How to measure sofa for a custom made slipcover
"Many guides out there will tell you that you only need the width,
depth and height of the sofa to get a custom slipcover made for your sofa."
Unfortunately that would be a universal slipcover, which is typically made of elastic fabrics that will cover your sofa completely, and not individualised for each cover. The problem is that it just ain't pretty.
So we'll need to take more measurements and although that may seem daunting, we'll break it down in this guide so that you will always get your measurements right no matter what.
So we'll need to take more measurements and although that may seem daunting, we'll break it down in this guide so that you will always get your measurements right no matter what.
Understanding and identifying your sofa
"The curvier the sofa, the more measurements you'll need" - is what I always say when people ask me how I measure my sofa.
So you'll need to know what sofa you have firstly, and how many extra parts need to be measured so the slipcover fits like a glove.
1. Seating Frame
2. Armrest Shape
3. Backrest Type
To give you an idea of how many measurements are needed for your sofa, the simplest one would be a sofa with boxed seat cushions, square armrests and a straight/tuxedo back.
That would require about 17 measurements, whereas the maximum would be around 29 for an L-shaped seat frame, round arm and high back sofa.
Measuring in parts
Box seats, wedge arm, straight back sofa
It may sound a little daunting at first, but once you break it down into the front, side and back of the sofa - measuring the entire sofa is a walk in the park
For this demonstration we'll be using a box-seat, wedge arm sofa with a tuxedo back.
Front
Maximum backrest width between arms - get a friend to help (A1)
Maximum backrest width between arms; Starting point at 0
Maximum backrest width between arms ending at 200cm
Inner seating width (A2)
Backrest height (A3)
Inner seating depth (B1)
Upper armrest depth (B2)
Upper armrest depth ending at 82cm
Armrest width (C1)
Armrest height (C3)
Maximum armrest width (C2)
Seating base height (C4)
Maximum base width (D)
Inner armrest height (E1)
Inner armrest/backrest length (E2)
SIDE
The front usually has the bulk of the measurements so measuring the side and back of the sofa becomes quite straightforward.
If you have a round arm, high back sofa then it'll just be an additional 4 measurements at most.
Upper sofa depth (G1)
Lower sofa depth (G2)
Frontal sofa height (H1)
Rear sofa height (H2)
The sofa leg height is usually measured if you're going for a look where the slipcover does not touch the floor.
If you're going for a long-skirt, then you can safely ignore the sofa leg height (H3) and provide all vertical lengths to the floor instead.
Backrest depth (F)
Sofa leg height (H3)
Back
Upper sofa back width (L1)
The most important thing to note here is that your measurements at the start make sense - for example, it's safe to assume that the maximum base width (D) is similar, if not identical to the lower sofa base width (L2) measured from the back.
Otherwise, this means there's some kind of taper. However, the front can be slightly wider usually so don't be surprised if there's a bit of discrepancy. We'll let you know if we find that the measurements don't make proportional sense with the photos provided.
Lower sofa back width (L2)
The last tip to note, is to stick the measuring tape to the sofa instead of having it float if you want a more upholstered look.
If you're going for a relaxed look with a skirt, then your vertical measurements can be perpendicular to the floor.
Maximum sofa back height (J1)
Cushions
Measuring cushions is actually the easiest part of the process - if your cushion is a perfect box, all you need is the width x depth x height sometimes. For example 50 x 60 x 12 cm.
However, not all boxes are perfect and if they have differing (usually tapered) widths, depths and heights - all you have to do is to take the dimension where it's at a minimum, and where it reaches a maximum
Width / depth / height
Thickness
Lastly, there will be cushion covers where there's no seam at all - which can be fairly annoying.
The good thing is that there's a zipper which sets a boundary and in order to measure, you'll need to go around the entire cushion to measure its circumference.
