--- title: "Received the Cushion Cover but No Foam? Check Inside the Cover" url: "https://cushionguide.com/answers/only-received-cushion-cover-no-foam/" section: "The Cutting Table" author: "Callum Reid, The Weather Man of Casco Bay" author_url: "https://cushionguide.com/masters/callum/" published: "2026-03-30" updated: "2026-09-24" keywords: "received cushion cover but no foam, cushion foam insert missing, vacuum packed cushion looks like cover, compressed foam cushion arrived flat, open vacuum packed cushion" --- # I only received the cover. Where is the foam insert? *Odds are you are holding it. Vacuum packing presses a foam insert as flat as a folded sail.* Also asked as: I only got the cover.; The foam is missing. > **The quick answer:** If you received the cushion cover but no foam, look again: foam inserts are vacuum-compressed inside their covers for shipping, so a finished cushion can look like an empty cover. Open the plastic and the foam starts expanding back into shape over the next few days. Every order is photographed before it ships, and a genuinely missing insert is investigated. ![Red and white pencil-stripe cushion on a pale oak bench in a kids' room beside a picture-book shelf](https://cushionguide.com/media/bench-cushions/red-pencil-stripe-kids-room-bench-cushion-1600.webp "A low bench with a red pencil-stripe cushion gives a child a place to sit and read beside the book rack.") ## Key facts - Foam inserts ship vacuum-compressed inside their covers. - A compressed cushion can look like a cover on its own. - Once opened, the foam expands back into shape within a few days. - Every order is photographed before it ships. - If the foam really is missing, the workshop checks those photos and investigates. ## “There's only a cover in the box.” Press the middle of it, friend. Feel a firm slab under the fabric? That's the insert. Foam ships [vacuum-compressed](https://cushionguide.com/glossary/#vacuum-packing) straight inside its cover, squeezed so flat the whole cushion passes for an empty case. In one case the pre-shipping photo showed the cushion complete, foam and all. It had simply been packed tight. ## “How do I open it without cutting the fabric?” Carefully. The cushion sits right against the plastic, so no knives and no long scissors. Snip the bag at an edge away from the cushion and tear it open by hand. The foam starts moving at once and reaches full shape in about 24 to 48 hours. The [first 72 hours Pattern](https://cushionguide.com/guides/vacuum-packed-cushion-first-72-hours/) walks through it. ## “It's out, but it still looks thin.” Give it time. Foam straight out of the bag measures short and keeps recovering for 3 to 5 days, sometimes up to a week. Re-measure after that. If it's still short, send the workshop photos with a tape measure along the length, width and thickness. The [bench cushions](https://cushionguide.com/cushions/bench-cushions/) and [foam inserts](https://cushionguide.com/cushions/foam-inserts/) pages show what full thickness looks like. How long has yours been out of the bag? ## “There really is no foam.” Then write in. Every order is photographed before it ships, so the workshop checks that photo against what reached you and investigates from there. Rain doesn't negotiate, and neither does a photograph. > **Tailor's margin:** A vacuum-packed cushion can arrive so flat it looks like an empty cover; open it and give the foam a few days to regain its shape. > Every cushion order is photographed before it ships, so a missing foam insert can be checked against the photo of the finished cushion. > > — Callum ## Buyer questions **A common question:** All I got was the cover. Where's the foam? **The workshop's answer:** The pre-shipping photos showed the cushion complete with its foam. Vacuum packing makes it so flat it can pass for just a cover; it expands back into shape within a few days. **A common question:** The covers came but no cushions. Are the inserts shipping separately? **The workshop's answer:** Check the package again. Inserts are often vacuum-compressed straight into the covers, so the parcel looks like covers only. If the foam really is missing, the workshop investigates. **A common question:** The box is tiny. Can a whole cushion set really be in there? **The workshop's answer:** Yes. Cushion sets and sofas are vacuum-compressed, so everything fits a surprisingly small parcel with no extra stuffing. Open it promptly and allow about 36 to 48 hours to expand. ## Questions buyers ask next ### How soon after delivery should the vacuum bag come off? Promptly. The foam begins expanding the moment air gets in, reaches its full shape in about 24 to 48 hours, and keeps settling for a few days before it is worth measuring. ### What should I send if the foam truly isn't there? Write to the workshop with a photo of what arrived. Every order is photographed before shipping, so your photo is compared with that one and the missing insert is investigated. ### Will a large order arrive in one box? Not always. Big orders ship as several separately tracked parcels that can arrive on different days, and bars, armrests or backrests may travel on their own. Check every tracking number before counting a piece as missing. ## Related at the atelier - [My cushion arrived flat and thin. How long until it expands?](https://cushionguide.com/answers/vacuum-packed-cushion-expand-time/): Most vacuum-packed cushions regain their full shape within 24-48 hours of opening. - [Custom Bench Cushion in Malachite Green for a Glass Orangery](https://cushionguide.com/readings/malachite-green-bench-cushion-victorian-orangery/): For a bench in an orangery or sunroom, choose an outdoor weave one shade darker than the leaves, over high-density foam. - [Garden Bench Cushion in Navy Stripe: A Buyer's Project](https://cushionguide.com/readings/navy-striped-teak-garden-bench-cushion-rose-garden/): A garden bench cushion stays put when it fits snugly between the arms: measure between the arms at seat level and from the back slats to the front rail, and ask for a tight fit. - [Striped Outdoor Bench Cushion: One Stripe, One Plain, One Knit](https://cushionguide.com/readings/navy-pinstripe-lake-jetty-bench-cushion-mist/): An outdoor bench cushion mixes patterns best as one stripe, one plain and one texture, each at a different scale. - [Does the bench cushion come with the foam insert or just the cover?](https://cushionguide.com/answers/bench-cushion-foam-insert-included/): A standard custom bench cushion comes with the foam insert: high-density comfort foam inside a removable zippered cover, shipped filled and ready to use. - [Are the seat, backrest and armrest cushions attached to each other?](https://cushionguide.com/answers/are-backrest-and-seat-cushions-attached/): No, the seat, backrest and armrest bolsters are separate pieces, not sewn or fixed together. - [Your cushion arrived vacuum-packed: what happens in the first 72 hours](https://cushionguide.com/guides/vacuum-packed-cushion-first-72-hours/) - [When a custom cushion is the wrong size or color: remakes, fixes and what to send](https://cushionguide.com/guides/custom-cushion-remake-wrong-size-color/) *Fair winds — Callum* --- Written by Callum Reid (https://cushionguide.com/masters/callum/) 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/only-received-cushion-cover-no-foam/