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Stack of three box cushions on concrete: moss green with mustard piping, oatmeal with rust, burgundy with light graySave
Three color pairings in one stack: moss with mustard, oatmeal herringbone with rust, and burgundy with pale gray piping.

A Reading by ÉlodieBench Cushions

Three stacked bench cushions and the piping colors that suit them

The eye sits down first, my friends, and on this stack it sits on the cord. Three body fabrics, three piping colors, and a bare concrete floor so nothing interrupts the conversation.

Read by

The Colorist of New OrleansPublished Updated 5 min read

Swatch strip measured from the photograph

  • taupe#86837432%
  • deep walnut#412e2921%
  • mist#cbcbc919%
  • mist#cfcecd16%
  • oatmeal#b1afa512%

The quick answer

For a linen-look bench cushion, choose contrast piping by temperature: a warm cord on a cool body, like mustard on moss green, or a cool cord on a deep one, like pale gray on burgundy. The cloth is a polyester-blend weave that cleans easily, and zipped covers wash at 86°F (30°C) on a gentle cycle.

A piping lesson in three layers

Stacking cushions turns a product photograph into a lesson. Each body fabric wears a contrast cord of a different temperature, and the camera stays low and close, so the piping at the top and bottom seams and the sharp box corners carry the whole picture.

Look at the proportion: three deep boxes with straight side bands, each band framed by two lines of cord. Double piping like this draws the thickness for you. On a bench cushion, it makes the side band read as a deliberate block rather than a pad.

The props are almost nothing: polished concrete and a pale gray plaster wall. That is the point. Flat, even studio light and a colorless backdrop let you judge three pairings side by side, with no lamp or sunset flattering one of them. That kind of honesty is rare in a photograph.

Now the hand. These are linen-look weaves, polyester-weighted, with the matte face of linen and a texture you can see woven into the oatmeal herringbone. Polyester is chosen because it lasts and cleans more easily than pure linen. Every zipped cover washes the same way: inside out, 86°F (30°C), gentle cycle, mild detergent, no bleach, then air dry. The fabrics are pre-shrunk.

The moss cushion shows shallow tuft dimples across the top. Tufting changes the care. A tufted cushion is stitched closed through its filling, so it has no zipper and is spot-cleaned by hand. Decide which you want more, the dimpled look or a cover that goes in the machine. Which pairing would your bench wear?

The stack, color by color

Named by eye in the studio light; the strip above is measured from the photograph.

  • Moss green#6f7048A cool, grayed green. It needs a warm cord to wake it.
  • Mustard cord#c9a03aThe warmest pairing of the three; it lifts the moss without shouting.
  • Oatmeal herringbone#c9bda6Neutral, with a warm fleck woven through it.
  • Rust cord#a24f2cPicks up that fleck, so it looks inevitable rather than added.
  • Burgundy#5b2230Deep and wine-dark; it holds its color in flat light.
  • Pale gray cord#c9c9c5The most classic pairing: a silver line on a dark ground.

Pinned by Élodie

Five places where the cord and the cloth talk to each other.

Pinned: Stack of three box cushions on concrete: moss green with mustard piping, oatmeal with rust, burgundy with light gray
  1. Moss green cushion

    Shallow tuft dimples across the top help keep the filling from shifting in a deep cushion.

  2. Mustard piping

    Mustard cord on green is the warmest of the three piping pairings.

  3. Oatmeal with rust

    The herringbone weave has a warm fleck, which is why rust piping sits so naturally on it.

  4. Burgundy with gray

    Pale gray piping on burgundy is the most classic of the three combinations.

  5. Concrete floor

    A bare concrete backdrop lets the three piping colors be judged side by side.

  1. Moss green cushionShallow tuft dimples across the top help keep the filling from shifting in a deep cushion.
  2. Mustard pipingMustard cord on green is the warmest of the three piping pairings.
  3. Oatmeal with rustThe herringbone weave has a warm fleck, which is why rust piping sits so naturally on it.
  4. Burgundy with grayPale gray piping on burgundy is the most classic of the three combinations.
  5. Concrete floorA bare concrete backdrop lets the three piping colors be judged side by side.

Bench cushion piping reads by temperature: a warm mustard cord on cool moss green, rust on neutral oatmeal, a cool pale gray cord on deep burgundy.

