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Upholstery; How to Make a Removable, Structured Chair Cover

I’ve made covers for the vast majority of our living room furniture. Each time I do it I get more skills and now the room is looking really good. Most of the time we don’t need to buy brand new furniture, a fabric change can make all the difference. It saves the environment too!I’ve used the same pin to pattern technique that I talked about in this post here (you should definitely go read it to get tips on the right cotton and needles to use as well as other upholstery essentials). I did this because I knew taking the chair cover apart would be extremely time consuming and I’ve now finished so many upholstery jobs like this I knew I could. I hope with this detailed step by step how to you’ll be able to too. There are lots of pictures so that it will be really clear. Let me know in the comments if it helps.

I should point out before I start that I’m self taught in all my upholstery techniques, but this work for me. I would advise you before you start to read the entire instructions through.

Prior to starting your project it’s a good idea to photograph all the details of the chair cover construction so you can refer back to it throughout even though you’re not taking it apart.

Step 1 – The Outside Side Arm

I actually kept the old cover on for this as I wanted a guideline for the seam that runs underneath the arm of the chair. I started by taking a piece of fabric (still on the whole expanse) and pinned it to the length of the existing seam. When you are satisfied with the position of the fabric pin all over the area that you want to use to fix it in place, then cut the fabric mirroring the shape of the piece you want. In the bottom image you can see the curve of the front of the exterior, side arm.

Leave a generous amount of fabric allowance cut the rear fabric too and then, taking the length all the way to the floor, cut along the length of the floor until you reach the other side. Congratulations; you’ve just completed your first no pattern upholstery piece.

Pin the fabric along the existing seam under neath the arm of the sofa.

Step 2 – The Inside Side Arm

Next start on the inside of the arm.

It’s good to have some piping to give the chair more definition. I often use flanged piping as ii’s easier. Pin the piping to the existing line, just as you did before. Then lay a piece of material over the inside of the arm of the chair – again, keep all the length of material together at the moment. You need to make sure that it is positioned well in terms of the pattern and the structure. It is also good to think about how it is going to match to the existing piece of fabric below.

Make a note of the main pattern on the exterior of the arm, in this case a rose, and see where your fabric repeats that (see the images below). Reposition the fabric at this point to ensure it can be included well in the final design.

Roughly pin what will be the inside arm piece of fabric to the exterior arm piece and again pin all over the inner arm to fix the material before cutting. Then, allowing for a generous excess of fabric, cut the fabric so that it extends beyond the arm of the chair, covering about a quarter to a third of the seat as well as part of the lower back of the chair. Then cut the fabric.

When you fit your fabric you’re going to push some material down the side of the chair to make it snug, so you need sufficient material for this.

When you have your second piece of material undo all the fixing pins then remove your two pieces material to a comfortable area to work. Then re-pin the joined fabrics, so that the pattern is accommodated the best but ensuring that they stay in the same place in terms of the pattern.

Note where any piping is and attach an appropriate amount with pins whilst the fabric is still in place.

Sew the pieces together using your zipper foot to accommodate the piping.

Step 3 – The Front Chair Arm

When I cut out the first chair panel for the exterior arm I was left with a square of fabric attached to the rest that I knew wouldn’t be useful for a main part of the structure so I cut it off like this…

I sectioned of the additional fabric square from the exterior arm to be used later.

I used this piece of fabric for the front of the arm as well as the upper, side of the seat.

Identify a part of the pattern you want to use, in this case I isolated out a smaller rose and positioned it centrally to the front arm. Fix in place with lots of pins again, paying particular attention to the sides of the structure so you have a clear view of what you need to be doing.

I noted before hand that this panel of the arm needed to extend all the way down the length of the chair, so you’ll see the material extends beyond the arm itself. Your photos of the chair before hand can help you when you make decisions like this.

Cut out the shape of the front of the arm, again allowing for a generous amount of fabric. Then pin the pipping around the shape of the front of the arm. I’d noted my piping stopped a few inches below where the seat started on the interior of the part, but it would need to have piping all the way down the exterior, so I cut and pinned the piping according to this.

Sew this onto the material.

Identify an area of the fabric that you want to have on your from arm in terms of pattern and pin this randomly to the chair to temporarily fix it.

