Reupholstering dining room chairs with a detachable seat is quick and easy to update the piece’s aesthetic. Add additional foam and batting to the seat if the cushioning isn’t remarkably comfy. Whether your seat needs repair or you just like repurposing old pieces of furniture, you’ll love this simple method.
Getting Rid of the Old Chair Covers
It’s time to unscrew the reupholstering dining room chairs from their base. Remove the screws holding the dining chair seat to the chair base using a screwdriver. To loosen the screws, turn the screwdriver to the left. Keep the screws you used to secure the seat to the chair base after completing your project. Remove the tacks or staples from the cloth to release it. Remove the nails, fastening the fabric to the seat using a hammer or re-upholstery multi-tool. The tool’s tip should be inserted below a tack or staple and then pulled out. Since you’ll be attaching the new materials using a staple gun, throw away the tacks and staples.
Remove the cushioning and fabric. Once all tacks and staples have been removed, gently peel the cloth away from the seat. Remove the seat cushioning as well if you want to replace it. You should use the foam to replace the hay and fabric cushioning in older chairs. If you don’t have a replacement seat base, you may cut a piece of plywood to the measurements of your seat base and glue the new foam and fabric to it. Place the old seat on the plywood and use a marker or pen to draw around the edges of the existing seat to acquire the proportions you need. Using a hand saw, cut following the lines you drew.
Removing and Replacing the Dust Cover and Padding
Using the reupholstering dining room chair’s measurements, cut a piece of cloth for a dust cover. There is no need to worry about this piece’s rough edges since they will be covered with foam and fabric. You may cut around the borders of the set by laying a dust cover cloth on top of the seat base. The cushion will not sink into the seat base if a dust cover is used. Staple the dust cover to the seat backrest using duct tape. Staple the dust cover to the seat base at the edges. Tighten the fabric. Using scissors, cut 2 in (5.1 cm) thick foam padding to fit the seat.
It would be best to place the seat frame immediately on top of the foam. To cut out the foam, use a serrated or electric knife to trace over the lines you’ve drawn on the foam. You may use a pencil or marker to trace around the object. You may use an electric bread knife or a turkey carving knife to cut foam cushioning. Foam-padded seats should be placed on batting. Use batting as a base, then place the foam on top of the foam, followed by the seat frame. The foam and seat must be centered on the batting. Make sure the foam borders and seat frame are aligned. Don’t be concerned with the batting’s proportions. Once the seat and foam are in place, start with a big piece and cut out what you need.
Cut the batting 2 inches (5.1 centimeters) beyond the seat’s perimeter. At least 2 inches (5.1 cm) of batting should be pushed up and over all four corners of the back of the seat. Cut the batting to these dimensions to ensure that you can wrap the batting around 2 inches (5.1 cm) on both sides. When you’re ready to cut, mark the batting to indicate where to cut it or cut it while wrapped around the edge of the seat. Begin pinning the batting’s edges at the center, then work outwards. Work outwards from the center once the batting has been stapled to the seat. Repeat the process on the other side, working outwards towards the seat’s corner from the central pin.
In one corner of the seat, gather all of the extra fabric and fold it in half at the same corner. Staple the cloth at the corner of the seat in the middle of the fold. Staple the batting in place at the corner. Do this for each of the chair’s four corners. Remove around 1 inch (2.5 cm) of staples from the seat’s inner surface. Remove the staples and trim the extra batting to a length of 1 inch (2.5 cm). Afterward, cut the extra batting to minimize bulk and avoid loose threads. If you cut the batting too near to the staples, it will come undone during the sewing process.
Bottom Line
Reupholstering dining room chairs is a fantastic alternative for a piece that has undergone some wear and tear, but you do not want to replace it. It is also a method to renew a furniture item and bring some new flair into your home without purchasing new furniture.
However, there is more involved with reupholstering than purchasing new, so you will have to carefully consider your alternatives when determining how you want to go ahead.