--- title: "Photo of a Custom Order Before Shipping: What to Ask For" url: "https://cushionguide.com/answers/photo-of-finished-cushion-before-shipping/" section: "The Cutting Table" author: "Rosa Delgado, The Porch Keeper of Savannah" author_url: "https://cushionguide.com/masters/rosa/" published: "2026-01-19" updated: "2026-09-24" keywords: "photo of custom order before shipping, custom cushion approval photo, see cushion before it ships, custom cushion quality check, confirm cushion size before shipping" --- # Can you send a photo of my cushion before it ships? *My grandmother never let a pie leave her kitchen without one last look through the oven door. A custom cushion deserves the same, neighbor, and the workshop is glad to open the door.* Also asked as: Possible to send a photo of the finished product?; Please don't ship before I confirm the pictures. > **The quick answer:** Yes: ask, and the workshop photographs your finished cushion and sends the pictures before it goes to the courier, and it can wait for your approval. Every cushion is measured and quality-checked, the final size is confirmed on request, and a color image can be sent before production. In phone photos, a filled cushion can look a touch different in tone from a loose cover. ![Rust orange textured bench cushion with a cream boucle pillow, open book and mug on an oak bench by a sunny window](https://cushionguide.com/media/bench-cushions/rust-woven-cushion-oak-window-bench-afternoon-1600.webp "A rust bench cushion turns a simple oak frame under the window into an afternoon reading spot.") ## Key facts - Photos of the finished cushion are sent before dispatch on request. - The workshop can hold the parcel until you approve the photos. - On one order the foam went in the day after the cover was approved, and the cushion shipped straight away. - Every cushion is measured and quality-checked before it ships. - The final size is confirmed on request, for example 17 × 47 1/4 in (43 × 120 cm). - An image of your chosen colors can be sent before production starts. - Tracking follows once the parcel is dispatched. ## Four things to ask for, in one message - ✓ **A color image before production**, so you see your fabric choices together before anything is cut. - ✓ **Photos of the finished piece** before it goes to the courier. - ✓ **A hold until you approve.** Write it plainly in your [personalization note](https://cushionguide.com/guides/custom-cushion-personalization-note/): please don't ship before I confirm the pictures. - ✓ **The final measured size**, confirmed in writing, for example 17 × 47 1/4 in (43 × 120 cm) on a [bench cushion](https://cushionguide.com/cushions/bench-cushions/). ## Why the photo can look a shade off Here's the one that trips folks up. In a phone photo, a filled cushion and a loose cover can look slightly different in tone, even in the same fabric. The filled one has a crown and edges that catch light and shadow; the loose one lies flat. So before you fret over a picture, hold your swatch by a window. [Screen versus daylight](https://cushionguide.com/guides/cushion-color-screen-vs-daylight/) explains why the screen sometimes fibs, and [ordering swatches first](https://cushionguide.com/guides/fabric-swatches-before-ordering/) settles most color worries before cutting starts. ## The cover that waited on a yes On one order, the workshop sent a photo of the finished cover and waited, the way you hold the screen door for someone carrying groceries. The buyer looked, liked it and said so. The foam went in the next day, and the cushion shipped straight away. Tracking followed once the parcel was on its way. Nobody lost a week. The buyer just got to see the cushion before the porch did. > **Tailor's margin:** A custom cushion can be held until the photos are approved: write 'don't ship before I confirm' in the order note, and the workshop can wait. > Every custom cushion is measured and quality-checked before it ships, and the final size, such as 17 × 47 1/4 in, is confirmed on request. > > — Rosa ## Buyer questions **A common question:** Can you send a photo of my finished cushion before it ships? **The workshop's answer:** Yes. The workshop is happy to send a photo of the finished cushion before it goes out. **A common question:** Will I see photos before my cushion is shipped? **The workshop's answer:** Yes. Every cushion is measured and quality-checked before it ships, and photos of the finished piece can be sent. Filled cushions and loose covers can look slightly different in tone in phone photos. **A common question:** Can I see my cushion before you hand it to the courier? **The workshop's answer:** Yes. Finished custom orders are photographed and the photos sent before the parcel goes to the courier. Tracking follows once it's dispatched. **A common question:** Why hasn't my order gone into production yet? **The workshop's answer:** Usually it's waiting on you: the cover isn't sewn until your fabric code is confirmed, and custom shapes aren't cut until you send a sketch. Send both with the order to avoid delays. ## Questions buyers ask next ### Does waiting for my approval slow the order down? Very little in past orders. On one, the foam went in the day after the buyer approved the cover photo, and the cushion shipped straight away. ### How long does a custom cushion take before it ships? Handmade production comes first, and custom cushions take longer than floor sofas, so ask for the current time before you order. Any delivery figure on a listing counts only from dispatch. ### What if the fabric I picked is out of stock? You choose: switch to an in-stock fabric and production starts right away, or wait for the mill to reweave it, which pushes the start back. Discontinued fabrics are replaced with a close in-stock match. ## Related at the atelier - [Will I get to see my custom cushion before it's shipped?](https://cushionguide.com/answers/photo-of-cushion-before-shipping/): Usually yes: ask in messages and the workshop photographs your finished custom cushion before it goes to the courier. - [Why hasn't my cushion order gone into production yet?](https://cushionguide.com/answers/cushion-production-waiting-fabric-code-shape-sketch/): A custom cushion order is usually waiting on you: the cover isn't sewn until your fabric code is confirmed, and for custom shapes the fabric isn't cut until you send a sketch or drawing of the exact… - [How long does a modular floor sofa take to arrive after I order?](https://cushionguide.com/answers/modular-floor-sofa-delivery-time/): A ready-made modular floor sofa reaches the US sooner than a custom-size one, because a custom length adds its own cutting and sewing before the sofa ships by air express with UPS or FedEx. - [Window Seat Cushion in Red Madras Plaid on a Kitchen Bench](https://cushionguide.com/readings/red-madras-plaid-cushion-bamboo-kitchen-window-bench/): A woven check like this red madras plaid makes a forgiving kitchen window seat cushion, because crumbs, small marks and wear disappear into the grid long before they would show on a solid. - [Star Floor Cushion in Pink and Olive Stripe: Seams at Every Tip](https://cushionguide.com/readings/pink-olive-stripe-star-cushion-book-corner/): A striped star floor cushion shows its hand-finishing at the tips: the stripes run straight across the whole star, so every point shows exactly where two panels meet, and the self piping is cut from… - [Window Seat Cushion in a Blue Stripe: Mistakes This Photo Avoids](https://cushionguide.com/readings/blue-sand-striped-window-seat-garden-view/): The window seat cushion mistake to avoid first is ordering from memory: measure the seat and the old cushion, because either may differ from the size you remember. - [From your drawing to your doorstep: how a custom cushion is made](https://cushionguide.com/guides/how-custom-cushions-are-made/) - [Choosing a custom cushion maker online: twelve questions first](https://cushionguide.com/guides/how-to-choose-a-custom-cushion-maker/) *Porch light's on — Rosa* --- Written by Rosa Delgado (https://cushionguide.com/masters/rosa/) 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/photo-of-finished-cushion-before-shipping/