SaveA Reading by MaggieBanquette & Kitchen Nook Cushions
A taupe striped banquette cushion that makes a small breakfast nook feel wider
Maggie on a short built-in, a stripe turned the right way round, and why the pillow stays plain.
Swatch strip measured from the photograph
- camel#a1958532%
- oatmeal#b2ada227%
- umber#836b5216%
- mist#e2e5e614%
- linen#c1bfb911%
The quick answer
A striped banquette cushion makes a short kitchen nook feel wider when the stripes run across the seat depth, front to back, rather than along its length. Take one stripe color from the floor, here taupe from wide pine boards, keep the pillow plain linen, and let the white built-in stay the brightest shape in the room.
Swatch strip: a breakfast nook built from the floor up
- Pine taupe#A8998AThe lead stripe, lifted from the floorboards.
- Cream#EFE7D6The rest between stripes.
- Walnut brown#5E4636A thin line that sharpens the stripe.
- Joinery white#F7F6F2The built-in, and the brightest shape.
- China blue#35598CThe only cool note on the table.
- Lemon#F1D548The loudest color, kept to one bowl.
Why the stripes run front to back
Right, then. A short banquette has one job in a small kitchen: seat the family without turning the room into a railroad car. This one manages it, and the stripe does most of the work.
The cushion sits on a white built-in beside a marble counter and a double-hung window, and its stripes run across the seat depth, front edge to back. The eye counts them along the whole bench, and a short run of seating reads wider and easier. Turn the same fabric the other way, stripes running the length, and you've drawn two long lines that pinch the nook like a hallway runner. I did exactly that on a banquette years ago and spent a weekend unpicking it. We don't discuss that weekend.
The palette is lifted from the room, not added to it. Taupe matches the pine boards, cream matches the oatmeal linen pillow, and a thin brown line sharpens the stripe, so the white joinery stays the star. The piping is self piping, cut from the stripe, so the edge reads as part of the cushion rather than a frame. A straight welt is a kind of honesty, and on a stripe it had better be dead straight.
The table tells the rest. A white pedestal base means no corner legs to bark your shins on as you slide in. A blue willow plate, a blue-and-white mug and a folded napkin give the coastal-farmhouse cue. The fern print, centered over the seat, marks the middle of the nook; a small jug of daisies on the sill catches the light. The bowl of lemons is the brightest thing in the room and the smallest, which is the right way around.
My small-nook checklist, for pinning by the stove: - One stripe color from the floor, nothing new. - One plain pillow; two patterns in a tight corner start an argument. - A slim cushion that clears the table apron. - The bright color goes on something you can eat.
The cloth is an outdoor acrylic stripe, sensible where toast crumbs happen daily. See which way to turn a stripe, or more banquette cushion nooks. So, dear, what color is your floor?
Pinned by Maggie: five marks in the breakfast nook
Five pins run from the striped seat to the fern print, with a stop at the lemons on the way.
- striped seat cushion
Stripes across the depth make a short banquette look wider and relaxed.
- linen pillow
A plain linen pillow keeps the stripe from feeling busy.
- blue willow plate
Blue-and-white china is the classic coastal-farmhouse accent.
- bowl of lemons
A bowl of lemons is the brightest note in a neutral room.
- fern print
A botanical print hung above the seat centers the nook.
- striped seat cushionStripes across the depth make a short banquette look wider and relaxed.
- linen pillowA plain linen pillow keeps the stripe from feeling busy.
- blue willow plateBlue-and-white china is the classic coastal-farmhouse accent.
- bowl of lemonsA bowl of lemons is the brightest note in a neutral room.
- fern printA botanical print hung above the seat centers the nook.
Two rectangles beat two trapezoids in the corner
A customer wrote in wanting two corner cushions for a dining nook, meeting on a neat diagonal like a picture frame. The shop explained what that means in practice: both pieces become trapezoids, which cost more and may fit worse. Instead it kept them as rectangles, 62.5 x 16.5 in (159 x 42 cm) and 45.9 x 16.5 in (117 x 42 cm), both 3 in (7.5 cm) thick, the long one running into the corner and the short one butting against it.
The shop caught something else: the two orders had different fabrics, and only one had a non-slip base, so it made both non-slip. After close-up photos, the customer switched to a black stripe and added four backrests at 19 3/4 x 31 1/2 in (50 x 80 cm) in a linen-look fabric with contrast piping.
For any small corner nook, butt a long rectangle against a short one instead of mitering two trapezoids. The L-shaped corner joint Pattern draws both ways.
Buyer questions: price, exact size, thickness
- A common question
What does a custom-size bench or window seat cushion cost?
The workshop's answerIt's priced by size; ask the workshop to say in the quote whether shipping is in the total. A 14 x 34 in (36 x 86 cm) bench pad sits at the bottom of the range; a 130 x 24 in (330 x 61 cm) kitchen bench at 4 in thick sits at the top. Every size gets its own quote.
- A common question
Are the listed sizes the only sizes, or will you cut to my exact measurements?
The workshop's answerAny size can be made. The listed sizes are price ranges: choose the one that covers your measurements and write your exact size in Add Personalization. Going under the smallest option works too, say 9 in (23 cm) wide when the listing starts at 12 in.
- A common question
How thick is a standard bench cushion, and can I change it?
The workshop's answerBench and floor cushions are 4 in (10 cm) as standard. Custom orders have also been made at 3 in, 6 in and 6.5 in (7.5, 15 and 16.5 cm). Put the thickness you want in your request.
On the cutting table: the taupe stripe nook
| Product | Banquette seat cushion, made to measure |
|---|---|
| Fabric | Outdoor acrylic stripe in taupe, cream and brown |
| Stripe direction | Across the seat depth, front edge to back |
| Piping | Self piping cut from the stripe |
| Edge | Box edge |
| Thickness | 4 in (10 cm) standard; 3, 6 and 6.5 in made on request |
| Corner plan | Long rectangle butted to a short one, not two trapezoids |
| Pair with | One plain linen pillow and a pedestal table |
Have it made
Have this made — ask Maggie’s workshop
I once cut a lovely cushion two inches short, and I have not forgotten it. That is why the workshop goes over your measurements with you on the phone. — Maggie
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 short kitchen banquette, run the stripes front to back across the seat depth: the eye counts them along the bench and the nook reads wider.
Maggie
Questions buyers ask next
How can a striped cushion make a short kitchen banquette look wider?
Run the stripes across the seat depth, front edge to back. The eye counts them along the bench, so a short run of seating looks wider; stripes running the length draw two long lines instead.
What pillow suits a taupe and cream striped banquette cushion?
A plain one in a color already in the stripe, such as oatmeal linen. A second pattern competes with the stripe in a small nook; a solid keeps the corner calm.
Should two corner banquette cushions be mitered on a diagonal?
Usually not. A diagonal turns both pieces into trapezoids, which cost more and may fit worse. A long rectangle butted against a short one is simpler to cut and easier to fit.
Is outdoor acrylic a sensible fabric for an indoor breakfast nook?
It's a practical one. Outdoor acrylic is made for patio furniture, and a multi-tone stripe like this taupe, cream and brown one forgives everyday crumbs between cleanings.
Stitch straight — Maggie
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