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The Cutting Table · a common question

Can I order my cushion without piping, and is it cheaper?

Also asked as:Made without the piping, any cheaper?Can these be made without piping?

Yes, and no. Leaving the piping off changes the edge, not the bill. Here is how to ask for it so nobody has to guess.

Answered by

The Piping Queen of Newport · · Updated

The quick answer

Any cushion can be made without piping, but it costs the same, because piping is already included in the price. Write 'no piping' next to your fabric code in the personalization or order notes, and the edges are sewn plain and flat. You can also pipe some pieces of a set and leave others plain, or choose self welt for a quieter edge.

Taupe and white striped seat cushions with three plain taupe back pillows on a low oak platform in a sunlit plaster roomSave
Striped seats, plain backs: the back pillows are cut in the stripe's darker taupe, so the set reads as one design.

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Key facts

  • Any cushion can be made without piping.
  • A cushion without piping costs the same as a piped one.
  • Ask by writing 'no piping' next to the fabric code in personalization or order notes.
  • Without piping, the edges are sewn plain and flat.
  • Piping can go on some pieces of a set and be left off others.
  • Self welt, piping cut from the cushion's own fabric, is the quieter alternative.

Have it made

Have Maggie’s workshop cut this for you

Have the tape measure handy when they call. Old cushions shrink and sag; the seat underneath does not. — Maggie

Leave your details and the workshop will call you to confirm measurements, fabric, foam and piping. No prices, dates or payment on this page: it is a request, not an order.

Fabric · Foam · Pipingwhat the workshop will confirm with you

Fabric
Self welt, piping cut from the cushion's own fabric, is the quieter alternative.
Foam
The core: its density and thickness set the feel.
Piping
Any cushion can be made without piping.
Only for this request: no marketing calls or texts. Outside the US, add the country code.
In inches: length × depth × thickness, plus any angles or cut corners.

* Required. A member of the workshop team will call you to talk it through; nothing is charged and nothing is made until you have agreed on every detail with them.

We use these details only to answer this request and make your cushion: your name and contact details, the cushion details and photos you send, the page you came from and the ad or link that brought you, if any. The workshop that makes the cushions receives them. We don't sell them or share them for advertising, and we delete requests after 24 months. Privacy notice for requests.

Nothing is made or charged until you approve the details.

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Why skipping the piping doesn't save a penny

Right, then. Yes, any cushion can be made without piping. No, it won't be cheaper. Piping is already built into the price, so leaving it off changes the edge and nothing on the invoice.

That contrasting border in some listing photos? That's piping, and a note removes it.

I'll admit I have piped a few cushions in my time that would have looked better bare. Pale fabrics are the usual suspects: a light code like L-02 looks especially clean with a plain edge. Corduroy pieces and some floor sofas skip piping by default anyway.

So which is it you dislike, dear: the piping itself, or the contrast color? If it's the contrast, self piping keeps the rolled edge in the cushion's own fabric. The piping Pattern compares all three edges, and the bench cushions hub shows them on real seats.

How do you write 'no piping' in the order note?

  1. Find your fabric code

    It's on the chart in the listing photos. The piping note hangs off it.

  2. Put 'no piping' right beside it

    For example: L-02, no piping. Beside the code, not three lines further down.

  3. Split a set piece by piece

    Seat cushions: piping. Wedge backrests: no piping. One line per piece.

  4. Want a softer edge instead?

    Write 'self welt'. Same price, same fabric, a quiet rolled line.

A real project

Two velvet bench cushions, no decorative seam

A buyer got in touch wanting two velvet bench cushions, one 44 × 21¼ × 4 in (112 × 54 × 10 cm) and one 44 × 17¾ × 3⅛ in (112 × 45 × 8 cm), without the decorative seam. They were made exactly that way, with the velvet doing all the talking.

Another buyer went halfway on a patio sofa: piping on the seat cushions, the wedge backrests left plain. Perfectly sensible. The seats get the tailored line; the backs sit quietly behind them.

Leaving the piping off a cushion changes the edge, not the price: piping is already included, so the quote stays the same.

Maggie
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Buyer questions

  1. A common question

    If I skip the piping, is the cushion any cheaper?

    The workshop's answer

    No, the price stays the same. Write 'no piping' next to your fabric code in personalization. Piping is standard on all cushions, and many buyers skip it with light fabrics such as L-02, which look clean without it.

  2. A common question

    Is piping an extra charge, and can I leave it off?

    The workshop's answer

    Piping is free, so the price is exactly the same either way. The contrasting border in some photos is piping: write 'no piping' for clean flat edges, or 'piping' plus a color code if you want it.

  3. A common question

    Does the modular floor sofa come with piping?

    The workshop's answer

    Modular floor sofas come with a flat seam by default, and every piece is sewn to match. Write your preference in personalization; contrast trim on pillows can be left off.

Questions buyers ask next

Which pieces come without piping already?

Corduroy pieces and some floor sofas are made without piping by default, so there's nothing to remove. Everything else is piped as standard unless your order note says 'no piping' beside the fabric code.

Can the seat cushions be piped and the backrests left plain?

Yes. Piping can go on some pieces of a set and be left off others; one patio sofa had piped seat cushions and plain wedge backrests. List each piece and its edge on its own line in the order notes.

What's the difference between self welt and no piping?

Self welt is piping cut from the cushion's own fabric, so the edge keeps a rolled line without a contrast color. No piping means a plain, flat sewn edge with no cord at all. Both cost the same as contrast piping.