Section 4 – The Front and Back of the Chair

Position the fabric so that it best displays your fabric’s pattern. I try to get my material so that it is as close to the edge as possible whilst allowing for the pattern in order to save material. You can see below in the second and third pictures this in practise.

As this is a structured chair the top of the back has a roll type shape. I did this in two separate pieces as the original cover had that. It turns out that underneath in the middle there is a very slight increase which I’d never have known. So those photo notes where worth it.

I pinned all the way along and under this roll and then cut along and down the side of the fabric – again, leaving a generous amount of fabric.

Position the fabric so that it is centred with a piece of the pattern you like. Pin it to fix it.

Section 5 – The Back of the Chair

This piece adjacencent to the fabric I cut for the front was sufficient for the back of the chair (they were uneven in width to accommodate the pattern of the fabric. Folding the top of the material over and inwards and with the pattern facing the right way pin the fabric in place along and underneath the scroll by pushing the pins deep into the chair upholstery.

Placing pins down the sides enables you to fix the material to ensure that the pattern is straight.

Cut it off parallel to the floor, as with the others.

Replace the pins so that only the two pieces of fabric are connected and then sew along the line.

Folding the top of the material over, pin the additional material against the back of the chair ensuring the pattern is positioned correctly again.

Section 6 – Side, Top

Position the fabric so that it is displayed well then liberally pin to fix it whilst working. Cut around the shape allowing for a generous amount of material. Make sure to extend the material down to where the external, arm piping is as shown.

Attach the piping to sew, allowing enough to reach the external, side arm piping and a little more as well as enough to reach the floor at the back. Sew in place.

Position the fabric so the pattern is displayed well, then liberally pin the area to fix in place.

Pin around the front and back of the side panel as shown below. Be sure to only pin and sew around the side arm – but;

* leave about an inch at the back spare (ie don’t go all the way down the side panel).

*Don’t go all the way down the front either, just go to about an inch below the piping of the external arm as shown.

Take the material from the chair, fold the material edges underneath and re-pin in the same position in order to create a smooth edge and hem. Sew together and then turn the fabric inside out and trim the excess material from the underneath section leaving about one inch of fabric spare.

Pin the material for the front and back of the chair where it connects with the side arm.

Repeat section 1 – 6 for the other side of the chair up until the pinning of the fabric for the front and back of the chair onto the top, side. Take into account the next point though.

Step 7 – Space for a zip

We’re going to add a zip at the other side, so only pin and sew to about two inches below where the front and back pieces of fabric meet under the ‘scroll’.

Following all the steps for the other side of the chair on to it’s mirror side, but only take the pinning and sewing of the back of the chair to about one or two inches below the scroll type shape.

Step 8 – Sewing Down the Sides

It’s best to complete the next few steps a little bit at a time even though it’s frustrating having to take off the heavy material again and again.
Start by finishing off the part of the top, side of the back rest where it tailors down to meet the side piping. Fold the fabric under to reveal the piping and pin in position to the other piece. Prior to doing this it’s best to have pinned the fabric to the opposite side to the length of the chair edge to ensure the fabric remains in the right place. Just push the pins through the fabric into the upholstery of the chair itself. This way when you pull and pin on the arm you’re working on you won’t pull to much fabric and end up with a skewered result.

Tuck the piping under the fabric as you reach the horizontal piping and pin in position. Sew this part.

Fold the material and pin in place the remaining area of the top side.

Pin the horizontal piping to the fabric so that it curves slightly in order to taper it off as it meets the back fabric. Fold and fix the fabric and pin in position. Sew in place.

Pin in place the material over the tucked piping. Then sew in place.

Then when this is finished pin the vertical length of piping along the edge of the back fabric of the chair. It’s helpful to re-pin the arm in position as you did the back fabric before to make sure it fits well.
Sew this in place.

Refix the back of the fabric in place as before with pins pushed into the chair itself prior to pinning the piping to the rear piece of fabric. Sew in place.

I made sure that these lengths were sewn as far as the top, rear leg as I knew I’d need to do work to fit the fabric to the underneath of the chair too.

Take the back piping and pin it along the length of the rear of the exterior arm panel.

