My first (and probably last) attempt at reupholstery

Posted by Kristin on Friday, April 5, 2013.

I have done some simple reupholstering projects...such as ottomans and chair seats...nothing too hard.  And I think anyone can tackle these with some fabric and a staple gun.

Then I saw a chair out by the curb for trash pickup and started to wonder if I could possibly redo an entire chair.  I stealthily dragged the chair across the yard and driveway and wrangled it to my back porch.  Wasn't it a beauty?
I began the task of taking the chair apart.  It is a wonder I didn't require a tetanus shot...

A good crafting blogger would write a tutorial from this point on.  I'm not a good crafting blogger.  I still don't think I know enough to tell anyone else how to do this.  Plus I'm sure I did most of it wrong (such as retying a couple springs with kitchen twine).  If it weren't for the help of the two ladies at Bargain Barn Fabrics in Montvale, VA, this chair would have never gotten past this point.  I was down there three times asking questions and buying more supplies.  A smart woman would have just let them redo the chair.  I'm not a smart woman.

After I stripped the chair of its ugliness, I repainted it a fresh aqua blue.  I retied some springs, covered those in jute webbing, stapled the burlap back, and then covered my seat in dacron.  It looks better already!


 This chair project required covering the seat, making a cushion with cord around the edges, using tufting in the back, and attaching the back fabric using flexible metal tack strips.  The cushion was easy to do, but it frustrated me that the medallion design was not evenly spaced across the fabric so I couldn't line up the top and bottom pieces perfectly.  The tufting wasn't hard, but I still didn't manage to get all my buttons tight enough.  The flexible metal tack strip that went along the top of the curved back was a little like wrestling Jaws.  But it is on there!

I love how it turned out, but I can't find a home for it.  It didn't go with the living room (too blue), so I moved it to my bedroom.  I still think it looks a little out of place, but I'll live with it for a while before I find it the right spot.


6 Responses to My first (and probably last) attempt at reupholstery

  1. Shelly Penko

    Oh my word! That is the cutest chair! And it was...um...horrible, (sorry!) to begin with! You have some vision, girl! I absolutely love it and have always wished I could do stuff like this...mostly because I can't afford to buy it and I want it, not because I am fantastic and sewing and painting! :~D You've created a treasure. ♥

  2. Kristin

    Thank you Shelly! I chose this chair because it was free and I wouldn't care if I totally screwed it up. I could just drag it back out for the trash. Luckily, it turned out and I now have a new chair for around $100 in supplies. You have amazing talents and can create anything from paint, I just use fabric instead :)

  3. Amy Riddle, C.C.

    I absolutely LOVE how the chair turned out. Great work! I love that blue color...it's very similar to the color I just painted my craft room with. So in love with blue lately. Enjoy your new chair!

  4. Kristin

    Thank you Amy! Blue is such a refreshing color isn't it?

  5. Anonymous

    In luuuuuvvv with that chair, it looks so cozy + I can't get enough aqua blue...

  6. Kristin

    Thank you Laly! It is quite quite comfortable :)

Leave a Reply

LinkWithin