---
title: "Floor Cushion Cover Without Filling: Yes, But Not Tufted"
url: "https://cushionguide.com/answers/empty-covers-tufted-cushions-own-filling/"
section: "The Cutting Table"
author: "Élodie Marchand, The Colorist of New Orleans"
author_url: "https://cushionguide.com/masters/elodie/"
published: "2026-01-17"
updated: "2026-09-24"
keywords: "floor cushion cover without filling, empty zippered cushion cover, tufted cushion cover only, custom cushion cover no insert, zippered floor cushion cover"
---

# Can I buy empty zippered covers for tufted cushions and fill them myself?

*You already have the filling and want only the dress. That is possible, my friends, with one condition written into the thread itself.*

Also asked as: Could you sell just the covers?; With a zipper and no filling.

> **The quick answer:** Yes, as plain zippered covers in your exact sizes, but they will not be tufted. Tufted cushions are sold filled only, because the tufting is sewn through the filling. If you want the buttoned look on an empty cover, you would have to add the tufting yourself after filling it, which is why the workshop usually suggests the filled cushion instead.

![Pile of velvet cushion covers in dusty blue, rose, mustard and taupe with pink, plum, blue and green contrast piping](https://cushionguide.com/media/cushion-covers/dusty-velvet-cushion-covers-contrast-piping-pile-1600.webp "Velvet covers in four soft colors, each outlined in a contrasting piping; the empty taupe shell sits ready for foam.")

## Key facts

- Tufted cushions are sold filled only; the tufting is sewn through the filling.
- Empty zippered covers can be made in custom sizes.
- Empty covers are plain, never tufted.
- One buyer's covers were quoted at about 27 1/2 × 17 3/4 × 5 1/2 in (70 × 45 × 14 cm), 73 1/4 × 26 × 5 1/2 in (186 × 66 × 14 cm) and 73 1/4 × 12 1/4 × 5 1/2 in (186 × 31 × 14 cm).
- A tufted look on an empty cover means adding the buttons yourself after filling.
- A cover alone costs less than the same cushion with foam.

## What to send for covers only

- ✓ **The finished size of each cover**: length × depth × thickness, for example 73 1/4 × 26 × 5 1/2 in (186 × 66 × 14 cm).
- ✓ **The bare insert's measurements**, not the old cover's, including its thickness.
- ✓ **Which edge the zipper goes on**: the long back edge, or a long side so the cushion can flip.
- ✓ **Your fabric code and piping color**, chosen from a swatch held in daylight.
- ✓ **A line saying you know the covers will be plain**, with no tufting buttons.

## What an empty cover cannot do

- ✗ Arrive tufted. The buttons are drawn through the filling, and an empty cover has none to hold them.
- ✗ Be tufted for you after you've filled it at home. Any buttons then are your own handwork.
- ✗ Replace every filled product. The corduroy bean bag pouf, for one, is sold filled only.

## Why the buttons need the filling

Look at a tufted cushion late in the afternoon, when the light rakes across it. Every button sits in a small shadow, a dimple that exists only because the thread runs through the filling and draws the fabric down. Take the filling away and the thread has nothing to hold.

So an empty cover is made plain: a clean zippered box in your fabric. In dusty blue or mustard velvet that is no loss; the pile carries the light without help. Read [covers only](https://cushionguide.com/guides/cushion-covers-for-existing-foam/) for measuring your own foam, [cushion covers](https://cushionguide.com/cushions/cushion-covers/) for the shapes, and [tufted or plain](https://cushionguide.com/guides/tufted-vs-plain-cushions/) to weigh the two looks.

> **Tailor's margin:** An empty zippered cover can be made in any custom size, but never tufted: tufting buttons are sewn through the filling, not the fabric alone.

> Tufted cushions are sold filled only, because the tufting thread runs through the filling; an empty cover arrives plain, with no buttons.
>
> — Élodie

## Buyer questions

**A common question:** Can you make a zippered cover with no filling so I can stuff it myself?

**The workshop's answer:** Yes. Zippered covers can be made, but they won't be tufted.

**A common question:** Can I order just the covers, without the filling?

**The workshop's answer:** Tufted cushions come filled only, since the tufting is done through the filling. Plain covers can be made in custom sizes; the largest of three quoted was about 73 1/4 × 26 × 5 1/2 in (186 × 66 × 14 cm).

**A common question:** Can I buy only the zippered covers and use my own filling?

**The workshop's answer:** These cushions are normally sold filled. Covers alone can be made, but you'd have to add the tufting buttons yourself after filling, so the workshop usually quotes filled cushions instead.

**A common question:** How much less is a cover than the full cushion with foam?

**The workshop's answer:** Less than the filled cushion, but there's no fixed ratio: each cover is quoted per piece by size and fabric, so send your sizes and codes for a real figure. A bulk discount has been offered on some multi-cover orders.

## Questions buyers ask next

### Can I choose where the zipper sits on an empty cover?

Yes. Name the edge: the long back edge, a long side so the cushion can be flipped, or around the corner on a tapered cover. The zipper is sewn where you say.

### Should I measure my old cover or the foam inside it?

The foam. For new covers on an insert you already own, measure the bare insert rather than the old cover, and always include its thickness.

### Can a cover be made for a tapered cushion I already have?

Yes. Send a drawing with every side measured, back width, front width, depth and thickness, and the cover alone is quoted. Then add your fabric and piping codes.

## Related at the atelier

- [Can I buy just the cushion cover without the foam insert?](https://cushionguide.com/answers/cushion-cover-only-without-foam/): Yes: a cushion cover only, without foam, is sewn to the exact length, width and thickness of the insert you already own.
- [Does the covers-only floor sofa listing include the foam and metal frame?](https://cushionguide.com/answers/covers-only-sofa-foam-metal-bars/): No, a teddy sofa covers-only order is just the empty fabric covers, with no foam inserts and no metal support bars.
- [Can you make a new cover for my tufted or button cushion?](https://cushionguide.com/answers/new-cover-for-tufted-cushion/): No, a tufted replacement cover can't be made on its own, because tufting passes through the filling, and a plain new cover won't fit a tufted cushion properly.
- [Custom Cushion Covers in Raspberry, Mustard and Green Tweed](https://cushionguide.com/readings/raspberry-mustard-green-tweed-cushion-covers-stacked/): Custom cushion covers can be ordered on their own, made to the length, depth and thickness of the foam you already have.
- [Custom Cushion Covers in Dusty Velvet With Contrast Piping](https://cushionguide.com/readings/dusty-velvet-cushion-covers-contrast-piping-pile/): Custom cushion covers fit best when the cover's side wall matches your insert's thickness and the length and depth are agreed as finished sizes, since handmade covers carry a 1/2 to 1 in (1.3 to 2.5…
- [Custom Cushion Covers in Five Velvets: A Pairing for Each Season](https://cushionguide.com/readings/five-velvet-cushions-fanned-oak-floor-piping/): Custom cushion covers let one cushion change with the seasons: zip off an ivory velvet with gray piping for summer and zip on emerald with coral piping for the holidays.
- [Ordering new cushion covers for foam you already own](https://cushionguide.com/guides/cushion-covers-for-existing-foam/)
- [How to wash removable cushion covers without shrinking them](https://cushionguide.com/guides/how-to-wash-cushion-covers/)

*With color and care — Élodie*

---

Written by Élodie Marchand (https://cushionguide.com/masters/elodie/) for CushionGuide (https://cushionguide.com/about/). The site explains made-to-measure cushions and the partner workshop makes them; measurements are in inches first. This Markdown mirrors the page at https://cushionguide.com/answers/empty-covers-tufted-cushions-own-filling/