Soft furnishings

Timetable, cost and enrolling

Learn how to design and make your own home furnishings. 

You do not need to have any hand stitching or sewing machine experience.

Choose from projects including a cushion cover, a Roman blind and a lampshade. 

The course has a ‘mix and match’ approach which means you can focus on those elements that are of interest to you.

What you'll learn

Depending on which projects you choose to focus on, you'll learn how to make a:

• simple scatter cushion
• window treatment, like a Roman blind and/or a taped, headed and lined curtain
• modern or traditional style lampshade

You'll also learn:

• machine and hand stitching skills
• how to make up and apply trims
• fabric technology like pattern matching, fabric suitability and composition

How it's taught

The course will be taught by demonstrations, handouts, one-to-one talks and group discussions.

You'll get support and advice throughout the course.

You can pick and mix parts of the syllabus to suit your needs.

What you'll need 

Cushion

For week 1 you'll need a:

• cushion pad measuring 40cm or 50cm square
• 1 square metre of fabric of your choice, or you can use ours
• pen and pencil
• notepad
• camera or camera phone

Blind

After week 1 you'll need fabric for the project of your choice. How much you need will depend on the project. 

You can discuss this with the tutor in week 1.

Lampshade

You'll need fabric of your choice measuring 1 metre wide by half a metre in length.

Thin to medium weight cotton or linen is suitable. You can also used recycled clothing or furnishing fabrics if you prefer.

Using our materials

There's a £5 fee to cover basic materials used in the first few weeks of your course. 

You'll need to pay for any extra materials like fabric, tape or lampshade frames supplied by us.

You'll get more information as the course progresses.