---
title: "Notched Window Seat Cushions: Posts, Casings and Cut-Outs"
url: "https://cushionguide.com/concepts/notched-window-seat-cushions/"
section: "Concept Sketches"
author: "Nate Kowalski, The Pattern Engineer of Detroit"
author_url: "https://cushionguide.com/masters/nate/"
published: "2026-08-14"
updated: "2026-09-24"
keywords: "notched window seat cushion, window seat cushion with cutout, cushion notch for window casing, custom shape window seat cushion, window seat cushion around column, bench cushion notched for legs, trapezoid window seat cushion"
---

# Notches and cut-outs: window seat cushions around posts, casings and units

*A casing, a column, an air conditioner: something always sits where the cushion wants to be. Eight real window seats, dimensioned the way the workshop cut them.*

> **The quick answer:** A notched window seat cushion is cut from a drawing that gives each notch its width, depth and distance from both ends, ordered through the custom-shape listing. Notch around a shallow casing rather than shrinking the whole cushion, split complicated outlines into rectangles and trapezoids that butt together, and approve the maker's redrawn diagram before anything is cut.

![Pink and white herringbone stripe window seat cushion on oak drawers with sage and bouclé pillows and a vase of peonies](https://cushionguide.com/media/window-seat-cushions/pink-herringbone-window-seat-peonies-sage-oak-1536.webp "Pink stripes with peonies and a sage pillow on warm oak drawers: an easy spring palette you can keep all year.")

## Notch it or shrink it: the 3/4 in question

A casing that sticks out 3/4 in (1.9 cm) can cost you 3/4 in of seat depth along the whole window, or none at all. The difference is one notch on the drawing.

Old houses put trim and columns in the way; newer rooms add air conditioners and furniture legs. Either way, a **notched window seat cushion** is a rectangle or trapezoid with a few extra edges, and every extra edge needs three numbers: width, depth and position. Measure twice; the fabric remembers.

The eight seats below are past orders, arithmetic included. Start at the [window seat cushions](https://cushionguide.com/cushions/window-seat-cushions/) hub, run angled pieces through the [trapezoid cushion calculator](https://cushionguide.com/studio/trapezoid-cushion-calculator/), and keep the [notch and cut-out Pattern](https://cushionguide.com/guides/notched-cushion-cutouts-posts-casings/) open while you measure. What's sitting in the way on your seat, partner?

## Eight seats with something in the way

### 01. A casing 3/4 in deep, notched instead of shrunk

![Mushroom taupe seat cushion with two back cushions on a white paneled storage bench beneath a tall window](https://cushionguide.com/media/window-seat-cushions/mushroom-seat-back-cushions-white-paneled-bench-1600.webp "A white paneled bench under the window gets a mushroom seat cushion and two back cushions: soft color, no pattern, nothing fussy.")

A buyer in the US had a 25 x 109.25 in (63.5 x 277.5 cm) window seat with a casing 0.75 in (1.9 cm) deep sitting 1.5 in (3.8 cm) above the seat, leaving 6 in (15 cm) clear on the left and 7 in (18 cm) on the right. Rather than shrink the depth and leave gaps at both ends, the workshop drew a notch 0.75 in deep and 96.25 in (244.5 cm) wide along the back edge, so the 4 in (10 cm) cushion sits flush to the wall. It cost the same as a rectangle.

**The takeaway:** Check that the notch closes: 109.25 − 6 − 7 = 96.25 in. If the ends don't add up, the drawing isn't finished.

> **Tailor's margin:** Notch the back edge around a 0.75 in casing instead of shrinking the whole window seat cushion.

### 02. Notches at both ends of an 87 in seat

![Taupe and cream striped window seat cushion with knit and sage linen pillows, a wooden tray, a mug and bunny-tail grass](https://cushionguide.com/media/window-seat-cushions/taupe-stripe-window-seat-tray-sage-pillow-1536.webp "A wooden tray turns the end of a taupe-striped window seat into a place for morning coffee.")

A returning buyer in the US needed a third cushion, 87 x 18 in (221 x 45.7 cm), with a notch at each end. The workshop turned her paper sketch into its own diagram to confirm: 87 in along the straight window edge, 84.5 in (214.6 cm) on the opposite edge, 1.25 x 2 in (3.2 x 5.1 cm) notches at both ends, and the depth dropping to 16 in (40.6 cm) at the ends. She confirmed, and it went out 3 in (7.6 cm) thick in taupe velvet with cream piping.

