Tuesday, September 23, 2008

Reupholstering a Chair

A few weeks ago, my mom and I decided to tackle an upholstering project. We figured, why not? We've seen it done a hundred times on HGTV, how hard could it be right? Well, it wasn't easy but it wasn't impossible either. Here's a little photo montage :)

(Suggested Materials: Heavy Duty Staple Gun, Hammer, Pliers, Screwdrivers, Scissors, Needle and Thread, Sewing Machine)

Here's what the chair looked like when we began.
chair1We pulled off all the old fabric. This meant pulling out a bajillion staples. The important thing to remember in this step is to save all of the fabric pieces in tact. You will need them as a pattern to cut your new pieces from. Also, save all of the stuffing too :)



Next,chair2
you see the beginnings of the new chair. Each piece of new fabric had to be cut and replaced with staples. Remember how all the pieces were attached and attach them the same way, this way you won't mess up the look of the chair.

The chair had two side panels that had to be pried off. Once re-upholstered, they had to be nailed back in. Believe it or not, this was the easiest part of the process.


chair3
The trickiest part was sewing the bottom section back on to the chairs' pad. Tricky only because it had to be done by hand. Well, maybe not tricky, maybe just a pain in the you know what!


chair4
So after working on this chair for about a week and going through another bajillion staples it was finally finished! The fabric itself was inexpensive thanks to one of Joann Fabrics great clearance sales and the only extras we had to purchase were some staples for our trusty heavy duty staple gun.



I think the finished product was well worth it, especially when you consider the price of a new chair these days! lol :)

8 comments:

rose AKA Walk in the Woods - she/her said...

Wow - that's a big job and it looks like you did a realy swell job!

Bluebird Crafts and Collectibles said...

What a beautiful job! My mother in law picks up old furniture and re-does it. She has done it for a very long time...she would give you the Granny seal of approval! Wonderful fabric too :)!

Amber D. Mcnabb said...

Oh my goodness looks like it's right off the showroom floor! Great job! I've always wanted to learn how to make slip covers. Seems like on trading stpaces it takes all of just a couple hours.

The Stewart Stuff said...

I reupholstered a couch once.....it was a nightmare! It turned out adorably cute, but getting there was a real pain! Your chair is beautiful! Good work!

-10oneworld on etsy

Giftbearer said...

Well you sure did make it look professional! It's also really neat that it was something you and your mother could enjoy doing together.

Anonymous said...

Pinky that chair looks good. I've been wanting to learn how to upholster. I wish I knew where I could take some classes. I've looked under community colleges in my area here in Dallas but no luck. Looking under trade schools I haven't seen anything.

Designing Hilary said...

Nice! Do you make housecalls??

Anonymous said...

Looks fabulous! When my hubby and I have kids, I was thinking of covering our entire leather couch. You have given me hope! I am also thinking of covering a very very old dresser seat with a hand sewn tapestry- I can't wait for the finished look!