Step 9 – Sewing the Zip

Opening the zip pin it the front side then sew in place. Be sure to have the end of the zip length go up under the part that you’ve already sewn.

Then close the zip again prior to pinning the zip to the back fabric, folding the material over and under so it fits snugly. Open the zip to ensure there isn’t any blockage to its function and repin the zip when you’ve ensured it is allowed to work.

Again, only sew to the top of the chair leg.

Pin the zip along the length of the horizontal edge of the arm. Sew in place. Do this with the zip open.

Section 10 – Sewing the base front

I used an off cut of material this section, ensuring it could be placed with the fabric in the right direction as well as cover a quarter to a third of the flat, seat area. I gauged the width so it was the width of the chair, then I fold the ends under and pinned it in position so that they ran along the horizontal lines of the front, arm bases. I sewed like this so that there was an obvious seam as I thought it looked aesthetically better.

Notice how my seam starts at the same point where the seat of the chair stops folding inside the arm. Any excess piping was fitted behind this added section, so that it comes to a natural end where the seat starts.

Section 11 – Sewing the Seat

The excess fabric of the base front, interior arms and the seat back now need to be connected to each other as well as the seat.

Start by connecting the excess material of the interior arm to the front. Lay the interior arm material flat then connect it to the folded under front, base material with a pin. You need to sew here so that there is a seam between the two piece of fabric, not allowing any gaps. Do this on the other side as well.

Pushing the unsown edge into the chair side I pinned the two pieces of front and side fabric together prior to sewing.

Next get appropriate amount of material for the base – one that covers it as well as some of the sides as shown in the first image.

What you’re intending to do is attach the seat to the other fabric whilst maintaining a sufficient amount of excess fabric so that you can push this down the sides and back the chair to make it fit better when completed, whilst allowing some movement of fabric in every day use as well as being able to take the fabric off to clean.

It’s easier to work with the whole thing inside out. Start by pinning the seat fabric to the top of the front, base; sew this. Then do the same with the sides and back panels. Sewing in between each stage is a lot easier than trying to do it all at once as these areas are uneven.

Place an appropriate amount of fabric to cover the seat and some of the sides on the base.

Turn the material back the right way and zip up the side prior to ‘fitting’ the chair by pushing any excess material down the arm sides and back. It’s amazing how such a mess can be made to look neat huh?

When this sewing is finished turn it round the right way and push all the excess material into the sides to make a good ‘fit’.

Section 12 – The Velcro Fastenings

My structured chair already had one half of the velcro fastening glued and sewn into the chair as it originally has removable and washable covers. If yours doesn’t you made need to do this yourself.

First of you need to go around where the legs of the chair are and pin so it follows this line. On my chair the fabric sits above the the rear, square legs but tucks underneath the from, screw in legs. So I just did this to the back legs, but continued in the same vein as below around all of the front.

Go around the base of the chair pulling the fabric tight and pinning a hem about one inch in extension from the base. You’re going to sew your corresponding piece of velcro to this area and then bend and attach it to its mirror under the chair base. In this way it will give the chair that fitted look and keep it in place.

When you have removed the cover from the chair to sew it go around the pin hem and, as there should be sufficient excess material, fold the fabric back on itself to cover the edging within the hem. This way you won’t have any frayed area under your chair.

Sew the hem first, then attach the corresponding velcro strip to the hem and sew again.

Pull the fabric tight and then pin a hem about one inch below the base of the chair.

For the velcro strip I suggest using a zig zag stitch so that the strip is secured over its width. You don’t need to worry about doing this as it won’t be seen – it will be folded underneath the chair after all. I said earlier that i use my zip foot throughout, nut if you’re going to use a zig zag stitch its necessary to change to an ordinary foot first. Sew, then fit your cover to the chair.

Section 13 – The Seat Pad

Lay the fabric onto the seat pad and ensure that you position the pattern well if there is one.

Pin the piping around the exterior of the seat pad staying as close as possible to the structure. Cut the fabric away from the whole allowing about an inch of excess material. Sew in place.

