Craft: Reupholstering Dining Room Chairs
Archived on 02/20/2009
Turn your old chairs, or even thrift store finds, into custom dining room furniture. With some unique fabric, any chair that has a removable seat can become new again. The best part of knowing how to reupholster dining chairs is that you can change out the fabric whenever you change your décor. You can also use the same upholstery fabric for cornice boards or curtains, wall covering, throw pillows for an adjacent room, or to cover accessories like lamps and storage bins.
What you'll need:
- Dining room chairs with removable seats (see photo below)
- Thick, durable fabric
- Heavy-duty staple gun
- May need to cut new seats from plywood
- May need to replace batting or foam
- May need to add new screws and hardware
- May need to paint or varnish chair
Depending on the state your dining chairs are in when you start your project, they may need to be glued for stabilizing, sanded and painted, and they could also need end caps on the legs to keep them from damaging hardwood or tile flooring. Reupholstering is the last step of refurbishing dining chairs.
Remove the seat by taking out screws from the hardware beneath the seat (see photo). If the wood of the seat is in bad repair, use the old wood as a template to cut a new seat from plywood. With a screwdriver, remove any staples, nails, or tacks that hold the upholstery in place. Discard the old fabric and staples. If the batting or foam cushion is decaying, be prepared to replace it at this time. Batting or foam can be purchased at large fabric stores or craft stores.
Using the seat bottom as a template by laying it on the wrong side of the upholstery fabric, cut around the seat, leaving about 4" all the way around. The extra fabric will be wrapped beneath the seat. Now you're ready to reupholster.
Layer the wooden seat, the batting or foam, then the fabric (right side up). Turn this layered pile over so that the board is up. You may want to place the pile on the floor and press on the center of the board with one knee. Stretch the fabric around to the back of the board, and then staple it. Staple the four corners first. Then pull with even pressure and staple the remaining fabric to the board. For rounded corners, do not cut the fabric. Fold it under itself, like a dart, and double staple it. Once the fabric is secure and stretched to a tension that you like, trim excess fabric. Replace the seat bottom onto the chair with the original or replacement hardware.
Report Spam or Abuse
Request: Reupholstering Dining Room Chairs
Archived on 10/29/2009
How do I reupholster my dining room chairs?
By DEEHONI from MD
Feedback:
RE: Reupholstering Dining Room Chairs
Could you describe them a little more?
If it's just the seat, remove it, and either remove the cloth by prying out staples underneath, or if it's thick just put new fabric over it, wrap around to underside and staple that.
Obviously you cut your replacement material several inches wider than your chair top, 'all the way around".
The best way is just take one chair seat apart and look how it was done, and copy it. The old fabric can make pattern for new fabric if you take it off. (08/15/2009)
By PIKKA
RE: Reupholstering Dining Room Chairs
I just finished doing my dining room chairs. My chairs are quite old so I had to replace the jute webbing on the bottom as well as the padding. I found a place in Philly to purchase new high density foam for the seats, covered that with batting and then the fabric on top. You can either use tacks or a staple gun. It takes a little practice to pull the fabric snug, but you'll get the hang of it. The corners are the trickiest part. Good luck, I hope they turn out nice. (08/15/2009)
By RealtorRose
Report Spam or Abuse
Request: Reupholstering Dining Room Chairs
Archived on 08/14/2009
I am presently re-upholstering my daughter's dining room chairs. They have the seat cover and the edge with piping. I removed the old cover and picked the stitching apart and used the old piece to make a new pattern.
However, when I try and sew them together I end up with 2 in. in excess. I cut the pattern as is and measured a 5/8 in. seam. Not sure what I am doing wrong. I have even basted the corners and done small gathers to no avail. So I added 2 in. to the skirting and still end up with 2 in. of the seat cover to incorporate. I am rusty at sewing as I have not done it in a long time. But this should be 1-2-3 simple. Help please.
Jennifer from Ontario, Canada
Feedback:
RE: Reupholstering Dining Room Chairs
I've done the foam, wrap and staple thing on my own chairs, and it's by far the easiest way to do it, and makes the fit very nice. (02/21/2009)
By Mary T
RE: Reupholstering Dining Room Chairs
If you took apart the old cushion then you should only add 1/4 inch. It sounds like you measured your cloth for the new chair not on the grain and it will stretch. Try loosening up your top pressure (usually located as a nob on the top of your machine, even the old ones). Don't stretch your material, remember that cross grain is from selvage edge to selvage edge and lengthwise if top to bottom on the finished edge.
If this doesn't help then decide if the material is stretchy or the same as the old kind. Don't stretch the old cloth to measure the new one or just measure the bare bottom of the chair seat and add your seam to it and sew it up without the old one. Good luck and let me know if it worked. gbk (02/24/2009)
By fuzzytufts
Report Spam or Abuse
|