**The takeaway:** Two checks close the shape: 87 − 2 × 1.25 = 84.5 in, and 18 − 2 = 16 in.

> **Tailor's margin:** Two 1.25 x 2 in end notches turn an 87 in window edge into an 84.5 in front edge.

### 03. A pillar in the middle of a deep sill

![Yellow and sky-blue striped box cushion with self piping on an oak library window seat beside a leather armchair](https://cushionguide.com/media/window-seat-cushions/yellow-sky-blue-stripe-window-seat-oak-library-1600.webp "Bold cabana stripes wake up a honey-oak library nook; running them front to back makes the seat look deeper than it is.")

A buyer wrote to the workshop about turning a deep window sill into a reading nook around a small central pillar, with a slight indent on the right. The workshop asked for a hand sketch with every measurement and wide-angle photos of the whole sill. On softness, the workshop explained that its high-density foam, about 2.0 lb/ft³ (32 kg/m³), holds its shape without sagging.

**The takeaway:** A mid-seat notch is easy when the sketch shows every edge and the photos show the whole sill.

> **Tailor's margin:** A pillar mid-sill is just a notch: sketch every edge and photograph the whole window sill.

### 04. Two columns, six pieces, no T-shapes

![Caramel bouclé cushion on a white plaster plinth window seat by oak arched windows, olive tree and cream and sage pillows](https://cushionguide.com/media/window-seat-cushions/caramel-boucle-plaster-plinth-seat-arched-oak-windows-928.webp "A thick caramel bouclé cushion on a plaster plinth, running beside oak-framed arched windows.")

A buyer in the US planned three T-shaped cushions around two 7.75 in (19.7 cm) columns. Two sections measured 72.25 in (183.5 cm) at the top and 63.75 in (161.9 cm) at the bottom, and the third 77.75 in (197.5 cm) and 70 in (177.8 cm). The workshop doesn't sew T-shapes, so it drew a six-piece layout of rectangles and trapezoids that butt together, in vintage patchwork with contrasting front edges.

**The takeaway:** Break every T into a rectangle and a trapezoid; two simple pieces butt together cleaner than one sewn T.

> **Tailor's margin:** A T-shaped window seat cushion is two pieces: a rectangle and a trapezoid butted together around the column.

### 05. A window seat built around an air conditioner

![Taupe pencil-stripe window seat cushion on a white built-in box under a window in a Scandinavian home office](https://cushionguide.com/media/window-seat-cushions/taupe-pencil-stripe-home-office-window-seat-1600.webp "Taupe pencil stripes on a white built-in box seat in a working office corner, warmed by a radiator below.")

A buyer wrote in needing one large rectangular window seat cushion with a rectangular notch in the middle to clear an air-conditioning unit. Before cutting, the workshop asked for a drawing with every size marked: the notch's width, its depth, and its distance from each end of the seat. The buyer then picked a color from the workshop's separate linen chart.

**The takeaway:** Give the distance from both ends, not one: left + notch width + right must equal the seat length.

> **Tailor's margin:** A cut-out for an air conditioner needs three numbers on the drawing: width, depth and distance from each end.

### 06. A thin pad around square bench legs

![Light gray wide-wale corduroy cushion on a putty-painted storage bench under a white window in a beige bedroom](https://cushionguide.com/media/window-seat-cushions/light-gray-corduroy-cushion-putty-bench-beige-bedroom-1600.webp "Beige walls, putty paint and pale gray corduroy make a tonal scheme that relies on texture rather than color. The ribbed pile gives the quiet bench a surface you can see.")

After a first 11.8 x 74.8 in (30 x 190 cm) velvet bench cushion, a buyer asked for a thin pad, about 1.2 in (3 cm), notched around the square wooden legs of another bench, with ties so it wouldn't slip. The workshop sent them to the custom-shape listing, which asks for a drawing with exact measurements, and asked for each tie's position and length.

**The takeaway:** Put leg cut-outs and ties on one drawing, and confirm the thinnest foam on offer first.

> **Tailor's margin:** On a notched bench pad, mark every leg cut-out and every tie's position and length on one drawing.

### 07. Four corner notches, first ordered as a rectangle

![Anthracite corduroy box cushion on a cream paneled storage bench under a window, beside a white desk and wicker baskets](https://cushionguide.com/media/window-seat-cushions/anthracite-corduroy-cushion-home-office-window-bench-1600.webp "A near-black cushion gives the desk corner a place to sit away from the screen. The dark color also hides the wear a workday seat gets.")

