fold the envelope. Lay the strip right side up. Fold both hemmed ends in towards the middle, right sides together, until the folded piece measures 41 cm from fold to fold. The hemmed edges will overlap by about 13 cm. Look for: the width even at top and bottom – measure, do not trust your eye.
4. Pin the two raw sides, pins at right angles to the edge, with an extra pin through each layer of the overlap so the flaps cannot creep while sewing.
5. Sew both side seams with a 1 cm plain seam, backstitching at each end (Module 6, The plain seam and pressing). Go slowly over the overlap, where you are sewing through four layers. Look for: a straight, parallel seam – guide the edge along the 1 cm mark on the needle plate, and watch the mark, not the needle.
6. Check before finishing. Turn the cover right side out for a moment: are the sides straight, is the overlap flat, do the hemmed edges lie parallel? Fix now, not after neatening. Turn it back inside out.
7. Finish the raw edges of both side seams: zig-zag the two layers together (Module 4, Zig-zag and the everyday stitches), or trim to 7 mm and work a turned-under straight-stitched finish if your machine has no zig-zag (Module 6, Seam finishes without an overlocker). Look for: the zig-zag catching the edge, not hanging off it.
8. Trim all four corners diagonally, close to but not through the stitching.
9. Turn right side out through the envelope opening and push the corners out with a blunt point. Roll each seam between finger and thumb so it sits right on the edge, then press the whole cover flat. Look for: sharp corners and seams that lie on the very edge, not rolled to one side.
10. Optional topstitch. For a crisp, tailored edge, stitch a line 5–7 mm in from the edge around the whole front, through all layers at the overlap. Lengthen the stitch to 3 mm for topstitching. Look for: an even distance from the edge all round – this line is pure decoration, so it must be straight.
11. Insert the pad through the overlap, pushing it well into the corners. Look for: a plump cover with no empty corners and no gape at the opening.

• Cut once, measure twice. The whole project is one rectangle; if it is true, everything after is easy.
• Press every seam before it meets another seam. This single habit is most of what “professional finish” means.
• Use the needle-plate guide lines, or stick a strip of tape 1 cm from the needle, and steer the fabric edge along it.
• Slow down over the four-layer overlap and turn the handwheel by hand if the machine complains.
• Make the cover 1 cm smaller than the pad, not bigger. A snug cover looks plump; a loose one looks tired.
• Clip the corner, then clip twice more – one small extra snip each side of the diagonal lets the corner turn even sharper.
• No point turner? A chopstick, a knitting needle’s blunt end, or a closed pair of scissors held by the blades all work.
• Topstitch with a slightly longer stitch (3 mm) – it looks straighter and more deliberate than the default.
• Mark the overlap flaps with a pin on the one that goes on top, so both covers of a pair fold the same way.
• Make two. The second cover takes half the time and comes out twice as well – the fastest lesson in this course.

The side seams wander, so the cover is not square.

1. Unpick the crooked stretch and re-sew it, overlapping the good stitching at each end.
2. Re-measure the cover afterwards; if one side ended narrower, re-sew the other side to match rather than leaving it lopsided.
3. Prevention: watch the fabric edge against the seam guide, never the needle, and stop with the needle down whenever you need to adjust.

The corners come out rounded or bulky, not sharp.

1. Turn the cover back inside out and trim the corner seam allowances closer.
2. Push each corner out with a blunt point, working gently – a corner poked with scissors becomes a hole.
3. Prevention: trim the diagonal before turning, and pivot exactly at the corner with the needle down, as in Module 4, Your first seams: lines, corners and curves.

The envelope opening gapes and shows the pad.

1. Add a hidden press stud or a button and buttonhole-stitched loop at the centre of the overlap (Module 3, Buttons, hooks and press studs).
2. Topstitch the whole cover edge; the line through the overlap tames most gaping.
3. Prevention: keep the overlap generous – 12 cm or more. Short overlaps always gape.

The seam puckers along its length.

1. Press the seam flat, then open – light puckering often presses out.
2. If it remains, check tension and stitch length on a scrap of the same cloth, re-set, unpick and re-sew.
3. Prevention: test-sew every new cloth first (Module 4, Stitch length, width and tension), and let the machine feed the cloth – never pull it from behind.

The machine baulks or skips stitches at the thick overlap.

1. Turn the handwheel by hand through the thick patch rather than forcing the motor.
2. If stitches skipped, re-sew that stretch with a fresh, larger needle (90/14).
3. Prevention: use the right needle for the cloth, and flatten the overlap with a sharp press before sewing (Module 4, Machine needles and presser feet).

The finished cover is too big and the pad slops about inside.

1. Turn it inside out and re-sew both side seams a little deeper, then trim and re-finish.
2. Or keep the cover for a bigger pad and cut the next one smaller – cloth is rarely wasted, only re-assigned.
3. Prevention: remember the rule – cover 1 cm smaller than the pad – and measure the folded cover before sewing.

• For women: a cover cut from a worn-out saree or dupatta, with the border running across the front, makes the cloth live a second life.
• For men: firm dark cottons, old denim or kurta cloth give a plain, heavy cover that suits a reading chair; topstitch in a contrasting thread.
• For children: let the child choose the cloth and sew a 30 cm cover for their own small cushion; the envelope back means no zip to pinch fingers.
• Other sizes: for any pad, cut the width = pad + 3 cm, and the length = twice the pad + an overlap of 12–15 cm + 4 cm for hems. The method never changes.
• For gifting: a pair of matching covers, pressed and folded with a ribbon, is a wedding-worthy gift from a metre of good cloth. Add a hand-stitched initial from Project 1’s running stitch, or a Kasuti border once you know it.
• Floor cushion: the same plan in 60 cm size, in canvas, with the optional topstitching treated as compulsory – big covers need the firmness.

• Skipping the pre-wash, then watching the cover shrink and twist at its first wash.
• Hemming the short ends after folding instead of first – the hems are ten times harder once the sides are sewn.
• Sewing with the cover right sides out “to see how it looks”. Seams go on the inside; fold right sides together.
• Leaving the raw edges unfinished because “it’s only the inside”. One wash turns them to fringe.
• Forcing the machine over the thick overlap at full speed and snapping the needle.

• Give the finished cover a final press with steam, corners pulled square under the iron.
• Wash as the cloth allows – that is why you pre-washed a sample of it.
• Press after every wash while the cover is slightly damp; the seams settle flat again.
• Keep the offcuts: they are the test scraps for your next project on this cloth.

• Did you pre-wash and press the cloth before cutting?
• Did you test the stitch on a scrap before the first seam?
• Are both side seams an even 1 cm all the way?
• Is every raw edge inside finished?
• Does the pad fill the cover with no gape at the back?

Five yeses: straight seams hold no fear, and the drawstring bag is next.