Reupholstering Furniture is an Easy DIY Home Improvement ProjectReupholstering dining room chairs is a very easy home improvement project to undertake, and the results give any room an instant face-lift. We had six heavily stained dining room chairs in desperate need of a makeover. The cost of professionally reupholstering the chairs was prohibitive, so I took the plunge and bought upholstery fabric from a local craft and hobby shop. The total cost of reupholstering our six dining room chairs was $65, which included the shipping cost for the special-order fabric. This home improvement project requires no special skills: there is no need to sew, use heavy machinery, or make difficult mathematical calculations. I am not a "crafty" person and have no ability to sew, but I was able to recover all of our dining room chairs with little difficulty. The most difficult part of the process was actually removing the old fabric, which was held down with approximately ten million staples!
The only tools required for this project are scissors, a screwdriver, needle-nose pliers, and a staple gun. An Easy Way to Spruce Up the House Reupholstering: Tools and Fabric RequiredThe following tools are necessary to reupholster dining room chairs: Screwdriver to remove the chair seat (Phillips or flat-head, depending on the type of screws used to hold the chair seat onto the chair). Scissors or utility knife to cut the old fabric off the chair. Needle-nose pliers to remove old staples holding the stained fabric down. High quality upholstery fabric. For six dining room chairs, I required 2 1/2 yards of 54" width home decorating fabric. The fabric must be purchased in whole yards, so I purchased three yards of fabric. Upholstery fabric is sold in rolls, usually with a specified width. The fabric I purchased for my chairs, for example, had a 54" width. This was wide enough to accommodate two chairs. I purchased 3 yards of the 54" fabric to cover six chairs.
To determine how much fabric you will need, simply measure the bottom of each seat and add approximately 6" to the outside edge. This will give you enough material to wrap around the seat and staple it to the bottom of the chair. Choosing New FabricThe white, stained fabric on our dining room chairs was not washable. For our family, finding a cleanable, patterned fabric was a priority. Upholstery fabric should not stretch easily, or the fabric will warp and become loose on the seat over time. Choose a tight weave in a non-stretchy fabric. The pattern on the upholstery fabric matters: solids and random patterns are easier to line up with a chair seat than stripes. Despite the difficulty with aligning striped material, the upholstery fabric I fell in love with had a striped pattern: I simply lined up the fabric carefully with the chair seat and made sure the stripes did not get off-kilter during the process of stapling on the new fabric. Upholstery material is usually a heavy fabric, and may be made from cotton, polyester, vinyl, or other materials.
The "cleanability" of the fabrics will depend on the material: wool will have to be professionally cleaned, for example, while vinyl will be easy to wipe clean with a cloth. I chose a cotton/poly blend that was cleanable with solvents or water based cleaners. The label on the cloth will state how the material should be cleaned: check this label prior to purchasing your cloth. The "cleaning codes" on upholstery fabric are as follows: W: Clean with a water based cleaner. S: Clean with a solvent based cleaner (do not use any water or products containing water). S-W: Clean with water-based or solvent cleaners. X: Do not clean with water-based or solvent cleaners. Upholstering Dining Room Chair Pictures Click thumbnail to view full-size Upholstering a Chair: A Step-By-Step GuideUnscrew the seat of the chair. Remove the screws and set them aside in a safe place. Use scissors or a utility knife to cut away the old fabric. Use a flat-head screwdriver to pry up the old staples if necessary, and needle-nose pliers to pull the old staples out of the wooden seat base.
If the foam of the seat is in poor condition, replace it with new high-density foam. Simply glue to new foam to the wooden seat base. I did not need to do this with our dining room chairs. Cut out a square of upholstery fabric to fit the seat. I cut a square about 4-6" larger than the seat of the chair, to have enough fabric to wrap and staple under the seat. Place the seat cushion and wood base on the fabric, making sure the "right side" of the fabric is facing out. Grab a section of fabric and pull it very tightly: staple one side of the fabric to the wood base. Continue to pull the fabric until it is very taught and staple the fabric once on each side of the chair base to tack the fabric to the seat. Staple the fabric around the edges of the seat, pulling the fabric so that it remains taught. Pull the corners of the fabric in last, trying to create a smooth corner. You may need to cut some of the fabric away to get the best effect. Hold the bunched fabric very tightly and staple it down.
Repeat with each corner. Place the reupholstered seat onto the chair and screw it back into place. Why do you need to reupholster your furniture? My furniture is heavily stained and is not washable. I bought a great flea-market find, but the fabric needs to be replaced. My furniture is out-of-date and needs a more modern look. I changed the color scheme of the room and want the furniture to match the new look. Is it Worth the Cost to Reupholster Old Furniture?Where can I get wooden dining room chairs repaired?What can you do about flattened down Leather Sofa Cushions? Hello, this is Kiel with Angie's List. and searching for the category Furniture Repair to see our top rated providers in that area. for more information on the right provider for the job. Mon-Fri: 8:30am – 8:15pm ET Sat: 8:30am – 3:00pm ET Thanks so much!You have a funky but shabby chair that you can't bear getting rid of — or an incredible chain store sofa, but are unhappy with the boring stock fabric options.