A buyer wrote in needing one big cushion, about 78 x 41.3 in (198 x 105 cm), with a 2.4 in (6 cm) square notch cut from each corner. Paid first on the rectangle listing, it was cancelled with a full refund and reordered on the custom-shape listing, where checkout asks for the drawing. The 41.3 in depth beat that listing's largest range; the workshop said to pick the biggest one anyway, since production follows the drawing.

**The takeaway:** Check both directions: the middle span plus two notches equals the outside size, 73.2 + 4.7 = 78 in and 36.6 + 4.7 = 41.3 in.

> **Tailor's margin:** If a cushion has even one corner notch, order it on the custom-shape listing and upload the drawing.

### 08. An old corner that wasn't square

![Camel wide-wale corduroy cushion on an oak window chest in a sage green room with books and a pink throw](https://cushionguide.com/media/window-seat-cushions/camel-corduroy-window-chest-cushion-sage-bedroom-1600.webp "Camel corduroy on an oak window chest, a warm match for sage green walls and a winter garden.")

A buyer wrote to the workshop from a 120-year-old house with a corner window seat, a notch for a window column and smaller notches where trim overhung the seat. Before cutting, the workshop found the drawing didn't close and asked for re-measurements and both diagonals. After three rounds the buyer found the inner corner wasn't a true right angle; seat depths settled at 18.75 in (47.6 cm) and 19 in (48.3 cm), everything closed within 1/4 in (6 mm), and the set shipped together on 2 in (5 cm) foam.

**The takeaway:** At a true 90 degrees, sides of 50.9 and 50.75 in give a 71.9 in diagonal; this corner read 71.125 in, tighter than square.

> **Tailor's margin:** In an old house, measure both diagonals: a square corner with 50.9 and 50.75 in sides reads about 71.9 in.

## How to dimension a notch, in order

1. Draw the seat as if the obstacle weren't there, every outside edge measured and labeled.
2. Give each notch three numbers: width along the edge, depth into the seat, distance from each end.
3. Check the sum: left + notch width + right must equal the edge length, within ± 1/4 in (6 mm).
4. Say which edge the notch sits on; the zipper runs along the back edge.
5. In an old house, add both diagonals and wide-angle photos of the whole seat.
6. Order on the custom-shape listing, upload the drawing, and approve the workshop's redrawn diagram before cutting.

## Notch, straight edge, or split into pieces

Odd obstacle? Draw it anyway and the workshop picks the row. The [custom-shape drawing Pattern](https://cushionguide.com/guides/custom-shape-cushion-drawing/) shows how to label edges; the glossary defines a [notch](https://cushionguide.com/glossary/#notch) and a [window casing](https://cushionguide.com/glossary/#window-casing). Benches with legs start at [bench cushions](https://cushionguide.com/cushions/bench-cushions/), and for fabric compare [linen and cotton-linen](https://cushionguide.com/fabrics/linen-and-cotton-linen/) with [linen-look fabrics](https://cushionguide.com/fabrics/linen-look-fabrics/).

| What's in the way | What the workshop does | from past orders |
|---|---|---|
| Casing or trim over the back edge | Notch the back edge and keep the full depth | 0.75 x 96.25 in notch on a 109.25 in seat |
| A unit or pillar mid-seat | One notch with width, depth and distance from each end | An air conditioner; a pillar in a deep sill |
| Columns splitting the run | Rectangles and trapezoids butted together; no T-shapes | Two 7.75 in columns, six pieces |
| A recess too narrow to sew | Run the edge straight past it | A thin middle board on a bench |
| A very thin pad wanted | Check the minimum foam first | 1 in requested; the thinnest option was 2 in (5 cm) |

> A notched window seat cushion needs three numbers per notch: width, depth and distance from each end. Left plus width plus right equals the edge.
>
> — Nate

## Notch and cut-out questions

**A common question:** Can the cushion be cut to fit around a post, a pillar or the legs of a bench?

**The workshop's answer:** Yes, from a marked drawing: give each notch's width, depth and position along the edge, and add a few wide-angle photos of the seat. The workshop redraws it as a clean template, often in centimeters, and asks you to confirm before cutting. Leg notches go through the custom-shape listing. If a notch sits on the back edge, say so, because the zipper runs along the back. Ties are an optional extra; give each one's position and length.

**A common question:** There's a notch in my seat, so the rectangle listing won't work. Which listing do I use, and what do I upload?

**The workshop's answer:** Use the custom-shape listing. Pick the size range by the longest length and the deepest depth; that only sets the price bracket. At checkout, upload a drawing with a measurement on every edge and a photo of the seat, and put thickness and fabric code in the personalization box. The cushion is cut to the drawing, not the totals, and a clear paper sketch is fine. Each distinct shape is its own order with its own drawing.

