Concept Sketches · 8 scenes
Modern farmhouse window seats: white shiplap, cord and cabinet greens
White shiplap, black window frames, painted cabinets: the new farmhouse leaves a cushion nowhere to hide. Eight seats and benches from past orders, read for color first and cut second.
SaveThe quick answer
A farmhouse window seat cushion should be chosen against the finishes that never move, so hold fabric samples beside the cabinetry, beams and floor before you order. Most seats here are box cushions 3 to 6 in (7.5 to 15 cm) thick in corduroy, velvet or linen; add a flat knife-edge lumbar for a slim back, or round bolsters to make the seat a lounge.
White shiplap forgives nothing
White shiplap forgives nothing. Every color you set in front of it is read at full strength, from the pale gray light of early morning to the amber of a kitchen at six in the evening.
The modern farmhouse is a fixed palette: chalk-white boards, black window frames, painted cabinets, an oak or pine floor, sometimes a beam. None of that is going to move. The farmhouse window seat cushion is the one piece still undecided, so it has to be chosen against those finishes, in that room, and never on a phone. Daylight never lies; your screen sometimes does.
Window seat and kitchen nook orders from new builds return to three questions: which texture, which green or blue, and what goes at the back. The eight seats and benches below are real, their sizes kept exactly. So tell me, my friends: what color are your cabinets at breakfast, and what color are they after dinner?
Eight farmhouse seats, read in their own light
01A past project
Green cabinets, green corduroy and a flat back pillow
A buyer in the US held emerald velvet, a green corduroy and two soft fabrics against her green kitchen cabinets, half wishing for a softer green-and-cream stripe. She chose a 4 x 63.5 x 19 in (10 x 161 x 48 cm) box cushion in green corduroy with cream corduroy piping, plus a 14 x 63.5 in (36 x 161 cm) knife-edge lumbar instead of a round bolster.
The takeaway: Hold every sample against the cabinet door itself, and say on the order whether the back pillow is flat or round.
02A past project
Orange corduroy, 6 in deep, cord lines running upright
One buyer wrote in from a new house with a window seat about 26 x 98 in (66 x 249 cm). It was made 6 in (15 cm) thick in orange corduroy, with two bolsters 8 in (20 cm) across and 26 in (66 cm) long for the ends, and the buyer asked for vertical cord lines. A 3 x 90 x 11 in (7.5 x 229 x 28 cm) back cushion came later.
The takeaway: Corduroy wale direction is a choice for the top and the side edges; write it on the order before production.
03A past project
A 90 in kitchen bench made as one piece
A buyer got in touch about a kitchen bench 90 x 24 in (229 x 61 cm) and asked for a single cushion rather than several. On a busy seat, separate pieces drift apart and open gaps; one long cushion stays in line.
The takeaway: Keep a kitchen bench in one piece unless something forces a split, such as a hinged lid, where each lid section gets its own cushion.
04A past project
Two loud sofas and a long, quiet seat
A buyer wrote in from a living room that already held a burnt-orange sofa and a turquoise one. The seat under the window was long and slim, 117 x 18 x 3 in (297 x 46 x 7.5 cm), with 18 x 7 in (46 x 18 cm) bolsters and pillows in several sizes.
The takeaway: When the sofas already carry strong color, keep the seat calm and let the pillows and bolsters carry the conversation across the room.
05A past project
Sky-blue velvet backs on a long built-in L
A buyer messaged the workshop with a long L-shaped run of built-in seating: one seat 73 x 24 x 4 in (185 x 61 x 10 cm), the other 136 x 24 x 4 in (345 x 61 x 10 cm), with backs in sky-blue velvet.
The takeaway: Measure each leg of an L on its own; here that meant two seats, 73 in and 136 in, sharing one 24 in (61 cm) depth.
06A past project
A new breakfast nook, linen piped in linen
A buyer wrote to the workshop about a breakfast-nook bench that had just been installed. They chose linen, with the piping cut from the same linen, so the edge reads as a quiet line rather than a contrast.
The takeaway: Self-piping lets a new nook look built in; save contrast piping for when you want the edge drawn in ink.
07A past project
Two kitchen benches built for lounging
A buyer got in touch with two built-in kitchen benches, 55.5 x 27 in (141 x 69 cm) and 56.25 x 27 in (143 x 69 cm), meant for lounging as much as eating. They chose a tufted soft fabric, the smooth, linen-like weave with no pile.
The takeaway: Benches that look alike can still differ; these two are 0.75 in (2 cm) apart in length, so measure and label each one.
08A past project
Four pieces, two shades of natural linen, one order
A buyer messaged the workshop with a set of built-ins and a small ledge: 48 x 20 in, 41 x 18.75 in, 14 x 9 in and 60.5 x 17 in (122 x 51, 104 x 48, 36 x 23 and 154 x 43 cm). They chose two shades of natural linen and put every piece on one combined order.
The takeaway: Two close neutrals look intentional when each sits on its own piece; ordering together lets you judge the pair side by side.
