A Reading by RosaPapasan & Hanging Chair Cushions
A striped cushion for a hanging hoop chair, and how it stays put
A chair that swings is a chair that shrugs off its cushion. Rosa starts with the fastening questions buyers send most, then reads a hoop chair in a limewashed loggia.
SaveThe quick answer
A papasan or hanging hoop chair cushion stays put when it is shaped to fill the frame, with a thick seat and a rolled back that follows the curve, and tied where the back tips forward. Zippers come standard on the back edge, out of sight. Send the inner diameter and the depth of the frame when you order.
Before the chair: three questions
- A common question
The order form takes only one photo, and I have three measurement photos. What should I do?
The workshop's answerUpload the one it allows and write 'drawings sent via message' in the personalization box, then send all the photos in your order conversation. Merging them into one image works too.
- A common question
Do zippers cost extra, and which edge do they go on?
The workshop's answerZippers are standard on every cover, at no extra charge. The zipper goes on the back edge, the one against the wall, window or chair back, so it stays out of sight. If the order doesn't make that clear, the workshop asks. On one 23 5/8 x 17 3/4 in (60 x 45 cm) cushion, it went on the longer edge.
- A common question
Do you make firm replacement cushions for chairs?
The workshop's answerYes, in any size and thickness, with about 2 lb/ft³ (32 kg/m³) high-resilience foam that stays firm and doesn't flatten for years. Send length x width x thickness and the quantity for a quote.
Now, the reading
Reading the hoop chair from the beams down
The chair hangs from a timber beam on a single chain, and everything below it is built for slow afternoons. The cushion fills the rattan hoop completely. A thick shaped seat sits in the bowl, and a rolled back cushion curves with the frame, so nobody's elbow finds the cane.
The stripes run level, cream with black and gray. Level stripes on a round frame show off the curve; turned vertical, they would fight it. The palette is borrowed from the room: cream from the limewashed walls, the dark stripe from the beams overhead, the gray from the flagstone floor. It looks like a cushion that grew there.
The props tell you how the chair gets used. A cream chunky-knit throw folded over the rim, for when the evening cools. A stack of magazines and a ceramic mug, because nobody sits in a hoop chair for five minutes. And the leather sandals kicked off on the stone below, which is the whole mood in one pair of shoes.
Outdoor acrylic makes sense under a loggia roof: shaded, open to the air, damp some mornings. More round frames live under papasan cushions, and papasan cushion sizes walks through the measuring. How does your chair hang: from a beam, a stand or a ceiling hook?
Pinned by Rosa: five marks around the hanging chair
Five pins, from the striped seat in the bowl to the sandals kicked off on the flagstones.
- striped seat cushion
A thick shaped seat fills the hoop so no rattan presses through.
- rolled back cushion
The back curves with the frame and stripes run level to show the round shape.
- knitted throw
A folded cream knit adds warmth for cool evenings.
- magazines and mug
Reading props show the chair is for long, slow sits.
- sandals on stone
Kicked-off sandals below set a barefoot, holiday mood.
- striped seat cushionA thick shaped seat fills the hoop so no rattan presses through.
- rolled back cushionThe back curves with the frame and stripes run level to show the round shape.
- knitted throwA folded cream knit adds warmth for cool evenings.
- magazines and mugReading props show the chair is for long, slow sits.
- sandals on stoneKicked-off sandals below set a barefoot, holiday mood.
Four ways to keep a hanging chair cushion where it belongs
Fill the frame
Send the inner diameter and the depth of the hoop. A cushion that fills the frame without bulging over the rim can't wander far; a loose one rides around every time the chair turns.
Tie it where it tips
Ties can be added wherever you mark them on a sketch. On a hoop chair, the back cushion wants them near the top of the rim, where it leans forward when you do. Tie placement on chairs and swings shows the usual spots.
Grip underneath
A non-slip base helps on a smooth seat. On open rattan, ties do more of the holding.
Keep the zipper on the hidden edge
Zippers are standard and go on the back edge. On a round chair that is the edge against the rattan, so the pull stays out of sight and off bare legs. Cushion zipper placement covers other shapes.
Two armrest pillows, cut from the same roll
A buyer ordering an outdoor back cushion for a daybed swing wrote back to ask for two cylinder armrest pillows to match. The workshop quoted the pair and added them to the main order, so everything went onto the cutting table together.
That is the part I'd underline, neighbor. Order the bolsters with the main cushion and they come from the same fabric batch. Add them next summer and you may be matching a sun-softened cushion to a fresh one, and a new dye lot to an old one. My grandmother's porch had a swing with one pillow a shade bluer than the other for twenty years, and the family never let her forget it. Dye lots and matching cushions later explains why it happens.
On the cutting table: the hoop chair cushion
| Product | Seat-and-back cushion for a hanging hoop chair |
|---|---|
| Fabric | Outdoor acrylic, cream with black and gray stripes |
| Shape | Thick shaped seat, rolled back following the frame |
| Piping | Self piping |
| Edge | Box edge |
| Fastening | Ties on request, placed from your sketch |
| Zipper | Standard, on the back edge against the rattan |
| Foam | about 2 lb/ft³ (32 kg/m³) high-resilience foam |
| Best for | Covered porches and loggias |
Have it made
Have this made — ask Rosa’s workshop
Swings sway, rockers rock, dogs circle three times. Tell the workshop what your seat goes through, and they will plan for it. — Rosa
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.
A papasan or hanging chair cushion should fill the hoop without bulging over the rim; send the inner diameter and the depth, never the outside size.
Rosa
Questions buyers ask next
Which way should stripes run on a round chair cushion?
Level, side to side. Horizontal stripes on a round seat and back show off the curve of the frame. Turned vertical on a hoop chair, stripes meet the rim at odd angles and make the cushion look twisted.
Is a hanging chair cushion measured the same way as a papasan cushion?
Nearly. Measure the inside diameter of the bowl or hoop and its depth at the center, then the height of the back if the cushion has one. The finished cushion should fill the frame without spilling over the rim.
What makes a swinging seat cushion keep sliding around?
Usually a size mismatch or a missing fastening. A cushion smaller than the frame shifts with every swing, and a smooth seat lets it glide. Fill the frame, add ties where the back tips forward, and keep the foam firm.
Porch light's on — Rosa
