How To Upholster A Chair

Learn how to upholster a chair and turn an inexpensive flea market find into a one-of-a kind treasure!  Even if you have absolutely no experience in upholstery, this is still a project you can do yourself. Save a lot of money in hiring a professional, and use these tips to easily teach yourself how to upholster a chair at home.

To upholster a chair, you will need:

• Three yards of polyester upholstery batting
• Three yards of upholstery fabric
• Three yards of cambric fabric
• 1" thick foam backing
• Foam adhesive
• Staple gun
• X-acto knife
• Pliers
• Screwdriver

Obviously, if you will be upholstering more than one chair, you will need to multiply the quantities of the materials needed. If you are unsure what any of the above materials are, ask anyone that works in a fabric specialty store. These people will be able to direct you to the proper item.

Now, follow these very simple instructions on how to upholster a chair, and in no time at all you'll be an upholstering pro! 

1. Flip over the chair and remove the seat and/or back with a screwdriver. Use a pair of pliers to strip off the existing fabric and any padding or foam backing that is present. Take care to remove any staples, screws, or other materials that were used to hold down the fabric. 
2.  Place the foam backing on the ground and lay the seat and/or back of the chair on top of it. Cut the area around the base with an X-acto knife as precise as possible. Spray the foam adhesive to one side of the foam backing and press it firmly in place on the base.
3. Take your upholstery batting and cut it so you will have enough to wrap the top and sides. You will want to completely cover the area around the seat and/or back of the chair. Place the upholstery batting on a flat surface and then arrange the foam-covered area on top of the batting.
4. Begin preparing the fabric so that it can be pulled into place. Using a pencil, mark the center point on the area you have been working with. Make a mark between all four sides of the base. (For example, mark the middle spot between the left and right corner, mark the middle spot between the top and bottom corner, etc)   
5. Lay your upholstery fabric on the ground and set base, with attached foam and positioned batting, down. In one motion, begin pulling the batting and fabric together to meet the mark you made. (One of the most important things to remember when learning how to upholster a chair, is to keep the fabric pulled tight at all times). Pull fabric into place and secure in all four points with a staple gun. Do not staple the corners! (The staples don't have to look organized underneath because you will be covering the area with the cambric fabric).
6. Fold the corner fabric diagonally and secure with a staple gun. Remember to stretch tightly. When the fabric is secure, trim the excess from the corners.
7. Cover all your work with the cambric fabric. This is a very simple process. Simply fold under the edges and staple neatly into place. These staples will be seen, so try to keep them neat and organized.

Finish by screwing the pieces of your newly upholstered chair back together.  Once you have followed the directions on how to upholster a chair, you will see that it is a very simple process. Start with a small project and work your way to something bigger. Good luck!