**A common question:** Is there any notch or hole you can't cut? We have a thin board in the middle of the bench and floor vents under a mat.

**The workshop's answer:** Yes, a couple. A notch too narrow to sew, like a recess around a thin middle board, can't hold its shape, so the workshop recommends running the cushion straight past it. Small round holes for floor vents aren't made either; instead the mat is split into pieces, such as an L-shaped cushion plus a separate piece between the vents, so the vents stay open.

**A common question:** How close to my numbers will a handmade notched cushion come out?

**The workshop's answer:** Sizes are cut exactly as written, not rounded, but a handmade foam cushion can vary by about 1/2 in (1 cm), and a fully tufted one by 1 to 2 in. Measure the cushion itself rather than the outside of the piping, since piping adds a little. A notch around a window frame that sticks out about 3/4 in can be made from a photo and a drawing.

## Questions buyers ask next

### Does a notch make a window seat cushion cost more?

On the custom-shape listing, usually not: the price follows the size range you pick, and the notch is included. That listing is priced above the rectangle listing, though, so a notched cushion ordered as a rectangle leaves a difference to settle. Individually quoted cut-outs around obstacles such as window handles have carried a small surcharge.

### Should I notch around a window casing or just make the cushion shallower?

Notch it when the casing is shallow and runs most of the length. On a 109.25 in (277.5 cm) seat, a 0.75 x 96.25 in notch kept the full 25 in (63.5 cm) depth at both ends instead of leaving gaps. See [how to measure a window seat](https://cushionguide.com/guides/how-to-measure-window-seat-cushion/).

### Can a notched cushion still have ties or a non-slip base?

Yes. Ties can be sewn into the seams at the corners or the back, in any position; write each tie's position and length on the drawing. A cushion cut exactly to a narrow window seat has little to grip, so ties or a non-slip base are worth adding. More in [stop a bench cushion sliding](https://cushionguide.com/guides/stop-bench-cushion-sliding-ties-nonslip/).

### Will I see photos with the notches measured before the cushion ships?

You can. Every cushion is measured after sewing and every order is photographed before shipping, and you can ask for photos that show a custom shape's measurements. On a notched seat, check each notch's width and depth against your drawing.

## Related at the atelier

- [Dormer window seats in Cape Cods and finished attics](https://cushionguide.com/concepts/dormer-window-seat-cushions/): A dormer window seat cushion is cut to the seat between the dormer's side walls and sized so an opening window and its handle clear the top.
- [Window Seat Cushion in Ivory Stripe on a Bottle-Green Nook](https://cushionguide.com/readings/taupe-stripe-cushion-bottle-green-window-seat-ochre/): A window seat cushion in a dark or warm room should be the lightest surface there, so choose an ivory-ground stripe that reads as one pale block from across the room.
- [Window Seat Cushion in Blue-Gray Stripe: Ties, Grip and Zippers](https://cushionguide.com/readings/blue-gray-stripe-window-seat-cushion-gray-panel-closeup/): A fitted window seat cushion seldom needs ties when walls hold it at the back and both ends; a non-slip base helps on a smooth painted seat, and the zipper belongs on the long back side, facing the…
- [Window Seat Cushion in Powder-Blue Ticking for an Apricot Kitchen](https://cushionguide.com/readings/powder-blue-ticking-window-seat-apricot-kitchen/): A window seat cushion on a shallow kitchen seat should stay slim, around 2 to 3 in (5 to 8 cm), so it doesn't crowd the window or look top-heavy.
- [Bow windows and curved window seats: how an arc becomes a cushion](https://cushionguide.com/concepts/curved-and-bow-window-seat-cushions/): To order a curved window seat cushion, send a drawing that marks the straight length before each curve, where every curve starts and ends, and how deep the arc runs, or a paper template photographed…
- [Cushions for understairs benches, stair landings and foyer curves](https://cushionguide.com/concepts/understairs-and-stair-landing-bench-cushions/): An understairs bench cushion is a trapezoid: three straight edges and one side cut to the angle of the stairs.
- [One printable cushion measuring worksheet for any shape you order](https://cushionguide.com/guides/printable-cushion-measuring-worksheet/)
- [How to dimension a notch so a cushion fits around posts and casings](https://cushionguide.com/guides/notched-cushion-cutouts-posts-casings/)

*± 1/4 in — Nate*

---

Written by Nate Kowalski (https://cushionguide.com/masters/nate/) 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/concepts/notched-window-seat-cushions/