Élodie
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A real project

The meeting-house bench, 66 inches long

A buyer in the US wrote to the workshop about an old meeting-house bench, 13 x 66 in (33 x 168 cm). Old benches never match a menu. The workshop told them to select the 13 x 61 in option and write the true length, and the cushion would be made at 66 in.

The color choice is the part I love. An ice-blue soft fabric for the body, with tan linen for the piping. The buyer asked whether two different fabric types could share one cushion, and they can. Ice and tan: a cool body with a warm cord, the same rule the stack follows.

One more line went into the order note. The cottage sits below a long flight of steps, so please leave the parcel in the street-level garage. A good note looks after the doorstep too.

Sizes
13 x 66 in (33 x 168 cm)
Fabric
Ice-blue soft fabric, tan linen piping

The lesson: Old benches rarely match stock sizes; order the nearest option and restate the true length.

Three buyer questions about stacked cushions

Questions US buyers ask, with the workshop's answers.

  1. A common question

    My dog ripped one of the back cushions. Can I buy a single backrest to replace it?

    The workshop's answer

    Yes. Single armrests aren't sold on their own, but individual backrests with filling are, in any color from the charts, such as brick or off-white. The workshop sends a private purchase link for it.

  2. A common question

    Can my 104 in cushion be one piece instead of two 52s? I want it uninterrupted.

    The workshop's answer

    Yes. The workshop has made single cushions at 111.5 in, 104 in and 82 in, and one about 118 in (3 m) long. For very long runs it sometimes suggests two pieces, such as two of about 59 in (1.5 m), because they are easier to handle and ship, but one piece is always an option.

  3. A common question

    I need three tufted cushions for a kitchen breakfast nook in odd sizes: 65 1/8 x 17, 56 1/4 x 17 and 91 x 17 in. Is that possible?

    The workshop's answer

    Yes, fractional-inch sizes are fine. The three were made as French-style tufted linen cushions in a color called Dried Rose, set up as one custom order. For that order, production was quoted at 7 business days, then delivery at 3 to 5 business days.

On the cutting table

CushionsThree box cushions, stacked
FabricLinen-look weaves: moss green, oatmeal herringbone, burgundy
PipingContrast, at top and bottom seams: mustard, rust, pale gray
EdgeBox edge with sharp corners
TopThe moss cushion shows shallow tuft dimples
ContentPolyester-blend linen-look, pre-shrunk
CareZipped covers: 86°F (30°C) gentle, inside out, air dry. Tufted: spot-clean only
SamplesUp to 5 codes in one sample order
Best forBenches and window seats where the edge line shows

Order this cushion

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.

Fabric · Foam · Pipingwhat the workshop will confirm with you

Fabric
Linen-look weaves: moss green, oatmeal herringbone, burgundy
Foam
The core: its density and thickness set the feel.
Piping
Contrast, at top and bottom seams: mustard, rust, pale gray
Only for this request: no marketing calls or texts. Outside the US, add the country code.
In inches: length × depth × thickness, plus any angles or cut corners.

* Required. A member of the workshop team will call you to talk it through; nothing is charged and nothing is made until you have agreed on every detail with them.

We use these details only to answer this request and make your cushion: your name and contact details, the cushion details and photos you send, the page you came from and the ad or link that brought you, if any. The workshop that makes the cushions receives them. We don't sell them or share them for advertising, and we delete requests after 24 months. Privacy notice for requests.

Nothing is made or charged until you approve the details.

Want to pick the shape and add photos? Use the full quote form

Questions buyers ask next

Can the piping be a different fabric type from the cushion?

Yes. A soft-fabric body with linen piping is a normal order. Give the main fabric code and the piping code separately, because neighboring numbers on a chart can differ only in tone.

Is linen-look fabric real linen?

No. The linen-look fabrics are a polyester blend woven to look like linen. Pure linen and linen-cotton blends are separate charts. The blend is chosen because it lasts longer and cleans more easily.

Can a tufted bench cushion have a zipper?

No. A tufted cushion is buttoned and hand-stitched closed through its filling, so the cover cannot come off. If you want a machine-washable zipped cover, choose the plain version without tufting.

Why does a color look different on my screen than on the sample?

Color shifts between daylight, home lighting and screens, and chart swatches can look darker or coarser than the real cloth. Photos of finished cushions are the most accurate reference, and dye batches can differ slightly between orders.

With color and care — Élodie

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