We are in the process of redecorating the high school room at my church. And I was excited to be asked to reupholster four "bar stools". No, the high school room is not in a "bar", nor does the church serve alcohol, even though we are in the world famous wine region of Sonoma County, CA. But these stools needed some new covers! So the first thing I did was to turn one upside down, on a large piece of paper. This way I could draw all the way around the seat to make a pattern for the top of the stool. Because of the curve of the side, it actually added about 1/4" all the way around, making a seam allowance. I cut out the circle and laid it on the wrong side of the fabric. Then I drew around the circle directly onto the fabric. I cut out the circle and marked the circle at the North, South, East and West, just like I was looking at a globe. Actually I clipped at those places but the clips didn't show in the photo, so I put pins there so they would be visible. Next I measured all the way around the edge of the seat cushion. I had to pull the measuring tape tightly, because the sides stretch out to accommodate the curve and the foam inside. This measurement became the length (width) of the band. Then I measured the depth of the seat cushion and added 1 inch for seam allowance and room to staple. I was unable to get the staples out that held on the old vinyl cover, so I decided to just cover it completely. Using my quilters ruler, I measured the 4 1/2 inches in depth for the band, and measured 41 1/2 inches in width and cut the strip. I sewed the short ends of the strip together, using a 1/4 inch seam allowance. I prefer to use upholstery thread, but heavy duty cotton thread will work fine. I pressed my seam open and then pressed the seam to one side. I top stitched the seam into place. This will add strength to the seam, which will be under stress because it will fit snugly onto the stool. I pinned the seam of the band to my "North" point of the circle. Then find the halfway point of the band and I pinned it to my "South" point. Then I found each halfway point on each side and pinned it to my "East" and "West" points. I kept pinning all the way around the circle, making sure my pins were in the direction so I could pull them out as I sewed without poking myself. Sadly, I learned this after getting poked way too many times with my super sharp pins! I stitched around the circle with a 1/4" seam allowance. (Pardon the ugly sticker on the sewing machine, please. I am still sewing on India's machine while mine is in the shop, and she never took the stickers off.) Sorry this is so blurry. But I was trying to show that I pressed the seam allowance toward the top and top stitched right next to the seam. I did not clip the seam allowance inside, like I would normally do for a garment. The reason is that the full seam allowance was needed for stability of the seam, and the foam seat will fill out any puckering. This is the cushion cover where the seam of the band meets the top of the seat cover. I finished the edge of the band with an overlock stitch to prevent fraying. I put the new cover directly onto the old vinyl cover of the seat. It fit snugly but well. I pulled the band tightly over the bottom of the seat cushion and stapled it in place using an electric staple gun. I also have a regular staple gun, but the electric staple gun is much easier to use. I put staples very close together, so that the fabric would not tear from stress. This is how the bottom of the seat looks on a finished bar stool. All four of the bar stools are finished and headed back to the church! The church provided me with 2 yards of this upholstery fabric. I have enough of the fabric left over to make 3 throw pillows for the high school room! Because, you know, high school students must have pillows to smack each other with when they are not listening to the youth pastor teach! I am taking the stools with me to church in the morning, when we go for Vacation Bible School. FUN!!!! In other news, my beloved Janome Memory Craft 9700 is supposed to be ready to pick up from the shop tomorrow!!!!!!!!! I am so glad!!!! I have a very important apron order to complete and it needs to be embroidered!! But I will tell you more about that in a few days! Happy Sewing!!!!! Sivje