How to upholster a chair for beginners?
How to Upholster a Chair the Easy Way!
In this tutorial, I will show you how I upholstered a chair quickly and without a lot of fuss.
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I&#;m not much of an instructions girl. I&#;d rather spend the time to do something incorrectly, learn from it, then do it correctly before I take the time to read directions.
Sometimes, I&#;ll admit this gets me into trouble. When it comes to serious builds or life/death situations, like epi-pens and murphy bed attaching, I&#;ll definitely read the directions.
When it comes to fun projects, I&#;ll work quickly to make up for the time that it would have taken me to read the instructions or find a YouTube instructional video. I learn way more this route!
I&#;ve reupholstered many things in my day and learned that every piece of furniture is a little different.
This is the quickest way to reupholster a chair or any piece of furniture for that matter. A little extra fabric and some upholstery nails can go a long way!
I love being able to refresh this nice little chair as part of my sewing room revamp!
This snowy weather has got us literally hibernating with 14&#; of snow that fell just this past weekend and it helps if we can stay busy inside with projects to keep our brains going.
One of my most favorite things to do is to be able to use what I have on hand to do projects.
I&#;ve had this chair since I was a child. It came with me to college, to our first home and now to the farmhouse. I love the worn wood structure, but the soft parts needed a little revamping. My grandma had originally recovered this chair.
I found a piece of fabric ticking that needed a purpose. The fabric works perfect for my newly done sewing corner.
Before the redo!What you&#;ll need for an upholstered chair
- Fabric Scissors
- Fabric (preferably a bit thicker, not a light cotton)
- Pliers
- Hammer
- Upholstery nails and or Decorative upholstery tacks
Iron your chair fabric
Be sure to iron your fabric so it looks nice and smooth when you put it on your chair
Start by taking off the back panel which is fastened by upholstery tacks. I try to salvage the tacks if I can, so to be reused, but most of them were bent or broken.
To my surprise the back of the chair is just cardboard with upholstery tape around it. It&#;s funny how different furniture looks when you start taking it apart and tipping it upside down!
PS. Does anyone ever look under their chairs anyway? interesting
If the pattern is complex, I would usually take off the upholstery before redoing it, in order to use the existing upholstery as a pattern for the new fabric.
I decided that for this piece I would not need to take the existing upholstery off of the chair but instead place the fabric right over the top of the old stuff.
The next part is technical. &#; Place fabric over the structure, fold until all of the existing fabric is covered and cut. I always cut a little larger around, just to have a little working room. We can always cut more off if it seems to get too bulky in the end.
Cut a slit where the arms are, fold the fabric under as much as I can- so to not have any raw edges showing. Then pull the fabric taut and place sewing pins where I want to eventually tack it down.
Working around the top of the chair the idea is to roll the raw edge under, tuck and pin. Think of this kind of project like wrapping a present.
Working with a stripped fabric pattern can be a helpful thing in this situation as I could see where my center was and make sure all the lines were going the same direction and symmetrical.
Once the top front is finished. I laid the back portion, which I removed from the chair, on top of the fabric.
Making sure that the lines going the same direction as the front and cut out. Again, I leave a little extra all the way around, just to be sure I have enough to go around. I fold it tightly over and taped it with painters tape.
Fold like a present and tape!
My grandma had redone it this way and it held up just fine for oh-so many years. Why reinvent the wheel, right?
I hammer in upholstery nails all around the back and the front piece once I get them all pinned in place and I like how it all lines up.
For the seat, I again, put fabric on top of the seat, cut a bit more than I know I&#;ll need and cut out a big square.
I cut slits in the corner to fit around the wooden corners, fold the fabric under, tuck and fasten with the upholstery tacks underneath the chair. I use the lines in the fabric pattern to help my line things up again.
The final step to Upholstering a Chair
Smooth and pull tightly, but not so much that the fabric starts to bunch. Wrap the raw edges under and fasten with your upholstery tacks and you could add the decorative tacks, if you want. I ran out, so it was the industrial tacks that I had on hand.
Hmm, I&#;ll have to look this up! Found this under one of my chairs arms.The finished Upholstered Chair!
The finished sewing area. Upholstered Chair. Organized, updated and ready for work!
Check that off my list of things to take care of before spring!
organizing by color is the BEST!This whole chair project took just 1 hour to complete. You can do it, too!(This post may contain affiliate links which means I make a small commission at no extra cost to you.)
Tips for Upholstering a Chair
- Take good photos before you start taking your pieces off of your piece. I like to take pictures as I take fabric pieces off, so I know how they were attached/ folded etc.
- Make sure you all your materials ready to go before you start. It&#;s a bummer getting mid way into something and realize you don&#;t have upholstery tacks on hand.
- Working with stripes or plaids can be tricky when first starting off. Aligning patterns on the sides and around corners can be challenging. If you want to try something easy, go with a floral or random pattern print.
Have you upholstered a chair or revamped a piece of furniture like this?
