Iron Board Cover Tutorial -- Fast and Easy!!

I have 3 ironing boards. . . .
The big Euro board in my sewing room is covered with a purple sheet. It had to be purple to compliment my very own original painted dresser that is it mounted on.

I have another light weight skinny board that waits inside my sewing room closet until I need it. It is still in its original cover. BORING BLUE.

The last board is in my downstairs classroom and the poor thing is covered with a very 90's design that has lost its youthful charm. Take a look. Pre--ty Sad.

Definitely time for a new cover. A FAST & EASY cover! Follow along and I'll show you how to do one for your SAD BOARD. 

Gather the tools and supplies you will need:

Tape Measure

Rotary cutting ruler (if you have it) or another straight edge at least 12" long.

3 yards of 1/4" elastic

Scissors

Your standard iron board is 53" long and 14" or 15" wide. You will need about 2 yards of 45" fabric.

Note:  If you are buying fabric you will need 1 7/8 yd for the top and about 3/8 - 1/2 yd for the bias casing. The casing is never seen so you could make it out of anything from your scraps. If you and a friend are very careful you can get two covers out of the width of your fabric.

Open the fabric and lay it out on a table (at least 53" long) or on the floor.

Next turn your ironing board upside down on the fabric. Like so:

Adjust the board so it is straight with the grain of fabric and  laying about 4 inches away from the selvage edge and the top edge.

Next using your tape measure and a straight edge, mark a line 3" from the board all the way around.

Make the corners rounded out a bit -- not too sharp, like so:

Next cut the whole thing out along your drawn line.

You will now make the casing for your elastic.

Your cover top now measures about 21" wide and 59" long. To go all the way around you will need a 2" bias strip about 170" long. 

Using your favorite method cut from your remaining fabric or any old fabric, enough 2" bias strips to measure at least 170" sewn together

I like the ends of my strips cut at 45 degree angles before I sew them together. I stack all the 'front' ends together and cut them using a line on my cutting mat.

Then I re-stack them with the 'back' ends together and cut them using the same line.

Now I am ready to sew the pieces together to make one long strip.

I put the ends together like this.

And sew like this.

When I have sewn one I pick up the free end - 'back end' of the top strip and turn it right side up.

 I put the 'front' end of the next strip on top of it and continue sewing without cutting the threads --- 'chain' piecing them together.

When I'm done I press the long strip is half -- pressing the seams open as I go.

When you are done pressing cut the starting end of the strip off straight.

You will now need your 1/4 elastic. I just happened to have an old package of black so that is what I will use.

I know, I know it's black but it makes me feel 'green' to use something that is just sitting in the drawer.

Starting in the middle of the straight end of your board cover, lay the elastic in the crease of the casing and use a safety pin to secure it. (Don't try to use a straight pin here because it might come out and let your elastic disappear into the casing. ARGGHH!) You will have to pin over to the left so you can sew a 1/4" seam . . . like so:

As you sew the casing make sure the elastic stays in the crease so you don't catch it in the stitching. Ease your bias casing around the corners.

When you have sewn up the first straight side you should realize that 3 yards of elastic is not enough to reach all the way around the board. You will need to stop and pull up some of the elastic. BE CAREFUL. Don't Pull Against your Sewing Machine Needle. The cover will gather up some behind your sewing.

Continue sewing and stopping to pull up the elastic a bit until you have gone all the way around.

When you get close to where you started, stop and cut off the end of your strip just a smidge short of the starting end.

Finish sewing to the end. It should look like this.

DON'T TAKE THE SAFETY PIN OUT YET! Put the cover onto your ironing board. You can leave the old cover in place or take it off. But if you have padding that looks something like this underneath leave it on.

The cover will be loose and the gathers all over the place.

 Smooth it out a little and flip it upside down on the  table or floor, just like before. 

Now is the time to carefully undo the safety pin with a firm grip on that end of the elastic. Pull it up hard. You may want to re-pin it while you work the fullness to the corners and front end of the board. 

When you have the cover adjusted where you want it  - pull up the elastic as tight as you can and tie it in a knot. Cut off all but 2 or 3 inches and tuck it in.

And there you have it! FAST and EASY! Ahhhh . . . . isn't that nice.

Yours doesn't have to be nice . . . it can be wild or crazy or cute or beautiful! Whatever suits your fancy!

My friend Amber made a beautiful red one. Check out her post Red, White and Blue over at A Little Bit Biased. Clever Girl!