Covering a loose chair seat is an ideal first upholstery project: the seat is usually easy to remove, you work on a flat surface and the difference is immediately visible. Yet it is the preparation that determines whether the result will be tight, comfortable and durable. With the right upholstery fabric, good filling and carefully placed staples, you give an old chair a second life.
First assess: what needs replacing?
Turn the chair over and remove the seat. It is often fixed to the frame with four screws. Keep the screws separate and, if necessary, note the position of the seat, especially with chairs that are not completely symmetrical.
Then look at the underside. Is the board sturdy, flat and free of cracks? Then you can usually reuse it. Plywood is stronger than chipboard and holds staples better. If the board is warped, softened by moisture or cracked around the screw holes, replace it first. A beautiful fabric cannot repair a weak base.
Also check the foam. Foam that recovers slowly after being pressed, feels hard or is visibly crumbling needs replacing. With a dining chair, comfort is important, but filling that is too thick or too soft makes the seat look bulky and can make it harder to push the chair under the table. For most loose seats, a firm layer of foam about 2 to 4 centimetres thick is a practical choice. If you want a little more seating comfort, you can apply a thin layer of Dacron over it.
Choose fabric according to how the chair is used
Not every beautiful fabric is automatically suitable for a chair seat. A seat has to cope with more friction, pressure and stains than a backrest or scatter cushion. So choose an upholstery fabric that suits the intensity of use.
For a kitchen or dining chair, a tightly woven upholstery fabric is often a safe choice. Chenille feels soft and warm, but for intensive use it needs a quality with sufficient abrasion resistance. Velvet gives a luxurious look and is beautiful for chairs that are used less heavily. Corduroy and bouclé bring lots of texture into the interior, but bear in mind the direction of the pile or rib and the fact that dirt can settle more easily in a pronounced texture.
Faux leather or Skai is practical if the chair is used regularly by children, stands in a hospitality setting or needs to be wiped clean quickly. The material is easy to clean, but has less stretch than some woven fabrics. So pull it evenly to avoid tension and creases. Do you have pets? Then a tightly woven, pet-friendly upholstery fabric is often wiser than a loose weave that claws can catch on.
If in doubt, order a fabric sample first. The colour changes with daylight, artificial light and the colour of the wooden chair. You also only really feel the texture and stretch when you have the material in your hands.
What you need to cover a loose chair seat
For this project you don't need much complicated equipment, but good materials make the work noticeably easier. Make sure you have upholstery fabric, foam if needed, Dacron or fiberfill, a staple gun with suitable staples, a flat screwdriver or staple remover, sharp fabric scissors, a tape measure and a pencil. An electric or pneumatic tacker works fastest, but a decent hand tacker is perfectly fine for a single chair seat.
Choose staples that grip firmly in the board without coming through the top. For a standard seat board, staples of 6 to 10 millimetres are often suitable, depending on the thickness of the board and the fabric. Always test on the underside or on an offcut of wood first. Not every tacker handles every type of staple equally well.
Measure the seat and allow plenty of extra material all round for the fabric. As a rule, allow at least 10 to 15 centimetres extra on each side. With a thick seat, rounded corners or a fabric that frays easily, a little more margin is wise. You can trim off excess fabric later, but you can't add fabric that is missing.
Step 1: carefully remove the old upholstery
Pull off the old fabric and any bottom cloth once you have removed the staples. This is not an unnecessary step: the old covering is a useful pattern for the new fabric. Note how the corners were folded and whether the fabric had a visible front or a fixed grain direction.
On older chairs, the old filling may be built up of several layers of fabric, cardboard or hessian. Only remove what is worn, loose or unhygienic. A stable base layer can stay in place as long as it doesn't make the new upholstery thicker or uneven.
Step 2: cut the filling accurately to size
Place the board on the foam and trace the shape. Cut the foam with a long, sharp knife slightly inside the line, about 3 to 5 millimetres. This makes the edge bulge less when you pull the fabric taut later.
Then place a layer of Dacron over the foam. This layer improves the transition to the edge, prevents the structure of the foam from showing through the fabric and gives the seat a softer, fuller look. Cut the Dacron generously so it can be stapled to the underside of the board. On a very thin, flat seat Dacron is not always necessary, but with most upholstery fabrics it gives a neater result.
Step 3: determine the direction of the fabric
Lay the fabric right side down on a clean surface. Place the Dacron, foam and seat board on top. Now check the direction of any rib, pile, check or stripe once more. All the chairs in a set must have the same direction, otherwise the whole looks restless.
With velvet this is extra important. If you brush your hand over the pile, you often see a difference in colour. Decide in advance which way you want as the front and stick to it consistently. Also check that a pattern is centred. A pattern that runs crooked on one chair stays visible, however neatly the rest is finished.
Step 4: staple the centre points first
Don't start at the corners. Pull the fabric lightly taut on one side and place one staple in the middle. Then do the same on the opposite side. Repeat this for the other two sides. Turn the seat over and check straight away that the fabric is straight and the filling evenly distributed.
Then work from each centre point towards the corners. Place a staple every few centimetres and keep alternating between opposite sides. This spreads the tension and prevents the fabric from pulling crooked. Pull firmly, but not so hard that the fabric thins, a pattern distorts or the filling is compressed on one side.
Step 5: finish the corners neatly
Corners require the most patience. On a square corner, fold the fabric tightly inwards, as when wrapping a present, without creating thick wads under the seat. On rounded corners, make small, even pleats on the underside. Pull each pleat flat and staple it before making the next.
Only trim off excess fabric once all the corners are fixed and you are happy with the top. Leave a small edge beside the staples. If you cut too close to the staples, fraying fabric can come loose over time.
Step 6: check the underside and fit a dust cover
A bottom cloth gives the loose seat a professional finish. It covers staples, fabric edges and any filling on the underside, so the chair looks neat from below too. Cut the cloth slightly smaller than the board, fold the edge under if necessary and staple it all round.
Make sure the screw holes remain free. If necessary, carefully pierce them with an awl or screwdriver. Also check that no staples are sticking out. A protruding staple can damage the chair frame or stop the seat from sitting flat.
Step 7: fit and test the seat
Screw the seat back onto the frame without tightening the screws fully straight away. First make them all hand-tight, check the alignment and then tighten them evenly. Sit on the chair for a moment and check that the seat is stable, doesn't wobble and that there is no tension on the fabric anywhere.
Do you see a small crease close to the edge? It can sometimes still be corrected by removing one or two staples and re-tensioning the fabric. Don't wait too long: the sooner you correct it, the easier it is to get the fabric lying nicely flat again.
A carefully covered seat doesn't have to be a complicated project. Choose materials that suit daily use, work calmly from the centre to the corners and take your time over the finishing. At BLADI upholstery fabrics you will find upholstery fabrics, filling, Dacron, staples and tools from stock – so you don't just refurbish a chair, but enjoy sitting on it for years.
