1 - Cover you cushion with the upholsterers silk. You need to leave an open end at the back end of the cushion (where the zip will be when you have the cushion in the cover). Fold the upholsterers silk around the sides of the cushion, making sure that all the edges overlap and that there are no areas of the cushion that does not have a covering of the silk.

2 - Put your vacuum pipe on the back of the cushion (this is going to be the zip end when the cushion is in the cover) so that it is pushed firmly against your cushion, hold the upholsterers silk around the vacuum pipe and switch on. If your cushion does not immediately reduce considerably in size, then check that there are no gaps in the upholsterers silk around the sides and the back. If there are gaps then continue to fold the upholsterers silk over the gaps until the cushion is completely covered.

3 - Your cushion should continue to reduce in size. It will depend on the density of the foam as to how much it will reduce by but a 50% reduction in size is quite normal.

4 - You will now need the help of an assistant! Get your assistant to hold the cover with the zip fully open and slide the vacuumed cushion in to the cover. The vacuum is still on at this point in the procedure. Ease the cushion right in to the cover.

5 - You can now switch the vacuum off! In most cases the cushion will quickly return to its original size, however sometimes you can have created such a good seal around the cushion that it remains compressed. In such cases just tear the upholsterers silk to let the air in to the cushion.

6 - You can now tear and remove as much of the upholsterers silk from the cushion as you wish. The silk is a crinkle free product so if you leave it in the cushion you will not hear it when you sit on the cushion. We tend to remove as much as we can so that it does not get caught in the zip. Do the zip up and your cushion is ready for you to sit on.