What was the hardest part?
Your Step-by-Step Guide to How to Reupholster a Chair
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Marty Baldwin
Remove Old Fabric
Disassemble the chair as needed and remove the upholstery pieces, taking care not to tear any of the old pieces of fabric&#;you will need them as patterns.
Begin by removing the black cloth from the underside of the chair, then loosen the pieces attached to the frame. Remove the pieces and mark each with its location on the chair with a marking pen. For example, label the pieces as outside back, right side back, left side back, inside back, seat, and seat sides. Mark "T" for the top or "F" for the front to indicate the direction of the piece on the chair.
Note on each piece the location of welting and where pieces are sewn together. Save pieces of welting and tack strips to use as a measure for new pieces.
Photograph the chair before you strip the original covering, taking full-length and detailed photos for reference.
Prepare to Reupholster Furniture with These Crucial Tips
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Jay Wilde
Replace Batting
If worn or stained, remove old batting from chair back and seat. Check springs and webbing for damage and repair if necessary. Sand, prime, and paint the frame or legs if desired; let dry.
Cut a piece of 1/2-inch-thick batting to cover the chair back and seat, if needed. Cover the chair back first, stapling it down. Pull gently on the batting around each staple to prevent visible indents from the staples so the staple is inside the batting. Next, cover the seat with batting in the same way, folding neatly around the corners.
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Jay Wilde
Make New Pattern
Lay the original upholstery pieces wrong-side up on the wrong side of the new fabric, watching for the grain, placement, and direction of the pattern or motifs. Pin in place and cut around the pattern, leaving 2 to 3 inches of fabric beyond the stapled edges of the original pieces. This will give you fabric to grasp when stapling; the original pieces were trimmed after they were stapled. Repeat this process to cut out each fabric section. Transfer the markings for direction, welting, and seams onto the new pieces with chalk.
If preferred, combine the chair reupholstery pieces into covers for the seat and back that can be applied all at once. Place the fabric sections together inside out and sew together, adjusting for curves as needed.
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Jay Wilde
Attach Base Fabric
Place the new inside back, right-side back, and left-side back pieces on the chair in the appropriate locations, using the "T" markings and your photos as guides. Pin the pieces together, making any necessary adjustments to the fit; you may need to trim excess fabric to make it fit snugly. When you're pleased with the fit, pull fabric taut and staple in place on the apron of the chair seat. Use as many staples as necessary to secure the fabric and keep it smooth. Be sure you place staples on the back of the chair where the back panel will cover them. Trim excess fabric.
If using a cover, apply the new cover to the seat base and adjust as needed. Pull the fabric taut and staple to the frame where the old cover was previously attached, starting at the front edge and working toward the back. Tuck excess fabric under at the corners.
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Jay Wilde
Make Welting
Using the old pieces as your guide, determine the length of the welting needed to go around the seat apron at the top and bottom. Cut enough 2-inch-wide bias strips to equal that length, allowing a few extra inches. Join the strips with diagonal seams and trim the seam allowance to 1/2 inch. Fold the bias strip around the cord and use a zipper foot to sew in place. The welting will go around the bottom of the seat apron.
How to Make Welting for Your DIY Upholstery Project
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Jay Wilde
Sew Welting
Pin the side panel to the seat fabric, making any necessary adjustments to the fit or pattern placement. Mark the position for the bottom welting. Remove the side fabric from the chair and sew the welting to the right side of the panel, at the top and where marked near the bottom, starting and ending at the back. For a finished edge, fold the end of the piping under before attaching.
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Jay Wilde
Attach Sides
Holding the right side of the panel up against the seat, staple the top welting in place around the seat. Add a tack strip around the panel top against the welting and staple in place. Fold the side panel down over the tack strip, pull tight, and staple in place to the underside of the chair, with the bottom welting fitting snugly along the edge. Snip notches in the fabric underneath the seat as you smooth around corners. Tuck any excess fabric underneath using a flathead screwdriver.
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Jay Wilde
Attach Back
Place back panel in position and fold the right side over the top of the chair back. Apply a tack strip to the top of the back rear and staple in place. Fold the panel back over the strip and pull tight toward the bottom of the chair back. Fold bottom edge under and staple to the underside of the chair back.
If using a cover for the back, slip it over the chair back. Pull the fabric tight and staple to the frame where previously attached. Tuck under raw edges where visible.
Reassemble the chair if needed. Trim any excess string or fabric.
Use fabric glue or decorative upholstery tacks to secure excess fabric to the back of the reupholstered chair.
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Cameron Sadeghpour
Attach Underside to Finish Chair Reupholstery
Cut a piece of black breathable fabric for the underside of the chair using the old piece as your guide. Flip the chair upside down, and staple fabric to the underside to conceal any springs or webbing and act as a dust cover. Make sure the fabric is tight against the welting and that it covers up all raw edges of the upholstery fabric. Turn right-side up, and enjoy your newly reupholstered chair.
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