In this tutorial I want to share with you a nice and easy way of installing a lapped zipper into a cushion cover –a method that will require completing only two lines of Zigzag stitches to neaten the edges and two lines of straight stitches.

For this illustration I am using a standard all purpose zipper, however my zipper is slightly longer than the cut size of my cushion cover: with a longer zipper the zipper pull will be outside of my working area, this way I will avoid difficulty working around the zipper pull.
Cutting directions:
The zipper can be installed in any place of a backing panel e.g. in the centre, close to the top edge or bottom edge of the cushion cover. I like the zipper to be close to the top edge, approx ¼ of the size of the cushion cover.
For the back panel cut 2 rectangular pieces that are same width as the front panel but add 2” to the total length of both pieces for zip installation.
For instance: for cushion pad 17” x 17” I cut a square 18” x 18” for the front panel and two pieces for the back panel – 18” x 15” and 18” x 5”.
Sewing directions:
- Lay the larger backing piece flat face up.
- Lay the zipper face down lining up the edge of the zipper tape with the edge of the fabric.
- Pin in place.
- Zigzag or over-lock the edges catching the zipper tape in the stitch.
- With the fabric still facing you, turn over the zipper face side up and fold the fabric along the edge of zipper teeth.
- Pin in place.
- Attach zipper foot to your machine.
- Machine stitch the zipper to the fabric 1/8” away from the zipper teeth.
Now attach the zipper to the remaining second piece of back fabric.
- With face sides placed together, line up the remaining back piece to free zipper edge.
- Pin in place.
- Replace the zipper foot with the regular foot.
- Zigzag the edge catching the zipper tape and the raw edge of the fabric in the stitch.
Now you need to create a lap to hide the zip.
- Partly unfold the small backing piece and create a new folding line.
- Use the edge of the zipper tape as a guide for the folding line. You can put pins from wrong side of the fabric alongside of the zipper tape to help you to make a straight fold.
- On the smaller backing piece mark a stitching line ¾” away from the folding line with a fabric marking pen or masking tape.
- Attach the zipper foot to your machine.
- Stitch up the fold following the marking line or edge of the masking tape catching the zipper tape in the stitch.
- Open the zipper approx 2” from the edge of the panel.
- Create a new “zipper stop” by sewing a few stitches across the zipper teeth.
- Cut off excess of the zipper tape.