A Reading by HanaDaybed Cushions & Covers
A chocolate faux leather daybed cushion on walnut, and what sits inside it
Hana's notebook on one boxed seat and one long bolster: rim heights, stacked mattresses, and why the fill decides how a leather-look seat reads.
SaveThe quick answer
A daybed cushion should be thicker than any rim on its frame, so it sits proud of the edge instead of flush with it. On a frame with a 4 in (10 cm) rim, one buyer moved from a 4 in to an 8 in (20 cm) seat. A deep box edge then keeps faux leather crisp over the foam.
Notes from a walnut daybed platform
One seat. One bolster. A walnut platform. That is the whole daybed.
The chocolate faux leather daybed cushion takes about a third of the platform's visible height. Enough to look upholstered. Not so much that the walnut rail disappears. The rail is what makes it furniture.
Inside the cover is a foam seat, boxed. The side panel is deep and finished with a self welt. That matters more on faux leather than on cloth. A smooth leather-look surface over foam wants to dome like a pillow. The box edge holds it square, so the seat reads crisp from across the room.
Faux leather carries a slight natural shine. So everything around it is matte. A taupe linen pillow. A cream knit throw with fringe, falling over the front edge where legs meet the seat. A limewashed wall, a chunky jute rug, a linen shade on a stone ceramic lamp. The pale lamp stops the corner from reading as all brown.
The fiddle leaf fig in terracotta, the botanical print in a thin oak frame, the round walnut table with its stacked books. Each one is quiet, so the daybed can be the only dark shape.
The bolster runs the whole back and works as the backrest. Measure it between the inside faces of the frame ends and order to that number, not to the mattress length. The daybed complaint we hear most often is a round bolster that arrives a few inches too long.
For firmness numbers, the foam firmness finder and the foam density and firmness pattern have the tables. For shapes and cloth, see daybed cushions and the faux leather shelf.
A seat should sit above its frame. A bolster should sit inside it. Both are measured, not guessed.
Pinned by Hana: bolster, boxed seat and linen pillow
Pins mark the full-width bolster, the boxed seat edge, the linen pillow, the knit throw and the stone lamp.
- Full-width bolster
The bolster runs the whole back as the backrest; cut it to the inside frame length, not the mattress length.
- Boxed seat edge
A deep boxed side with a self welt keeps faux leather crisp instead of letting it dome like a pillow.
- Taupe linen pillow
One matte linen pillow breaks up the sheen of the leather-look surface.
- Cream knit throw
The knit falls over the front edge where legs meet the seat, adding warmth to a smooth fabric.
- Stone ceramic lamp
A pale lamp picks up the throw and stops the corner from reading as all brown.
- Full-width bolsterThe bolster runs the whole back as the backrest; cut it to the inside frame length, not the mattress length.
- Boxed seat edgeA deep boxed side with a self welt keeps faux leather crisp instead of letting it dome like a pillow.
- Taupe linen pillowOne matte linen pillow breaks up the sheen of the leather-look surface.
- Cream knit throwThe knit falls over the front edge where legs meet the seat, adding warmth to a smooth fabric.
- Stone ceramic lampA pale lamp picks up the throw and stops the corner from reading as all brown.
Measurement table: rim, seat, stack
| Situation | Numbers | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| 4 in (10 cm) rim, 4 in (10 cm) seat | Flush | The cushion sits level with the rim and looks sunk |
| 4 in (10 cm) rim, 8 in (20 cm) seat | 4 in (10 cm) proud | The seat rises above the edge and reads upholstered |
| Two mattresses, one cover | Combined height, e.g. 79 x 31½ x 10 in (200 x 80 x 25 cm) | One cover fits both together |
| Two 6 in (15 cm) mattresses | Cover made 12 in (30 cm) high | Both stack inside a single cover |
The rim that decided the thickness
A buyer in the US bought a black metal daybed frame whose sides rise about 4 in (10 cm). She needed a seat and two bolsters.
The first quote was for a seat 52 x 21 x 4 in (132 x 53 x 10 cm). Then the arithmetic: a 4 in cushion inside a 4 in rim sits flush, like a mattress in a tray. She moved to 8 in (20 cm).
She re-measured and changed the length to 46 in (117 cm). The two bolsters were made 21 in (53 cm) long to match the seat depth. After paying, she corrected the color number of her burgundy velvet.
Make the cushion thicker than the rim. The daybed mattress cover measurements pattern shows where the tape goes. What does the rim on your frame measure?
On the cutting table: the chocolate daybed
| Piece | Daybed cushion with a full-length bolster backrest |
|---|---|
| Fabric | Chocolate brown faux leather |
| Edge | Deep box edge |
| Piping | Self welt |
| Inside | Foam seat in a boxed cover |
| Seat height | About a third of the platform's visible height |
| Bolster length | Inside frame length, end face to end face |
| Rule for rims | Seat thicker than the rim |
| Best for | Low platforms in calm living rooms |
Have it made
Have this made — ask Hana’s workshop
A good size is a quiet thing. You notice it only when it is wrong. Let the workshop check yours first. — Hana
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.
Buyer questions: cotton, stacks and taller covers
- A common question
Could I order 100% cotton covers alone, with no filling, to keep synthetic fibers out?
The workshop's answerYes. Choose from the natural-fiber chart, which is 100% cotton, and covers without filling are no problem. A full daybed set, four cushion covers plus the mattress sheet, can be ordered as covers only.
- A common question
I stack two mattresses on my Hemnes. Can one cover hold both?
The workshop's answerYes. Give the combined thickness as the cover height, for example 79 x 31½ x 10 in (200 x 80 x 25 cm), and the cover is made to fit both mattresses together.
- A common question
Could a mattress cover be made taller so two 6 in mattresses fit inside?
The workshop's answerYes. For a 31½ x 79 in (80 x 200 cm) mattress, the shop offered the original height of about 8 in (21 cm) or a 12 in (30 cm) height, so two 6 in (15 cm) mattresses could stack in one cover. The buyer chose 12 in.
A daybed cushion should be thicker than its frame rim; a 4 in seat inside a 4 in rim sits flush and looks sunk.
Hana
Questions buyers ask next
Why does a faux leather cushion need a box edge?
A boxed side with a welt holds the cover square over the foam. Without it, a smooth leather-look fabric tends to dome like a pillow, and the seat loses the crisp line that makes it read as furniture.
How do I soften the shine of a leather-look daybed?
Surround it with matte textures. In this corner a taupe linen pillow, a cream knit throw, a limewashed wall and a jute rug all absorb light, so the slight sheen of the faux leather becomes a quiet accent.
Should end bolsters on a daybed match the seat depth?
When they sit across the ends of the seat, yes. One buyer's two bolsters were made 21 in (53 cm) long to match a seat 21 in deep, so they closed the ends neatly without overhanging the front.
— Hana
