A Reading by ÉlodieBench Cushions
A mushroom striped bench cushion in a yellow bedroom, and the foam that keeps it straight
Three questions come first, because they are the ones people ask before a bench like this. Then the reading: a quiet stripe, a warm gray bench and what sits underneath.
SaveThe quick answer
A long bedroom storage bench cushion suits a firm core, such as the standard about 2.0 lb/ft³ (32 kg/m³) high-resilience foam, because the seat is sat on at the edge and stacked with blankets. Choose thickness after you know the finished seat height. Here, a mushroom pinstripe one shade lighter than the gray bench keeps the whole piece calm.
The questions before the reading: color, a radiator and your own fabric
- A common question
Which color should I pick so the cushion looks good without jumping out?
The workshop's answerThe color is your call, but tones that pick up something already in the room, such as the sofa or the wood of the furniture, blend in most naturally. Shortlist one or two codes and the workshop sends close-ups; for one buyer it even mocked up two piping combinations, L20 with L53 piping and the reverse.
- A common question
There's a radiator under my window seat. Should the cushion be one piece or two?
The workshop's answerTwo. For a 106 x 15 in (269 x 38 cm) radiator window, the workshop recommended two 53 x 15 in (135 x 38 cm) cushions so the radiator area isn't sealed off.
- A common question
Would you make my cushion from fabric I buy somewhere else, and how much should I buy?
The workshop's answerYes, customer-supplied fabric is accepted, though sending it to the workshop adds transit time before cutting can start, and the workshop can also suggest similar fabrics from its own range. For a 60 x 14 in (152 x 36 cm) piped cushion cut from a 45 in (114 cm) wide bolt, about 2¾ yd (2.5 m) is enough.
Now, the reading
A quiet stripe on a warm gray bench
Now the photograph. A long tongue-and-groove storage bench, painted a warm gray, runs under the window of a butter-yellow bedroom. On it sits a mushroom box cushion with narrow white pinstripes, only a shade lighter than the paint beneath. From across the room the two read as one calm block, and the yellow walls get to carry the color story.
The stripe does quiet work. A long plain cushion can look like a plank; fine pinstripes add rhythm without adding a new color. The ends are self-piped, so the corners stay neat along a length that would otherwise go soft at the edges.
Look up and down for texture. Pilea and pothos in terracotta and white pots on the sill, a woven rattan pendant overhead, a jute rug below. At the corner, a floral duvet on the bed tells you what the bench is for: blankets inside, a place to sit and pull on socks on top. The cloth belongs to the linen and cotton-linen family, and other shapes live under bench cushions and in the bedroom collection.
What is inside, and why it suits a bedroom bench
A bench under a bedroom window is sat on at the front edge, stacked with folded quilts and leaned on to reach the window latch. That asks for a firm core. The standard insert is a high-density high-resilience foam at about 2.0 lb/ft³ (32 kg/m³), firmer and longer-lasting than the 1.75 lb/ft³ (28 kg/m³) so often specified. On a long bench, that firmness is what keeps the box edge and the piped line running straight.
Thickness is the other half. A storage bench already has its own height, and every inch of foam lands on top of it. Decide the seat height you want first, then the thickness. The foam firmness finder and our notes on hinged-lid storage benches help with both halves of that choice.
Which do you do more on a bedroom bench, sit or stack?
Pinned by Élodie: stripe, welt, sill, pendant and duvet
Five pins move from the stripe up to the ceiling and back down to the bed, the same path the eye takes through a calm room.
- Mushroom pinstripe
Only a shade lighter than the bench, so the two read as one calm block.
- Self-piped end
The welt keeps a long cushion looking neat at the corners.
- Plants on the sill
Green on the window ledge lifts the muted bench below.
- Rattan pendant
Woven cane adds texture above an otherwise plain wall.
- Floral duvet
The bed at the corner shows the bench working as blanket storage.
- Mushroom pinstripeOnly a shade lighter than the bench, so the two read as one calm block.
- Self-piped endThe welt keeps a long cushion looking neat at the corners.
- Plants on the sillGreen on the window ledge lifts the muted bench below.
- Rattan pendantWoven cane adds texture above an otherwise plain wall.
- Floral duvetThe bed at the corner shows the bench working as blanket storage.
A curved nook, two runs and a seat that sat too high
A buyer in the US had a breakfast nook bench with rounded ends and a curved joint between two runs. The workshop asked for a paper drawing with measurements in inches and centimeters, the cushions were cut in a dusty pink called Dried Rose, and a photo went to the buyer before shipping.
They arrived too long. The workshop asked for photos of the cushions measured on the bench, in centimeters, and the buyer remeasured the two runs at 65 in (165 cm) and 53 in (134.5 cm). With the cushions finally in place, the seat also sat too high, so the buyer asked for a thinner 2 in (5 cm) cushion. Who should pay for the remake became a hard conversation on both sides.
Two lessons, my friends. Put every run on the drawing in one unit, and settle your seat height before you settle thickness. Foam is the easiest part of a bench to change, but only while it is still on paper.
On the cutting table: the mushroom bench
| Product | Bench cushion, long rectangle |
|---|---|
| Fabric | Linen in mushroom taupe with fine white pinstripes (CK-10) |
| Piping | Self piping |
| Edge | Box edge |
| Foam | Standard high-density, high-resilience insert, about 2.0 lb/ft³ (32 kg/m³) |
| Bench | Warm gray tongue-and-groove storage bench |
| Thickness | Chosen after the finished seat height, not before |
| Best for | Bedroom window walls, blanket storage, end-of-bed seating |
Have it made
Have this made — ask Élodie’s workshop
A fabric reads one way at noon and another at dusk. Mention your light, and the workshop will weigh it with you. — Élodie
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.
Choose a bench cushion's thickness after you know the finished seat height; one nook cushion was remade at 2 in because the seat sat too high.
Élodie
Questions buyers ask next
What foam suits a long bedroom storage bench cushion?
A firm, dense core. The standard insert is high-resilience foam at about 2.0 lb/ft³ (32 kg/m³), which holds a long box edge straight when people sit at the front and stack blankets on top.
Should a bench cushion be thinner if the seat ends up too high?
Often, yes. One nook buyer asked for a 2 in (5 cm) remake once the cushions were in place and the seat sat too high. Add the thickness to the bench height first and you can skip that step.
How do I keep a long bench cushion from looking like a plank?
Add rhythm without adding color. A fine pinstripe in a shade close to the bench breaks up the length, and self piping keeps the corners crisp, so the cushion reads as upholstery rather than a board.
With color and care — Élodie
