Restoring chairs: re-covering and upholstering

Restoring chairs: re-covering and upholstering

Learn how to bring old chairs and stools back to life

Almost every house has an antique chair or stool somewhere in the attic, whether it be a family heirloom or a favourite chair from your own childhood. Can’t bear to part with it? Then you can easily restore and re-upholster it with our tacker.

Restoring chairs: re-covering and upholstering

This is what you’ll need:

  • old stool or chair (e.g. dining room chair or desk chair)
  • 5–10-cm-thick foam material the size of the seat surface
  • fleece, dimensions: seat surface + 15 cm on every side
  • a hard-wearing fabric that is approx. 5 cm larger than the fleece on every side
  • tacker, e.g. the Novus J-17DA hand tacker, and fine wire (A-staples) and flat wire staples (D-staples)

And here’s how it’s done:

Remove the old seat

Remove the seat of the chair or stool. If necessary, carefully remove the old cover.

Restoring chairs: re-covering and upholstering

Cut the foam to size

Cut the foam to fit the seat.

Restoring chairs: re-covering and upholstering

Tack the fleece in place on the back of the seat

Lay the fleece over the foam and fasten the protruding edge to the underside of the seat with flat wire staples using a tacker. Staple two opposite sides first, so that the fleece remains taut.

Restoring chairs: re-covering and upholstering

Now staple the fabric in place

Lay your chosen fabric over the fleece and fold it over the edges of the seat. Here, too, you need to staple down two opposite sides first with fine wire staples. It is important that the fabric lies smooth and taut on the seat.

Restoring chairs: re-covering and upholstering

Replace the seat

Fasten the seat back on the stool or chair.

A special tip:

Different fabrics reflect different moods. You can quickly and easily conjure up a new ambience in any room with a newly upholstered stool or chair.

Restoring chairs: re-covering and upholstering