A Reading by HarlanBolster Pillows
A green and cream herringbone stripe bolster pillow, from ten feet and ten inches
Harlan takes three questions at the counter first, then walks up to a striped bolster on a linen seat and reads what shows from the doorway and what only shows up close.
SaveThe quick answer
A striped bolster pillow reads well from across a room when its stripes run the length of the roll and cross the end discs straight. Up close, the details that matter are piping cut from the same stripe and a fine weave such as herringbone. On a plain linen seat, one striped bolster ties the whole set together.
Three questions at the counter before we look at the bolster
- A common question
If I buy the covers-only set for the floor sofa, what exactly comes in the box?
The workshop's answerFour zippered covers: two for the bottom mattresses and two for the L-shaped backrests, in the sizes on the listing. Pillowcases have come along as a gift, though their color may differ. The metal support bars are not part of the covers set; they are sold separately.
- A common question
I ordered the covers-only listing thinking it was the whole couch. Can I send it back?
The workshop's answerThe title and description do say covers only, and the workshop offered to add the filling at a reasonable price. For a return, check the listing's return terms; in past cases the buyer paid return shipping and the refund followed once the item arrived back.
- A common question
My pillows came underfilled, and the filling feels like paper. Is that normal?
The workshop's answerVacuum packing pushes the filling toward the middle. Pat and shake each pillow by hand to work it back into the corners, and give it 1 to 2 days. The corners will be a touch less full than the body, but there should be no empty gaps. The filling is shredded foam cut on the workshop's own machine, not paper.
Now, the reading
From the doorway: a green line on a sand-colored seat
Those three questions share a root, my friend. Each one is about the outside of a cushion versus the inside. A cover is half a cushion. Hold that thought; we'll come back to it.
Stand in the doorway first. From ten feet this bolster pillow is a simple thing: a forest green and cream roll lying on a sand-colored linen seat, a white frame edge beside it. What carries across a room is direction. The stripes run the long way, so the bolster reads long and slim, the way a bolster ought to. Wrap those stripes around the roll instead and it would read shorter and stouter, like a stack of rings.
Color carries too. Green and cream on beige linen looks fresh, like a garden seen through a screen door. Nothing else on the seat argues with it. A plain linen base lets one pattern hold the whole corner, and that is why the green stays clean.
Pinned by Harlan
Four pins, from the striped end disc to the plain linen seat that lets it shine.
- Striped end disc
Stripes cross the end disc straight, keeping the pattern orderly.
- Lengthwise stripe
Stripes follow the length of the roll so it reads long and slim.
- Striped piping
Piping cut from the stripe makes a candy-cane ring at the seam.
- Beige linen seat
A plain linen base lets the green stripe stay fresh.
- Striped end discStripes cross the end disc straight, keeping the pattern orderly.
- Lengthwise stripeStripes follow the length of the roll so it reads long and slim.
- Striped pipingPiping cut from the stripe makes a candy-cane ring at the seam.
- Beige linen seatA plain linen base lets the green stripe stay fresh.
From ten inches: the weave, the disc and the ribbon at the seam
Now walk up and bend down. At ten inches the stripe turns out to be woven herringbone. Each green band carries a fine chevron you would never see from the door, and that texture is what makes a cotton stripe feel tailored in the hand.
Look at the end. The stripes cross the end disc straight, edge to edge, so the pattern stays orderly from every side. That takes cutting the disc with care, square to the stripe, not from any scrap of the bolt.
Then the seam. The piping is cut from the same stripe, so where the disc meets the body you get a candy-cane ring of green and cream, like a ribbon tied round the end. It marks the seam without bringing in a new color. A seam is a promise, and this one keeps it where you can see it.
So choose one detail for ten feet, the stripe direction, and one for ten inches, the weave and the piping. If you already own a striped seat cushion, a bolster in the same stripe ties the set together. Sizes are in the bolster diameter guide, more rolls in bolster pillows, the cloth in striped cotton and ticking, and the direction question in which way a stripe should run. Which do you notice first when you walk into a room, the color or the line?
A velvet bolster cover that waited for its filling
One buyer wrote in wanting a green velvet bolster to sit with the green velvet cushions they already owned. Their local rules called for a particular fire-safety filling, and that is not a filling the workshop makes. So the workshop made the cover only, 13 in (33 cm) across and 32 in (81 cm) long, matched from their photo to pea-green velvet #35.
Tufting needs the workshop's own filling to pull against, so the cover was plain, with piping. When it arrived it looked baggy in the middle. Of course it did. A cover without its filling is an empty coat.
Once a local upholsterer filled it, it sat right, and the buyer came back for a zippered square cushion cover of about 23.5 in (60 cm).
If you bring your own insert, give its exact size and firmness, and expect a plain piped cover.
- Sizes
- Bolster cover 13 in (33 cm) diameter x 32 in (81 cm); square cover about 22 to 23.5 in (56 to 60 cm)
- Fabric
- Velvet #35, pea green
The lesson: Supplying your own insert? Give its exact size and firmness, and expect a plain piped cover, because tufting needs the maker's filling.
On the cutting table: the striped bolster
| Cushion | Bolster pillow with flat end discs |
|---|---|
| Fabric | Woven herringbone stripe, forest green and cream (N20) |
| Stripe direction | Lengthwise on the roll, straight across the end discs |
| Piping | Self piping cut from the stripe |
| Edge | Rolled body, piped disc seams |
| Setting | Beige linen seat and back cushions, white frame |
| Pairs with | A striped seat cushion in the same cloth |
| Best for | Daybeds, sofa corners and window seats |
Have it made
Have this made — ask Harlan’s workshop
Old upholsterers will tell you the real cutting happens in the conversation, long before the shears come out. Tell the workshop what you sit on, and they will talk it through with you. — 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.
Run a bolster pillow's stripes the long way and it reads slim from ten feet; cut the piping from the same stripe and it rewards a look from ten inches.
Harlan
Questions buyers ask next
Which way should the stripes run on a bolster pillow?
Lengthwise along the roll for a long, slim look, with the stripes crossing the end discs straight. Stripes that wrap around the roll make a bolster read shorter and rounder from across the room.
What is striped piping on a bolster?
Piping cut from the same striped cloth as the cover. Where the end disc meets the body it forms a candy-cane ring that marks the seam without adding a new color to the room.
Can I order just a bolster cover for an insert I already have?
Yes. Give the insert's exact diameter, length and firmness. Expect a plain cover with piping rather than a tufted one, since tufting needs the maker's own filling to pull against.
Will a striped bolster go with plain linen cushions?
Yes, and it is one of the easiest pairings there is. A plain linen base lets the stripe carry the color, so a green and cream bolster stays fresh instead of competing with a second pattern.
Sit well. — Harlan
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