Cotton patchwork furoshiki (hand-stitched!) by Etsy seller Mairuru. She blogs about it here: Mairuru: French Seam

Let's see where patchwork has been popping up for women's clothing recently:

Cover of Elle Japan, April 2009 (via Moving Hands blog) and Pins & Needles Patchwork Blazer from Urban Outfitters

Plaid madras bikini and shorts from J.Crew

Okay, not made out of fabric, but they fit the patchwork theme! Patchwork d'Orsay by Manolo Blahnik (via Nieman Marcus)

Or perhaps the title of this series should be: Patchwork, It's Not Just For Quilts Anymore! (but, of course, we already know that!) I originally planned one post on this subject, but there is so much patchwork out there I decided to do a series. So, look for more posts on this subject coming up soon! Let's get started with chairs!

Chairs: Clockwise from upper left: 1) Urban Outfitters Midcentury Patchwork Chair with "soft and homey Tokyo homestead patchwork". 2) Arne Jacobsen's Egg Chair in patchwork from Spring Globe's Flickr photostream. 3) Quilted upholstered vintage chair in the window of Patricia Wood & Company, Harbor Springs, Michigan from Sunshine Syrie's Flickr photostream. 4) Patchwork Chair Cushion, a well-loved but worn quilt gets a new life as a cushion on a thrifted chair, from Creative Little Daisy's Flickr photostream.

Do It Yourself:
So you don't have a worn quilt lying around your house? Find them at flea markets, thrift stores and garage sales. Ebay and Etsy are excellent sources - use the search term "cutter quilts". (A quick search on eBay yielded over 60 results!)Or, use patchwork fabric (sometimes called cheater cloths) like these cotton/linen blends from Echino. Photo credits clockwise from upper left: 1) Echino patchwork cotton/linen blend canvas in black/white/grey from Lucky Kaeru Fabric, 2) Echino patchwork cotton/linen blend from Superbuzzy, 3) Vintage well worn double wedding ring cutter quilt from The Cherry Chic Etsy, 4) Vintage unique patchwork cutter quilt from Double Door Antiques Etsy


::By the way - did you know you can post photos in the comments? If you did a patchwork redo of a chair (or chairs) or any type of upholstery and would like to share, feel free to post your photo in the comments. Other patchwork projects? Wait to put them in the upcoming posts of this series!