A Reading by HarlanBolster Pillows
An oatmeal bolster pillow on a navy velvet sofa arm, and the two numbers it takes
Harlan answers three letters first, then reads a pale bolster on dark velvet and shows where folks go wrong when they measure for one.
SaveThe quick answer
A bolster pillow is measured by two numbers only: its length and its diameter. For one that lies against a sofa arm, take the length from the seat depth, a little shorter than the cushion it rests on, and choose the diameter by the arm's height above the seat so it supports without rolling over. Send both with the fabric and piping codes.
Buyer questions
- A common question
I already have the cushions. Can I order just new covers for them?
The workshop's answerYes. There is a covers-only zippered box-cover listing for exactly that. Send the length, width and thickness; one buyer ordered chair covers of 22 1/2 x 18 1/2 in (57 x 47 cm) and 22 1/2 x 22 in (57 x 56 cm), 3 in (7.5 cm) deep, that way.
- A common question
What goes in the personalization box? Could you stitch a name on the pillow?
The workshop's answerThe box is for custom sizes, a phone number for delivery, and requests for other fabrics. The workshop doesn't print or embroider names on cushions.
- A common question
Piping or no piping on my pillows?
The workshop's answerIt is taste alone, and the price is the same. Piping gives the edge a defined, tailored line; without it the edge stays soft and clean. Orders split about half and half.
Now, the reading
Pale bolster on a dark velvet sofa, for once
Fifty-some years in this trade, and most sofas I meet wear the same outfit: a pale couch with dark pillows thrown on it. This photograph turns that around, and I like it the better for it.
A navy velvet sofa, deep in pile, stands against a taupe wall on oak floorboards. Against its arm lies one oatmeal bolster pillow in a linen-look weave, self piping ringing its end. Pale on dark, so the bolster glows the way a lamp does in a dim room.
It stands out twice. Once by tone, oatmeal against navy. Once by touch: a dry, matte weave with honest slubs, set beside a pile that shines. Velvet remembers every hand that brushes it; a linen-look weave just shrugs. Side by side, each makes the other look more like itself.
The piping is oatmeal too. A dark welt would have drawn a hard ring around the end, like the rim of a coin. Self piping keeps that pale circle clean.
Now look at where it lies. Tucked against the arm at seat level, it does two jobs: an armrest for the elbow, and a side lumbar for anyone who sits sideways with their feet up. On a dark velvet sofa, add one pale matte bolster rather than another velvet. How high does your own sofa arm stand above the seat? There are more rolls like this among our bolster pillows, cut from the linen-look fabrics, and more for the sofa itself among our living room cushions.
Pinned by Harlan: the oatmeal bolster on navy velvet
Five pins, from the matte oatmeal end to the navy seat the bolster glows against.
- Matte oatmeal end
A dry, matte weave reads by texture as well as by tone against velvet.
- Self piping ring
Oatmeal piping keeps the pale circle clean without a dark outline.
- Linen-look slub
Visible slubs make the bolster look natural next to the smooth sofa pile.
- Navy velvet arm
The bolster tucks against the arm at seat level as an armrest and side lumbar.
- Navy seat cushion
Reversing the usual rule, the light piece sits on the dark sofa and glows.
- Matte oatmeal endA dry, matte weave reads by texture as well as by tone against velvet.
- Self piping ringOatmeal piping keeps the pale circle clean without a dark outline.
- Linen-look slubVisible slubs make the bolster look natural next to the smooth sofa pile.
- Navy velvet armThe bolster tucks against the arm at seat level as an armrest and side lumbar.
- Navy seat cushionReversing the usual rule, the light piece sits on the dark sofa and glows.
Measuring this exact seat, and where folks go wrong
Length runs front to back
Lying along an arm, a bolster crosses the seat depth. Measure from the face of the back cushion to the front edge of the seat, then keep the bolster a touch shorter so it rests on the seat instead of hanging past it.
Diameter follows the arm
Measure the arm's height above the seat cushion, not above the floor. A bolster taller than the arm rolls over it; one a little lower settles in against it.
Measure the sofa, not the old pillow
Old bolsters flatten under years of elbows. The sofa has not changed, so take your numbers from it.
Name both fabrics
Give the body code and the piping code, even when they match. The bolster sizing Pattern walks through diameters if you are torn between two.
Two bolsters that took the piping's stripe
One buyer wrote in about bench seating: two seat cushions, about 19 3/4 x 35 in (50 x 89 cm) and 19 3/4 x 66 1/2 in (50 x 169 cm), 3 in (7.5 cm) thick, in red fabric code 938 with black-and-white stripe piping, code N08. Two bolsters came with them, about 7 x 65 in (18 x 165 cm) and 7 x 47 1/4 in (18 x 120 cm).
Then they had a better idea and asked for the bolsters to be made entirely in the N08 stripe. The workshop made them that way. Red seats, striped edges, striped rolls: the bolsters repeat the piping instead of the seats, and the whole set hangs together without looking busy.
Look at the long one, my friend. A 65 in bolster on a 66 1/2 in seat cushion, an inch and a half shy. That is the right way round: the bolster rests on the seat and never hangs off it.
- Sizes
- seats 19¾ x 35 in (50 x 89 cm) and 19¾ x 66½ in (50 x 169 cm), 3 in thick; bolsters 7 x 65 in (18 x 165 cm) and 7 x 47¼ in (18 x 120 cm)
The lesson: Making bolsters fully in the piping stripe links them to the seat cushions without looking busy.
On the cutting table: one bolster, two numbers
| Piece | Round bolster pillow with a rolled edge |
|---|---|
| Fabric | Oatmeal linen-look weave, code L30 |
| Piping | Self piping at both ends |
| Placement | Against the sofa arm, at seat level |
| Length | From the seat depth, a touch shorter than the cushion below |
| Diameter | Set by the arm's height above the seat |
| Order note | Length, diameter, body code and piping code |
| Best for | Dark velvet sofas, sideways sitting and reading |
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.
On a dark velvet sofa, one pale matte bolster does more than another velvet: it stands out by texture as well as by tone.
Harlan
Questions buyers ask next
Can a light bolster work on a dark sofa?
Yes, and often better than the usual way round. A pale oatmeal weave on navy velvet glows by contrast, and a matte, slubbed surface stands out against the sofa's sheen by texture as well as by tone.
What is self piping on a bolster?
Piping covered in the same fabric as the bolster. On a pale bolster it keeps the end circle clean with no dark outline, while still giving the seam a firm, tailored edge.
Should bolsters match the seat cushions or the piping?
Either can work. One buyer had two bolsters made entirely in the black-and-white stripe used for the seat piping, which tied the set together without bringing in another fabric.
Sit well. — Harlan
More photographs to read
Save
Save
Save
Save
Save
Save