Flat lumbar or round bolster: deciding the back of the seat
Say which one you want, because they do different work. A knife-edge lumbar is flat, two panels sewn edge to edge, and it lies against the boards like a folded letter; the green-cabinet seat took one at 14 x 63.5 in (36 x 161 cm). A round bolster is a cylinder sized by diameter x length, and it frames the ends, like the two 8 x 26 in (20 x 66 cm) bolsters on the orange seat.
To lounge, add a back. The standard back pillow is about 16 in (40 cm) tall and 4 in (10 cm) thick, made the length of the seat; the orange seat went slimmer, at 3 in (7.5 cm). Bolsters can follow later, because fabric stock is kept: send the diameter, the length and the fabric code from your first order.
The bolster size Pattern lists diameters, knife-edge or box edge explains the two constructions, and lumbar pillows covers the flat kind on its own.
Corduroy, velvet, linen or soft fabric against white boards
Lay your seat out in the bench cushion builder, try the back pillows in the pillow cover studio, and read the swatches Pattern before you test a sample in your own light. The families are corduroy, velvet and linen.
| Fabric | How it takes the light | Where it showed up | Watch for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Corduroy | Ribbed wale that catches light along each cord; direction can be set on the order | Green seat beside green cabinets; an orange 6 in seat with vertical cord lines | A fixed, limited palette with no black, maroon, lilac or lavender |
| Velvet | Plush pile with its own sheen, so a color name reads differently than in corduroy | The emerald sample; sky-blue backs on a built-in L | Far wider range, including black and purples |
| Linen | Matte, with natural slubs; reflects light differently from velvet | A new breakfast nook with self-piping; two shades across four built-ins | A linen can sit close to a velvet shade, never identical |
| Soft fabric | Looks like linen but smoother and more even, with no slubs and no pile | Two tufted kitchen benches built for lounging | Its tones sit closer to corduroy than velvet's do, useful for back pillows |
Choose a farmhouse window seat cushion against the painted cabinets and the floor, in morning and evening light, never against a screen.
Élodie
Farmhouse fabric questions
- A common question
Does your corduroy come in black, maroon or lilac?
The workshop's answerNo. Corduroy comes in a fixed, limited set of colors, and black, maroon, fuchsia, lilac and lavender aren't in it, with no plans to add them. An exact velvet shade may not exist in corduroy either; the workshop sends the full corduroy chart with close-ups of the nearest codes. For those colors choose velvet or soft fabric, which have far wider ranges. Dyeing corduroy isn't advised, and crushed velvet isn't offered.
- A common question
Can you make round bolsters that match my window seat cushion?
The workshop's answerYes, and a seat with two matching bolsters is one of the most common custom sets. Bolsters are sized by diameter x length, made in any size, in the same fabric and piping as the seat; past pairs include 8 in (20 cm) across x 26 in (66 cm) long in corduroy. Send the seat's width x length x thickness, each bolster's size, the quantity and your fabric. The seat is ordered from its listing and the bolsters through a custom link.
- A common question
Which way will the stripes run on my long window seat, and can I change that?
The workshop's answerBy default stripes run front to back across the depth. Fabric rolls are about 55 in (140 cm) wide, so a stripe running the length of a long cushion would need a seam, while front to back stays seamless. You can ask for another direction for stripes or corduroy wales, on the top and the side edges, before production, ideally with a reference photo. The team checks what's technically possible. If a stripe is too narrow to cut piping from, a matching solid is used for the piping.
- A common question
If I love a velvet color, can I get the same shade in linen?
The workshop's answerClose, but not identical. The same color name has different tones in corduroy and in velvet, and linen reflects light differently from velvet, so one linen can sit very near a burnt-terracotta velvet without matching it. Beside a corduroy seat, the workshop has suggested soft fabric for the back pillows, because its tones come much closer to corduroy. Beyond the listing chart there's a wider linen catalog, and the workshop will find the nearest named linen.
Have it made
Have an idea like this made — ask Élodie’s workshop
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.
Questions buyers ask next
How thick should a farmhouse window seat cushion be?
The workshop standard for seat, bench and window seat cushions is 4 in (10 cm), and most buyers keep it. In this series seats ran from 3 in (7.5 cm) on a long living-room seat to 6 in (15 cm) on a lounging window seat. The window seat thickness Pattern goes further.
Should a very long built-in seat be one cushion or two?
One piece keeps a busy bench in line. Very long runs are split into equal pieces: a 154.5 in (392 cm) window seat became two 77.25 x 22 in (196 x 56 cm) cushions. On lift-up lids, split at each lid break; see one piece or two.
Can I buy extra fabric by the yard to match my window seat?
Yes. Fabric can be bought by the yard or meter, for extra matching fabric or for large pillow covers. The workshop sources its fabrics rather than weaving them, doesn't make custom patterns, and the range is mostly plain solid colors. The fabric yardage calculator helps with quantities.
Are the pillows styled in the listing photos part of the cushion?
No. Listings are priced per single cushion, and the pillows and back cushions styled in the photos are decorative and sold separately. A seat cushion and its backrest are separate items as well: add the backrest to the cart at its own size and write 'backrest' in the note.
