Replacing chair cushions can give your dining room a new look.
An old or outdated set of dining chairs can be an eyesore in your home. If the structure of the chairs is sound, you can replace the cushions to give an instant fresh look to your dining room. In doing so you can both change the cushion layer as well as select a new fabric for the seats. For standard size dining room chairs, you should be able to recover two chairs with approximately one yard of 54-inch-wide home d cor fabric.
Instructions
1. Work with one chair at a time. Turn the chair over on its back so you can get to the underside of the seat. Unscrew any screws you see along the underside that attach the seat of the chair to the frame. There are typically only four screws with one at or near each corner.
2. Pull the seat off the chair frame and use a flat-head screwdriver to pry up the staples that hold the fabric to the seat bottom. Remove all staples and discard the old fabric and old foam.
3. Spread out your fabric with the patterned side down. Set a piece of foam or batting over the center of the fabric. The foam you use should be the thickness you want for your chair cushions, or stack multiple layers of batting to achieve the thickness you desire.
4. Lay the board of the chair seat over the foam or batting and trace the outline of the seat over the cushion layer. Cut off excess foam or batting as needed along the traced line. Replace the seat board over the cushion layer once it is cut. Cut the fabric around the shape of the cushion approximately 6 to 8 inches away from the padding all around.
5. Pull the fabric up along the front side of the chair seat and wrap it around to the back of the board. Insert staples through the fabric and into the board along the front every inch working approximately ½-inch in from the edge. Repeat this step along the back side of the board.
6. Wrap the sides of the chair around to the board and staple in place one at a time. Each of the four corners will be sticking up but won't yet be attached. Fold a corner over the board and hold in place. Fold the pucker of fabric on either side of the held corner over the board and allow the puckered fabrics to cross over the corner. Staple through the bulk of the material to hold the fabric in place and create a smooth corner.
7. Set the recovered seat over the frame of the chair. Realign the screw holes of the frame with the screw holes of the seat board. Replace the screws to attach the new cushion to the frame. Trim off any excess fabric that may hang down under the chair.
Tags: , dining room, foam batting, seat over, , chair cushions