How to Cover Cording to Create Your Own Piping

Tips and Tricks

A finished pillow with piping.

Debbie Colgrove, Licensed to About.com

• Pat emailed a great tip: "Sandwich cord inside fabric and place stitch witchery inside close to cord. Iron up to cord as close as possible (on outside of fabric) This will eliminate a row of stitching when applying to project. Hope you like this tid-bit." Thanks for sharing Pat!
• Experiment on your scraps to get the "feel." If you are having difficulty getting the "feel" of the piping through all the layers, buy a yard of large cording at the upholstery section of your local fabric store and practice with it.
• Trim a little girls jumper with a contrasting piping at the arm holes, neckline, and pocket edges. Use a straight cut scrap to make a matching "scrunchie".
• Compliment your Ruffled Pillows with corded pillows. Use the same dimensions listed, substituting cording for the ruffle.
• Compliment your throw pillows with alternate trims. For example: If you make a denim pillow with bandanna trim, make bandanna pillow with denim trim.
• Be creative with your scraps. Use them to make your own cording and "jazz" up a plain outfit by adding small piping at arm holes, neckline, and pocket edges.
• Use piping in the seams of backpacks and pocketbooks to compliment an outfit.

• Measure the Cording
• Cut Bias Strips
• Join the Bias Strips
• Covering the Cording
• Sew the Piping to the Item
• Ending Continuous Piping
• Ending Piping in a Seam Allowance
• Enclosing Piping in a Seam
• Tips and Tricks