If it's cracked, use it as a template to make a new one (Photo 2). You still need to firmly press the nose against the fabric and plywood to get a well-seated staple-but it's way easier on the hand. Secure the back edge in the same way, stretching the material lightly as you work. The question is: How hard do you want to work-and squeeze-to 'do the trick'? We don’t want the ends of the cane showing through the back of the chair. The seats are normally screwed on but can also be glued on or dropped in. Remove excess batting and material from the corners (Photo 7) then flip the seat right side up and experiment with a few corner tucks. Your foam core should be at least three inches (7.5cm) thick to assure comfort. Nowadays, you can get it in nylon and other materials too. Lay a piece of upholstery batting on top and cut the excess at the front corners so the batting lays flat. Any time I get a chair with busted cane, I seize the opportunity to replace it with upholstery. from the corner. 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. Shaddy began publishing in various magazines in 1992, and published a novel, “Dark Canyon,” in 2008. 10 Easy Wooden Lawn Chairs & Benches to Build. Our expert flipped the seat over and checked the pattern a dozen times while stapling each edge. This chair had buttons in the upholstery that I think looked awful. Pin the pieces together, making any necessary adjustments to the fit; you may need to trim excess fabric to make it fit snugly. Apply beads of hot-melt glue to the plywood back cushion. Place the dining seat pad and wooden base onto the fabric. 2. using your chair seat, create a cardboard template that is 1/4″ bigger on all sides. in each direction. Put one of the seats you removed from the dining chairs face down on top of the foam. Press the plywood cushion into place. 15 Adirondack Chairs You Have to See to Believe. Saturday Morning Workshop: How To Build A Folding Adirondack Chair, If the old seat is in bad shape, cut a new one from plywood. I love Craigslist, it is my go-to when I am looking for a new project. © Copyright 2020 Hearst Communications, Inc. To recover a standard arm chair, plan to buy about four yards of upholstery-weight fabric. Fasten chair seats to the frame, using screws. Fold the center inward, then overlap each side onto that fold (Photo 8). You will want to feel where the batting ends and the edge of the cane, so you know where to staple. I love Craigslist, it is my go-to when I am looking for a new project. How to Make an Adirondack Chair and Love Seat. Today, I took a shot at reupholstering a chair that I bought from Goodwill! Layout the marks for tufting. Rotate the seat 180 degrees, then tack the back the same way. Choose an appropriate upholstery foam for the seat or back. Determine the best layout for your material; make sure any patterns or stripes align correctly. Flip the seat over several times to check the pattern as you go. Lightly stretch the batting and drive one staple (Photo 4) along each edge. Upholstering a Wooden Chair. PS. Trace around the old seat, then cut with a jigsaw or circular saw. Then you can drill holes on the edges till it penetrates into the wooden chair up to 2 or 3 mm. and shorter brad nails. Step 10: Cutting the New Pattern. How to Clean Upholstery in 15 Minutes or Less. Here are some simple instructions on how to re-cover or reupholster a chair seat and create smooth corners. Plop the seat on top of the foam and outline it with a marker. Add Tip Ask Question Comment Download. Measure the circumference around the chair back from the back of the seat. So, as always it pulled through when I was looking for two chairs for our small kitchen table. Remove the old staples from the wooden seat base. If you haven’t already, cut your upholstery fabric to size. Someone had already reupholstered the chairs, going directly over the old fabric. If the wood base seems solid, reuse it. This is the most efficient way to upholster straight-backed chairs. Repeatedly flip the seat over to check the pattern for straightness; it's easier to keep flipping and checking than to go back and pull staples. You can make simple, single-fold 'hospital corners' if the edges of your seat are concealed by a frame. I'll be touching that up with hot glue. Choose a tough fabric that won't stretch. wider in all directions than the size of your chair seat-on a flat work surface, then set your foam and seat on top. 1. Hand Stapler:It will give your hand a workout, and you may have to occasionally use a hammer to drive the staples all the way in, but you can still get good results. Pull the fabric up on opposing, diagonal corners, one at a time. 3 Upholstery Tacks I used 1cm (3/8″) long tacks. Hang the edge of the seat over your work surface then drive a staple, from below, in the centers of the front and back. Staple front upholstery to the back of the chair. If it's a solid back, run beads of hot-melt glue two inches apart down