--- title: "How to Choose Piping Color When You Order: Write the Code" url: "https://cushionguide.com/answers/how-to-order-piping-color/" section: "The Cutting Table" author: "Margaret Holloway, The Piping Queen of Newport" author_url: "https://cushionguide.com/masters/maggie/" published: "2026-07-27" updated: "2026-07-27" keywords: "how to choose piping colour, how to choose piping color, cushion piping color code, self piping cushion, contrast piping order" --- # How do I choose my piping color when I order? *By code, in writing, in the personalization box. Here are the follow-ups, in the order they tend to land on my table.* Also asked as: I didn't know how to order the piping.; There was no option for piping color. > **The quick answer:** To choose your piping color, pick any code from the fabric charts and write it in the personalization box as 'Body: code, Piping: code'. For piping in the same fabric as the cushion, write 'piping same color' plus the code, which is what most buyers choose. If your order form had no piping option, send the code by message; production starts once it's recorded. ![Caramel, stripe, sage, stripe and cream bouclé cushions stacked on a limestone window alcove seat with olive branches](https://cushionguide.com/media/window-seat-cushions/caramel-sage-stripe-cushion-stack-plaster-window-alcove-928.webp "Five cushions in caramel, sage, cream and two woven stripes, piled on a plaster alcove seat in late sun.") ## Key facts - Piping color is chosen by fabric code from the charts. - Write it in personalization as 'Body: code, Piping: code'. - No piping option on the order form? Send the code by message. - L24 is a sage green. - For self-piping, write 'piping same color' plus the fabric code, e.g. N02. - Self-piping is the most common choice. - The order goes into production once the piping code is recorded. - On a standard 4 in (10 cm) seat cushion, single piping runs along the top and bottom edges; double piping is optional. - Cushions as thin as 1 in (2 cm) are made without piping; from about 1¼ in (3 cm) thick, piping can be added. - Fabric swatches, about 4 x 4 to 6 x 6 in (10 x 10 to 15 x 15 cm), let you hold a piping code against the body fabric before you order. ## “There was no piping option on my order form.” Then send it by message. Pick any code from the fabric charts and write it out, for example L24 for a sage green. The order goes into production once the piping code is recorded, and if the line is blank, the workshop checks with you before anything is cut. There is no separate piping chart, and you don't need one. Piping can be cut from any of the 150-plus fabrics on any chart, so you choose it exactly the way you chose the body: by code. ## “How do I write it so nobody has to guess?” Two labels, two codes: **Body: code, Piping: code.** That line goes in the personalization box when you order. I learned this the hard way in my theater days, dear, when "green trim" meant a different green to everyone who read the note. A color name is an opinion. A [fabric code](https://cushionguide.com/glossary/#fabric-code) is a fact. The [personalization note Pattern](https://cushionguide.com/guides/custom-cushion-personalization-note/) shows the whole note written out. ## “I want the piping in the same fabric as the cushion.” Write **piping same color** plus the fabric code, for example "piping same color N02", or simply "same as body". That's [self-piping](https://cushionguide.com/glossary/#self-piping), and it is what most buyers choose: a crisp edge with no second color competing for attention. A straight welt is a kind of honesty, and in the body's own fabric it keeps its opinions to itself. Contrast is the other road. The [piping Pattern](https://cushionguide.com/guides/cushion-piping-matching-contrast-none/) compares matching, contrast and none, and [bench cushions](https://cushionguide.com/cushions/bench-cushions/) shows both on real benches. Which way are you leaning? > **Tailor's margin:** Write piping as 'Body: code, Piping: code' in the personalization box; for self-piping, 'piping same color N02' tells the cutter everything. > Piping can be cut from any of the 150-plus fabric codes on the charts, so choose it by code, exactly as you chose the cushion body. > > — Maggie ## Buyer questions **A common question:** How do I pick a piping color? **The workshop's answer:** Any fabric code from the charts works, or the same fabric as the body for a clean, seamless look, which is what most buyers choose. Write the piping code, or 'same as body', in personalization when you order. **A common question:** My order never asked for a piping color. What do I do? **The workshop's answer:** Choose any code from the fabric charts and message it to the workshop, for example L24 for a sage green. The order goes into production once the code is recorded. **A common question:** I'd like piping in the cushion's own fabric, not a contrast. How do I say that? **The workshop's answer:** Write 'piping same color' with the fabric code in the personalization box, for example 'piping same color N02', and the piping is made from the main fabric. **A common question:** Should I have piping at all? **The workshop's answer:** It's a style choice at the same price. Piping gives crisp, tailored edges; no piping keeps them soft and clean. About half of orders go each way, and on outdoor cushions same-fabric piping is recommended because it reinforces the edges. ## Questions buyers ask next ### Does choosing a contrast piping code change the price? No. Piping is a style choice at the same price as no piping, and a contrast code costs the same as self-piping. What matters is that the code is written down, so the order can go into production. ### Can corduroy cushions take piping? Corduroy daybed covers and sofa pieces are made without piping by design, because the ribs already define the shape. Corduroy box cushions have been piped on request, and velvet and other fabrics take piping as usual. ### Can a tufted daybed backrest have piping? No. Tufted daybed backrests and armrests can't take piping, so they are switched to a plain style if you want piping everywhere. Non-tufted zippered covers are piped as standard, and cover-only orders can be piped. ## Related at the atelier - [Should my piping match the cushion or be a contrast color?](https://cushionguide.com/answers/matching-vs-contrast-piping/): Either works: about half of custom cushion orders use matching piping and half use contrast. - [What piping color goes best with my cushion fabric?](https://cushionguide.com/answers/piping-color-combinations/): The best piping color depends on your body fabric and your room, and the workshop will suggest pairs and send photos before you decide. - [Where is the piping color chart?](https://cushionguide.com/answers/piping-color-chart/): There is no separate piping color chart: piping can be cut from any fabric on any of the fabric charts in the listing images, more than 150 options. - [Custom Bench Cushion in Knotted Stripe: Box Edge, Self Piping](https://cushionguide.com/readings/warm-gray-mustard-knotted-stripe-cushion-white/): A striped custom bench cushion looks upholstered when it has a box edge, because the stripe carries onto the boxing strip and the knot rows run straight down the side. - [Striped Bench Cushion Up Close: Herringbone Twill, Self Piping](https://cushionguide.com/readings/red-herringbone-stripe-self-piped-corner-macro/): A striped bench cushion looks tailored when the stripes on the top carry straight over the edge onto the gusset and the piping is cut from the same cloth. - [Custom Bench Cushion in Bouclé with Swapped Contrast Piping](https://cushionguide.com/readings/forest-cream-burgundy-boucle-cushions-bold-piping/): To mix plains, texture and stripes on a custom bench cushion, keep every color at the same depth and let only one surface carry the busy part. - [What to write in a custom cushion order note: sizes, codes and extras](https://cushionguide.com/guides/custom-cushion-personalization-note/) - [Matching, contrast or no piping: choosing the line around a cushion](https://cushionguide.com/guides/cushion-piping-matching-contrast-none/) *Stitch straight — Maggie* --- Written by Margaret Holloway (https://cushionguide.com/masters/maggie/) 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/how-to-order-piping-color/