You want to get upholstery work done but are new to this and have no clue what such a project would cost. Here are some examples of real people who have had work done--and what they actually paid. And we have also included some words of wisdom (and pricing ranges) from a handful of designers and upholsterers. Case Studies of Real Life Upholstery JobsHere are some real examples from friends who have upholstered various pieces of furniture. It should be noted, of course, that most of these folks live in Washington DC, which is hardly the country's best locale for bargain goods and services! If you live in a smaller town you can count on lower labor costs. Kevin: I wrote about Kevin's fabulous mid-century modern haven. Kevin knows his stuff and wanted only high quality work on his vintage furniture and chose expensive materials. His Knoll chair cost $450 to reupholster, and something like $650 total for the Spinneybeck leather material. His Knoll sofa was about $650 to reupholster and another $600 for fabric.
He recalls, "the Womb settee was really expensive to reupholster because I wanted it to original specs and you need someone with specialized expertise. It was about $1800 total for upholstery and fabric." Kevin recommends Dave Erbe (610-967-4658) for his high quality work and for being a "really nice guy."! Jen:Jen recently had a club chair reupholstered by Calico Corners and it was about $560 for the labor. Elizabeth:Was considering getting a Bergere chair redone but has put it off because of the price she was quoted. She was told the labor would be $395 plus about 6 yards of fabric. The chair's single cushion would have a Dacron wrap ($25) and if she chose down/feather it would be about $95. The real cost for Elizabeth was the Madeleine Weinrib fabric she lusted after, which was a whopping $250 per yard (meaning the fabric total would come to about $1,500! Sarah: Sarah got a basic contemporary 3-seater sofa reupholstered with similarly basic solid-colored fabric for $860, fabric included.
She says it was worth it because the sofa is very well made and super comfortable but the original fabric was irreversibly stained. Mary Anne: About ten years ago Mary Anne inherited two very heavy club chairs and a sofa from her parents. She found a really good upholsterer named Ana who was incredibly economical. The upholsterer stripped the pieces to their frames, reinforced the frames and redid the pillows in spring down, a combo of manmade and down (she regrets not doing full down). "Ana works out of her home. She and her son picked up the 3 pieces in Skokie and delivered to Downers Grove, a suburb of Chicago. Fabric excluded, she did the whole job for $800. It was a gift beyond belief. She is a magnificent upholsterer with emphasis on finishing detail. She was extremely careful of matching seams and patterns. For example, she explained that the 3 sofa cushions can be turned for wear, like a mattress, and alternated so that the fronts and backs match the back pattern of the couch at all times.
Even the arm covers match the pattern of the underlying arm of the couch." A few years later Ana covered 8 dining chairs, including 2 armchairs, with fabric backs and leather seats. All together the labor was around $1,000. Mary Anne's advice is to ask around in unlikely places: "I found Ana through my hair stylist! Ana has done work for major hotels like the Hilton and Marriott, so maybe ask at those types of businesses." Mary Anne also says that fabric stores can be a good resource for upholsterer: "Be careful though; make sure you see some of their finished work. If they're good, they're proud of it. Good upholsterers can give you great tips on fabric too." The Pros Weigh InBecause interior decorators are constantly referring out and contracting with upholsterers, they can offer a good general overview of the costs associated with upholstery. Annie Elliott of Bossy ColorAnnie Elliott of Bossy Color, an interior design firm in Washington DC, has some great, detailed advice for those considering reupholstering a piece of furniture.
Sofa: Allow 17-20 yards of fabric if you're using a solid or texture, but if you're using a large-scale pattern, you'll need more. Labor cost can range between $800 - $1000, depending on whether you have loose seat and back cushions or not. "Of course there are less expensive upholsterers, but you do NOT want to skimp on this, especially if a pattern is involved." Dining chair, seat only: You might only need a yard of fabric, but it will still cost $75-$100 per chair to upholster. Comfy living room armchair: "You might - shockingly - need 10 yards of fabric if you have loose seat and back cushions. If there aren't separate cushions or a skirt, you might be able to do 7 yards." Labor would be around $500. Bench or ottoman: You may only need a few yards of fabric, depending on the repeat. Labor shouldn't be too high; maybe $150 - $200 depending on whether there's welting, cording, etc. Annie says there are some factors that will affect the labor costs: • Tufting is labor-intensive.
Also, will the buttons be covered w/ the same fabric as the piece? That's more work for the upholsterer.• Welting (that cord-like edging) is also more work.• Zippers on the cushions • Making sure patterns line up. Geometric or striped patterns are harder to work with Other factors to consider include whether any structural repairs need to be done to the frame or springs and whether you want arm covers or delivery. Should you try to DIY? The only upholstery Annie thinks a novice should attempt is a dining room chair if the seat pops right up out of the frame. "There's practically a sticker on the bottom of those seats that says, 'Go ahead. Annie wrote a great blog post that provides some very wise advice and some case studies of actual upholstery costs. Meaghan McNamara Meaghan has an interior design and furniture rehab business in Washington DC (301-509-1098) . According to her, "the size, shape, and fabric all weigh in on your final price. But typically for an arm chair you are looking at $250 to $350 and for a couch it can be even more of a range in price anywhere from $600 upward."