the back of the plywood. You can purchase all sorts of cushions from stores, but with a wooden chair seat these can slide to the floor, and will probably fall off every time you stand up. All the staplers shown will do the trick. Some tools also drive brad nails up to 1-1/4 in. For chair backs, use 1/2-inch or 1-inch light-blue foam. Tip: Old, dull side cutters are perfect. For seat backs, 1/4-inch is sufficient. Create a 'butterfly corner' by first tucking the center under, then folding and tucking the material to each side. Our latest shed is also a pavilion—and you can build it, too! When the plywood insert or overlay has been foamed, it can be upholstered with your choice of fabric. Remove the upholstery and cushion material. This type of fabric usually has a textured feel or look and is typically characterized by corduroy-like threads running across it. This will ensure that the upholstery doesn’t move. Staple on a dust cover (Photo 9). Our seats, for example, were made from a pegboard-like material secured to a 1x3 framework, covered with horsehair padding. Place the new cushion on the chair backrest and cover it with the upholstery fabric on all the ends. Purchase enough wide ribbon to wrap around each chair back. Fabric prices vary wildly; you might find something for $5 in the bargain bin or spend 10 times as much. Flip the seat over, then center your material on top (Photo 5). Take some upholstery batting and put it on the fabric, especially in the center, where there is no wood. After all, a well-crafted chair will hold up a lot longer than the upholstery you cover it with, no matter what the specific material might be. Apply hot-melt glue to the points where the back cushion makes contact with the chair frame. If you have a flat back chair you can omit the tufting. Repeat the process along the back edge and sides. If you're going to be stapling for hours on end, invest in a pneumatic stapler. Using spray adhesive, attach the foam to the hardboard on the chair back. Is your favorite chair beginning to look a little ragged or threadbare? To avoid tearing the foam, pull the knife toward you, using light pressure and short strokes. Right where the tip of … When the insert or overlay fits -- and it should fit loosely to allow for fabric on all sides -- use the cardboard template to cut plywood the same size. Cut the batting so it overhangs all sides of the seat by about 4 in. They grip staples well but don't cut them off. Examine the frame of the chair and use a drill to make holes through the frame in at least four locations. When the corner looks symmetrical and tight, flip the seat over and staple the folds in place. Depending on how the chair was originally made, this can get messy, and you might find that you need a few more tools to get everything off. It comes in colors that designate density. Use your entire hand, not just fingertips, to tighten the material. 1 Chair Duh! Cut off the excess batting and upholstery so you don't end up with ugly lumps at corners. Start your upholstery job by cutting a piece of cardboard that fits perfectly on the seat to make the overlay. interesting. Place the upholstered cushion on the seat and secure it by placing screws into the holes and driving them in tightly with a drill/driver. Pry and yank the staples with a small, flat tip screwdriver and pliers or side cutters. Flip the seat over and drive staples to hold the corner tight. 528. Fix the screws of appropriate length and fasten them tightly. To my surprise the back of the chair is just cardboard with upholstery tape around it. Spray the seat of the chair with adhesive and put the seat foam in place. Starting at the front middle staple and working toward the corners, use the palm of your hand to lightly stretch the material, then drive a staple every 2 in. We used a sander to taper the edges to match the profile of the old one. Keep the staples within an inch of the edge, and secure the batting and fabric at the same time. With the seat facing up and the front edge overhanging the work surface, drive one staple through the bottom to hold the material in place. Chairs of any kind -- including those with straight backs -- can be upholstered. We used one for our project and it worked flawlessly. Cut the fabric around them so you can easily get the seat back on the chair. By this point, all of the burlap pieces should be added to the chair, however, in this case, there is still layer of burlap that is needed to cover the back of the chair, along with stitching down the coconut fiber to the back of the chair. I hate when I forget my own advice!! We bought our fabric, foam and batting at a fabric store. if your chairs are squarish, mark which is from and which is back. Just as home improvement stores will cut plywood for little to no cost, large fabric stores can cut foam core to size. Stop 2 in. Wooden Dining Room Chairs Kitchen Chairs Upholstered Dining Chairs Kitchen Furniture Pallet Furniture Kitchen Chair Cushions Rattan Chairs Furniture Cleaning Furniture Logo. We are no longer supporting IE (Internet Explorer) as we strive to provide site experiences for browsers that support new web standards and security practices. 