Make-your-own-table-cover 9ft. Measuring/Cutting

First, pool is awesome. I love playing it. Today, you are going to learn how to make your own custom pool table to protect your felt from kitties, dust, wild house guests, and other threats. This project can be done in 4-5 hrs. on a home sewing unit.

You will need:

Basic Home Sewing Machine
9 yards fabric standard 54 inch width or greater
scissors
measuring tape
thread
pins
chalk
space to cut fabric

1. Measure your pool table (I have included standard 9 ft. measurements, but check your own).

Standard 9ft. Table Your Table

Length: 114 inches ________
Width: 64 inches ________
Height: 36 inches ________

2. Select Fabric/Trim you want. You can use swatches to match or get ideas.

3. Figure out the actual prototype (add 3 inches to the total on each side and a 16 inch drop)

Standard 9 ft. Table Your Table

Length: 117 inches ________
Width: 67 inches ________
Drop: 19 inches ________

4. Draw out the prototype and figure out the pieces, you should have 5 different pieces total. If you don't want the extra hem at the bottom for only 3 different pieces, combine the sides and hems together and subtract one inch total. This will not look as good, but it will be less work.


5 Pieces Standard Standard 9 ft. Table Your Table

1. Top: 117 inches by 67 inches ___________________
2. Long Side (2x): 117 inches by 15 inches ____________
3. Short Side (2x): 67 inches by 15 inches ____________
4. Long Hem (2x): 117 inches by 5 inches ____________
5. Short Hem (2x): 67 inches by 5 inches ____________

3 Pieces Easy

1. Top: 117 inches by 67 inches ___________________
2. Long Side (2x) 117 inches by 19 inches ____________
3. Short Side (2x) 67 inches by 19 inches ____________

5. Measure your cloth and begin cutting. I normally just roll out a bolt of cloth, grab a tape measure and chalk and go at this point. But, a little pre-thought is helpful. For example, you may need to cut the top in half if your fabric is not wide enough to handle your table width (I did).

I cut the biggest pieces first, then the smaller pieces. Measure the length, mark it with chalk or a pin Then cut across. You can then measure the widths from matching pieces across. For example, I did 1/2 a table top, then the long side, then hem twice. It's an old rule, but measure twice...cut once.

For example, I cut half the top, then one of the long sides, then the hem was automatically left. This doesn't always work out, but it's an example of a little thought saving you an extra step along the way. The short sides and hem I cut in one section. There's no right or wrong way to do this. Your fabric width will dictate how many pieces you can fit on a section. Just remember if you have a pattern on the fabric, you probably want to cut all your fabric the same way. Once you have a single piece cut out, you do not need to remeasure for the next piece. Simply lay it on top of your fabric, put a couple of pins in to hold it in place and use the piece as master. You're only making 2 of each piece so there's not a lot repetition.

Lay out your pieces in separate piles as you go neatly folded up. That way you can keep them apart (especially the sides). This makes it simple when you get to the next part, sewing it all together. If the pieces look very similar, I will sometimes label them by sticking a piece of paper on them with a letter or number to keep them apart. They often do this on large factory floors to help people keep the parts in order, especially large jobs, but it works just as well for home sewing as well.