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A Reading by MaggieBench Cushions

A blue damask bench cushion that makes a long seat feel generous

Right, then. A glass room full of palms, one pale damask cushion, and the half inch that taught a long-bench buyer to order a whisker short.

The quick answer

A long bench cushion looks most generous when the seat is one deep box cushion in the palest color in the room and the backrest is split into two pieces lined up over the seat. For a cushion that must sit inside a ledge, order a few millimeters under the maximum, because handmade cushions carry about ± 3/8 in (1 cm) of tolerance.

Read by

The Piping Queen of NewportPublished Updated 4 min read

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Why the palest thing in the glasshouse wins

Black steel glazing bars. Kentia palms overhead, olive trees in terracotta, a limestone floor. Every one of those is dark, busy or both. So the custom bench cushion is the palest thing in the room, and your eye goes straight to it.

That is small-space thinking, and it works in a big glass room too. A light, cool seat reads larger than its inches. Powder blue and cream damask echo the gray-green olive leaves instead of arguing with the palms. Another green would have vanished into the foliage; I once put sage in a sunroom and spent a summer looking for the cushion. What is the palest thing in your room right now?

Now the construction. One deep box cushion runs the length of the seat, so nobody sits on a seam. The back is split into two cushions, each lined up over its half of the seat: easier to lift, plump and carry in. Self piping keeps the edge quiet so the damask repeat does the talking, and the low oak platform stops a formal pattern from going stuffy.

More shapes live under bench cushions and sunroom cushions; the cloth is in jacquard and damask.

Pinned by Maggie: palms, olive and damask

Five spots where the glass room and the cushion agree.

Pinned: Powder blue and cream damask seat and back cushions on a low oak platform in a black steel conservatory with palms
  1. Damask seat cushion

    A wide blue damask repeat on the seat reads clearly even from across a large glass room.

  2. Split back cushions

    Two back cushions instead of one long piece are easier to lift, plump and bring in.

  3. Low oak platform

    The pale oak frame keeps the damask from feeling too formal for a garden room.

  4. Olive tree in terracotta

    Gray-green olive leaves repeat the cool blue of the damask.

  5. Palm canopy

    Deep green fronds frame the pale cushion and make it the brightest thing in the shot.

  1. Damask seat cushionA wide blue damask repeat on the seat reads clearly even from across a large glass room.
  2. Split back cushionsTwo back cushions instead of one long piece are easier to lift, plump and bring in.
  3. Low oak platformThe pale oak frame keeps the damask from feeling too formal for a garden room.
  4. Olive tree in terracottaGray-green olive leaves repeat the cool blue of the damask.
  5. Palm canopyDeep green fronds frame the pale cushion and make it the brightest thing in the shot.

My checklist for a long, narrow seat

  • Make the seat the palest color in the room
  • One seat cushion, full length, no seam to sit on
  • Split a long backrest in two, each piece over the seat below
  • Measure the ledge lip to lip, at both ends and the middle
  • Order a few millimeters under the maximum when the cushion sits inside a lip
A real project

The 111-inch ledge that came up half an inch wide

A buyer in the US sent the workshop a long ledge bench: 29.5 x 111.25 in. The workshop cuts in centimeters, so the cushion was made at 29½ x 111½ in (75 x 283 cm), the nearest whole centimeter to those inches.

The length was perfect. The width measured 30 in and crept just over the lip of the ledge. Half an inch, on a cushion more than nine feet long.

The workshop explained it plainly: a handmade cushion carries about ± 3/8 in (1 cm) of tolerance, more noticeable over a long span, and the edge relaxes with use. The fix for next time is simple, dear. Where a cushion must sit inside a ledge, order a few millimeters under the maximum, not on it.

Sizes
29.5 x 111.25 in (75 x 283 cm)

The lesson: Where a cushion must sit inside a ledge, order a few millimeters under the maximum to absorb handmade tolerance.

A bench cushion that must sit inside a ledge should be ordered a few millimeters under the maximum, because handmade cushions carry about 3/8 in of tolerance.

Maggie
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What long-bench buyers ask first

  1. A common question

    Can you make a bench cushion only 1 inch thick? What thicknesses do you offer?

    The workshop's answer

    The thinnest is 2 in; 1 in isn't made. Choose 2, 3, 4 or 5 in from the thickness menu on the product page; 4 in (10 cm) is the standard.

  2. A common question

    What does a custom bench or window seat cushion cost?

    The workshop's answer

    It depends on the size and the fabric, so there is no single number: a short linen pad and a long piped corduroy bench sit far apart. The quote also states the shipping cost for your address. Send your three measurements and your fabric for an exact figure.

  3. A common question

    My bench is 30 x 84 inches and that size isn't in the dropdown. Can you still make it?

    The workshop's answer

    Yes. Choose the size range your numbers fall into, here 30 to 32 in wide and 82 to 84 in long, then type your exact size in the personalization box. The cushion is made to exactly those numbers, at that range's price.

On the cutting table

CushionSeat and back set, low platform bench
SeatOne deep box cushion, full length
BackTwo back cushions, each over half the seat
FabricDamask jacquard, powder blue and cream
PipingSelf piping in the same damask
Thickness4 in (10 cm) standard; 2 to 5 in made
ToleranceAbout ± 3/8 in (1 cm)
Best forSunrooms, conservatories, long ledges

Order this cushion

Have it made

Have this made — ask Maggie’s workshop

Numbers first, fabric second, piping last. Jot down what you have, and the workshop will go down the list with you, item by item. — Maggie

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.

Fabric · Foam · Pipingwhat the workshop will confirm with you

Fabric
Damask jacquard, powder blue and cream
Foam
The core: its density and thickness set the feel.
Piping
Self piping in the same damask
Only for this request: no marketing calls or texts. Outside the US, add the country code.
In inches: length × depth × thickness, plus any angles or cut corners.

* Required. A member of the workshop team will call you to talk it through; nothing is charged and nothing is made until you have agreed on every detail with them.

We use these details only to answer this request and make your cushion: your name and contact details, the cushion details and photos you send, the page you came from and the ad or link that brought you, if any. The workshop that makes the cushions receives them. We don't sell them or share them for advertising, and we delete requests after 24 months. Privacy notice for requests.

Nothing is made or charged until you approve the details.

Want to pick the shape and add photos? Use the full quote form

Questions buyers ask next

Why make two back cushions instead of one long one?

Two backs are easier to lift, plump and bring indoors, and each one lines up with the seat below. Splitting a long backrest this way is a request the workshop hears often on long benches.

Should a ledge cushion match the ledge to the exact inch?

Not when it sits inside a lip. Handmade cushions carry about ± 3/8 in (1 cm), so order a few millimeters under the maximum. On an open bench with no lip, your exact measurement is fine.

Why was my inch size converted to centimeters?

The workshop cuts in centimeters and rounds to the nearest whole one, so a 29.5 in width becomes 29½ in (75 cm), or 29.53 in. The gap is tiny, but on a tight ledge every fraction counts.

Stitch straight — Maggie