2 Webbing I’m using traditional jute webbing. The cushions can be foam, cotton or other natural materials. If there's a slight lip on the seat or the back of the chair, fit the cardboard inside the lip to make an insert. Make sure you hold the nose of the stapler firmly against the seat base when you pull the trigger. Remove the padding and inspect the seat. This way you'll avoid little dips and puckers in the pattern. For chair seats, choose either black or purple foam that is 1 1/2 inches to 2 inches in thickness. Expect the unexpected and adjust your game plan accordingly. Place the upholstery foam on a clean, flat work surface. wider in all directions than the size of your chair seat-on a flat work surface, then set your foam and seat on top. As mentioned, I’m using an antique child’s chair I picked up from eBay for $25. Plus: How to Install a Chair Rail. Press the cushion into the chair back with your fingers. Place a section of batting-4 in. Fix a Wobbly Chair: Reglue a Wooden Chair. Repeat the process along the back edge and sides. Check your pattern alignment one more time, then flip the seat upside down. 3. using your cardboard template, trace and cut foam for each chair. Fabrics that are smooth and slick can stretch, can be difficult to use and should be avoided. Our previous table I picked up off of craigslist and I was going to refinish it to be black, but this new table came as a pack Part 6 of 10: How to Reupholster a Wingback Chair – Create a Pattern for Seat and Arms and Sewing. Remember to add around 6 inches to the outer area. This is an important step. Purple tints are medium; black colors are the stiffest. How to Upholster: Outside Back of a Dining Room Chair (part 1)In Part 1 , Kevin discusses how to strip the outside back of a dining room chair. Trace around its edge with a marker. Use a serrated bread knife (Photo 3) to cut just inside the line. Hold it there for a few seconds to bond it to the chair. If the chair frame has lips on the sides, the cushion should fit inside the lips. Place the beads of glue two inches apart down the length of the back. This picture shows where they were attached in the back (the strings were stapled to the frame). Begin the tufting process. Pull it as tight as possible without tearing and staple in place. These drive the staples flush with the pull of a finger and allow you to be extremely accurate in the placement of your staples. Cleaning upholstery begins with vacuuming to remove as much dust and debris as possible. Many of today's upholstery tools and techniques are the same as those used 200 years ago, but with a few modern updates. Trace the outline of the seat onto 1-in.-thick foam. If you’ve chosen to purchase new foam, remove the old padding and glue the new foam to the wooden seat base. When the corners are done, flip the seat over and cut off the excess material. There are special tools just for yanking upholstery staples or tacks, but you can get by with basic hand tools (Photo 1). (Photo 6). Bevel or soften edges with a sander or router to match the old contour. Use an X-Acto knife or razor blade to cut the cane as short as possible. Place it on the frame and, always folding the edges, attach it to the wood with the staple gun. Purchase one and a half times the size in upholstery or outdoor fabric. Specializing in hardwood furniture, trim carpentry, cabinets, home improvement and architectural millwork, Wade Shaddy has worked in homebuilding since 1972. Dang. I made sure to remove these, so that when I put on the new fabric, the batting would be nice and smooth. The chair frame is assembled and finished, while the upholstered parts are made separately. The upholstered parts are screwed or glued to the frame before shipping. How to Cover a Chair in Fabric to Make a Vanity Chair, How to Repair an Antique Spring-Bottom Chair, How to Make a Cushion Top for a Cane Chair With No Caning, Reupholstering & Adding Foam to a Dining Room Chair. I'm not an expert. Seat bases can be constructed from a variety of materials: solid wood, plywood, pegboard and others. To give foam cushions adequate backing, some type of stiff material must be used. Also, make sure you have enough to cover it so that when you put the seat back on, there's no fabric hanging out. Move around the perimeter of the fabric pulling, folding and stapling until the fabric is stretched tightly and evenly over the foam. Stop stapling 2 in. For seat backs -- since they are thinner -- use hot-melt glue to secure them to the back of the chair. Complete DIY projects like a pro! Here we'll show you how to reupholster a chair with a 'drop-in' or 'screw-on' seat-a style shared by many benches and stools. 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