CushionGuide
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The Cutting Table · a checklist answer

How do I clean a tufted cushion if it can't go in the washer?

Also asked as:How do you recommend cleaning it?Is there a zipper in this construction?

Buttons hold a tufted cushion together, and they also keep the cover on for good. So the cleaning happens where the cushion sits, with a cloth and a light hand.

Answered by

The Colorist of New Orleans ·

Black and cream ticking stripe box cushion with piped edges on a walnut bench, lit by low sun from a side windowSave
Close up, the ticking shows a small herringbone texture in each stripe, and self piping keeps the box edge tight.

The quick answer

Clean a tufted cushion in place, by hand: wipe the surface gently with a damp cloth, and use a little mild soap and water for marks. Tufted cushions have no zipper, so the cover never comes off. The soft fabric range wipes clean most easily; if you want machine-washable covers, choose the untufted, foam-filled version with a zipper.

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Key facts

  • Tufted cushions have no zipper; the cover does not come off.
  • Clean a tufted cushion gently by hand with a damp cloth.
  • Use mild soap and water for marks.
  • The fabrics are chosen to be easy to clean and practical for homes with kids.
  • The soft fabric range is the easiest to wipe clean.
  • The untufted, foam-filled version has a zippered, machine-washable cover.
  • Tufted French floor cushions are normally 4 to 5 in (10 to 12 cm) thick and packed with siliconized polyester fiber, not foam.
  • The largest tufted square floor cushion is about 48 x 48 in (122 x 122 cm), so cleaning happens where it sits.
  • Tufted cushions cannot be made as thin as 1 in.

Have it made

Have Élodie’s workshop cut this for you

A fabric reads one way at noon and another at dusk. Mention your light, and the workshop will weigh it with you. — Élodie

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
The fabrics are chosen to be easy to clean and practical for homes with kids.
Foam
The untufted, foam-filled version has a zippered, machine-washable cover.
Piping
The corded seam edge: matching, contrast or none.
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.

Want to pick the shape and add photos? Use the full quote form

The damp-cloth routine

  • Dampen a soft cloth with plain water.
  • Wipe the surface gently; the cover stays on.
  • For a mark, add a little mild soap to the water and dab.
  • Let the cushion air dry where it sits.

What a tufted cushion won't forgive

  • The washing machine: a tufted cushion can't go in.
  • A hunt for the zipper: there isn't one.
  • A hot iron on the linen-look: it is synthetic and can melt, so steam or iron on low only.

Pick the fabric that forgives, then clean less

The eye sits down first, but the hand does the cleaning, my friends. On a tufted cushion the fabric carries all the work, because nothing unzips. The workshop chooses fabrics that are easy to clean and practical in homes with kids, and the soft fabric range, part of the performance and pet-friendly family, wipes clean most easily of all.

Velvet has no stain-repellent coating, the teddy fabric is water-repellent, and you can add a fabric protector spray yourself once the cushion arrives. A black and cream ticking forgives a crumb; a pale oyster velvet shows every fingerprint in low sun.

The tufted cushion care Pattern goes further. Bench cushions and floor cushions can be ordered untufted with a zipper, and the tufted vs plain Pattern weighs that trade. Is yours in a child's reading nook, or a grown-up hallway?

Tufted or untufted, if washing decides it

TuftedUntufted, foam-filled
ZipperNoneYes, removable cover
CleaningBy hand: damp cloth, mild soapCover machine washes at 86°F (30°C)
FillSilicone ball fiber, no foam coreFoam
DryingAir dry in placeAir dry, or a low dryer setting

Tufted cushions cannot go in the washer; wipe them with a damp cloth and mild soap, or choose the untufted zippered version for washable covers.

Élodie
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Buyer questions

  1. A common question

    The tufted version has no zipper. How do I clean it?

    The workshop's answer

    You clean it in place with a damp cloth; the soft fabric in particular wipes clean easily by hand. If you need a removable cover, choose the non-tufted, foam-filled version, which has a zipper.

  2. A common question

    It's a tufted floor cushion for my kids' reading nook. How do I keep it clean?

    The workshop's answer

    Wipe it gently with a cloth; a tufted cushion can't go in the washing machine. The workshop can make it untufted instead, with removable covers that can be machine washed.

  3. A common question

    Does the tufted linen floor cushion have a zipper?

    The workshop's answer

    No. It is tufted and handcrafted, so the cover does not come off. Clean it by wiping gently with mild soap and water.

  4. A common question

    Can I use a fabric protector spray?

    The workshop's answer

    Yes, you can apply one yourself once the covers arrive. Velvet has no stain-repellent coating, while the teddy fabric is water-repellent; beyond that, washability is the main protection.

Questions buyers ask next

Can I steam shipping creases out of a tufted cushion?

Shipping creases fade on their own. To speed it up, steam or iron on low only. The linen-look range is synthetic and can melt under a hot iron, so keep the heat gentle and test a hidden spot first.

Which fabric is easiest to keep clean on a tufted cushion?

The soft fabric range. It was chosen for being especially easy to clean and durable, and it wipes clean by hand more readily than the others, which matters when the cover can never come off.

Are untufted cushion covers machine washable?

Yes. The untufted, foam-filled version has a zippered, removable cover that machine washes at 86°F (30°C). Air drying is best; if you use a dryer, choose the low setting and never high heat.