SaveA Reading by HarlanBolster Pillows
Forest green velvet bolsters on an iron daybed, and the mistakes they avoid
Harlan reads a pair of green bolsters in a black scroll daybed and names five mistakes the photo quietly sidesteps, from a lonely single roll to a bolster cut short.
Deep green velvet against black ironwork and an ivory box cushion, lit by a side window.
The quick answer
On an open metal daybed, use a pair of firm bolster pillows cut to the inside width of the end frame, so they act as the armrests the frame lacks. Choose a deep color such as forest green rather than black against black iron, and keep the seat cushion pale, here ivory, so the scheme doesn't turn heavy.
What an iron daybed is missing
An iron daybed has no arms. It has scrolls, and a scroll is lovely to look at and miserable to lean on. That is the problem this photograph solves, and it solves it with two rolls of green velvet.
Look at the proportion first. The first bolster nests into the curve of the black iron arm and fills the gap the scroll leaves behind. Its partner sits right beside it, so together they make one firm armrest where the frame offers none. Both rest on an ivory box cushion, the seat of the whole piece, and that seat is pale for a reason.
The ends are self piped, green on green, so the only line you see is the round silhouette of each roll. A bolster is a simple shape, my friend, and it looks best when you let it stay simple.
Then the light. A window on the left rakes across the pile, and you can see how deep this velvet goes: bright bottle green on the crown, near-black forest in the folds. Velvet remembers the hand that brushed it, and side light shows you every stroke. For the full family of shapes, the bolster pillows atlas is the place to start.
Pinned by Harlan in the scroll
Five pins, from the velvet end nested in the scroll to the second piped end, the black iron, the ivory seat and the window light.
- Velvet end in the scroll
The first roll nests into the curve of the iron arm and fills the gap it leaves.
- Second piped end
A matched pair makes a firm armrest on a frame with no solid arm.
- Black iron scroll
Forest green stands up to black metal but is softer than a black bolster would be.
- Ivory box cushion
The pale boxed seat keeps a dark green and black scheme from turning heavy.
- Side window light
Light raking from the left shows the depth of the velvet pile.
- Velvet end in the scrollThe first roll nests into the curve of the iron arm and fills the gap it leaves.
- Second piped endA matched pair makes a firm armrest on a frame with no solid arm.
- Black iron scrollForest green stands up to black metal but is softer than a black bolster would be.
- Ivory box cushionThe pale boxed seat keeps a dark green and black scheme from turning heavy.
- Side window lightLight raking from the left shows the depth of the velvet pile.
Five mistakes this daybed sidesteps
- One lonely bolster. A single roll leaves half the scroll open; a matched pair fills the curve and becomes a real armrest.
- A bolster cut short. Measure the inside width of the end frame, between the iron uprights, and cut the bolster to it. Too short leaves gaps; too long won't settle into the frame.
- Black on black. A black bolster against black iron vanishes into the metal. Forest green stands up to the iron and stays gentler than black.
- A dark seat under dark rolls. Green bolsters on a green or charcoal seat turn the whole daybed heavy. The ivory box cushion keeps it light.
- Soft rolls where the frame needs firm ones. On a daybed with no solid arm, the bolster is the arm, so ask for a firm fill. The bolster size pattern covers diameter and length.
Two mattresses that wanted to be a sofa
A buyer wrote in with the same wish this daybed answers: make a bed behave like a sofa. They had two single mattresses, each 31 1/2 x 78 3/4 in (80 x 200 cm), and wanted a floor sofa. The order was for covers 8 in (20 cm) deep in dark brown corduroy, plus two L-shaped foam back pillows to lean on.
They also asked about the metal backrest bars. Those bars have no grips and are not strapped to the sofa, and it was wise to ask before counting on them. The support bar pattern explains how they sit.
Custom covers turned plain mattresses into seating, and the back pillows did the job the green bolsters do here: they give a flat bed something firm to lean against. That is the whole secret of a daybed that looks like a sofa.
- Sizes
- 2 mattresses, each 31 1/2 x 78 3/4 x 8 in (80 x 200 x 20 cm)
The lesson: Custom covers can turn existing mattresses into a floor sofa.
Buyer questions: tapered covers, first washes and round pillows
- A common question
Can you copy a cover for a tapered cushion that's narrower at the back than the front?
The workshop's answerYes. Send a drawing or a photo with the sizes. One buyer in the US ordered a cover only for a cushion 17 in at the back, 19 in at the front, 19 in deep and 3 1/2 in thick, and simply added fabric and piping codes.
- A common question
Should I wash new covers before I put them on?
The workshop's answerNo need. Use them straight away and wash them later, after some use.
- A common question
Could your team sew decorative pillows, like round, ball-shaped, fringed or corded ones?
The workshop's answerRequests like these go to the production team to check. Buyers have asked for 15 to 20 in square pillows, a 12 in spherical pillow and a 16 in flat round pillow, and each was checked with production first.
On the cutting table: the green pair
| Cushions | A matched pair of bolster pillows on an ivory box seat cushion |
|---|---|
| Fabric | Forest green velvet, bottle green where the light hits |
| Piping | Self piping on the round ends |
| Frame | Black wrought iron scroll daybed with no solid arms |
| Sizing rule | Bolster length cut to the inside width of the end frame |
| Seat | Ivory box cushion that keeps green and black from turning heavy |
| Light | Side window raking across the pile |
| From a past order | Two 31 1/2 x 78 3/4 in (80 x 200 cm) mattresses in 8 in (20 cm) deep corduroy covers |
| Best for | Iron, brass and open-frame daybeds in living rooms |
Have it made
Have this made — ask Harlan’s workshop
The best cushions I have known began with somebody asking one more question. Ask yours here. — Harlan
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.
On an iron daybed with scroll ends, a pair of firm bolsters cut to the inside width of the end frame becomes the armrest the frame never had.
Harlan
Questions buyers ask next
How long should a bolster be for a daybed?
Measure the inside width of the end frame, between the uprights, and match the bolster length to it. The roll then fills the end completely and can't shift sideways when someone leans back.
Can bolsters stand in for arms on a metal daybed?
Yes, a firm pair can. Set them at the end where the scroll curves, so the first roll nests into the curve and the second braces it. Together they give an open frame the feel of a sofa arm.
What color bolster goes with a black iron bed frame?
A deep color with some life in it, such as forest or bottle green. Black bolsters disappear into black metal, and a pale seat cushion underneath keeps any dark pairing from looking heavy.
Should bolster ends have contrast piping?
Not usually on a dark velvet. Self piping keeps the round end simple, so the silhouette of the roll does the talking. Save contrast cords for flat cushions, where a straight line has room to read.
Sit well. — Harlan
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