In order to take the cushion cover on and off to clean it you want a zip, so need to include an opening that covers about one third of the back. Pin the length of the zip to the piping flange attached to the seat material with the zip teeth in line with the piping itself. The zip should run in a U shape at the end. My seat pad has a slightly tapered design so I made sure that the zip was at the narrower end.

Cut a length of material that will fit the depth of the seat pad along with the length needed to surround it. I used an off cut for this as I’d bought a job lot of material (see my tips on bargain, upholstery material finds here) and I wanted to save as much material as possible for another job. As a result I didn’t want to cut into large, whole piece and used two slim, offcuts. I just sewed two lengths together, making sure the pattern side that I wanted faced each other so that the seam was the right way when opened.

This meant that I had to ensure that any seams would be on the sides of the cushion to disguise them and I considered this when positioning my fabric prior to pinning the next section. Even if you have one, long continue length you’ll need to consider having the seam connecting the two ends of fabric at the one side for the same reason.

With the zip closed and the edge of the depth fabric folded to give a hem, pin along the length of the zip. Make sure that there is enough of a hem to completely cover the zip and touch the upper piping when pinning (you can see this best in the fourth and fifth pictures below). Prior to sewing the zip to the depth fabric sew a horizontal line about an inch before both ends of the zip to hold them in place and stop your zipper head getting lost within the fabric. It’s best to sew the opposite end to the zip head with the zip closed (so that the zip head is away from it). Then open the zip fully, before re-zipping and opening it only slightly, ensuring the sides are still parallel before sewing the other end.

By doing this you should have also corrected any pins that block the zippers function prior to sewing the length.

Continue pinning the rest of the depth material in place around the seat fabric and then sew this in place too.

To join the two ends together I pin all the way around allowing one edge to overlap the other. I fold this top edge over at the end and pin it along the depth. when the entire length is sewn I just continue straight over this area as if its a continuous run, then I sew along the depth. You can see this in the seventh image below.

Lay the fabric on the seat pad so that the pattern is nicely positioned.

Follow the same method to make a section for the other side of the seat cushion. In the final image above you can see that the sewn top and sides of the seat pad have been placed onto the seat pad itself. Do this then turn the seat over keeping the fabric in place. Then pin the depth to the other seat cushion piece as below. You should now be able to unzip your cushion and gently tease it out of the cover, ensuring the pins remain in place. Turn the whole cover inside out then sew in place. Trim off any excess on the interior so it doesn’t bunch, leaving about 1 inch of material.

One word of warning about doing your own upholstery; you become obsessed with keeping your furniture pristine and any spills from the kids become a red light situation! Nevertheless it is satisfying to see your home come together for minimal amount of money and you suddenly develop more of an appreciation for the skills artisans have!

I’m going to do an update soon on our living room and how it’s being gradually changed over the year.

That’s as detailed as I can make it. If you give it a go let me know – would love too see some pictures! Any questions just drop a comment in the box!

Villedieu des Poêles

I love this town, which is about a fifteen minute drive from where we live here in Normandy, France.

The town itself is wonderfully ancient, with touches of the medieval about it. Considering so many small towns took a hammering under the liberation by the allies at the end of the war this is something I am truly grateful for.

This is largely thanks to the wartime mayor who, in 1944, approached the US commander in charge of the operation in the area. They were on the verge of bombing runs to ensure no Germa soldiers remained when the mayor approached the leader and persuaded him that there were no German soldiers left. He put his life on the line to save the town by offering to ride in the front of a military jeep with him through it to show him that this was true. when the Germans withdrew from Villedieu, they left a sniper who shot some of the first US soldiers to enter Villedieu, before being neutralised. Villedieu was thus saved from major destruction.

Nevertheless the commander had been right to be so concerned; on their retreat the German command had left behind a lone sniper who had managed to kill numerous soldiers of the liberating forces until he himself was eliminated.

Historically the town was a centre of metal-work, especially the brass and copper pans and basins from which the poêles in its name derives. It is also famous for its specialised manufacture of large church bells, which was started by immigrants from Lorraine around 1780. For this reason the villagers were traditionally called Sourdins, from the french word deaf sourd. The hammering of copper pans and bells inevitably took their toll.

Villedieu, town of God, owes its name to the religious order Knights Hospitaller which we now know as the Knights of Malta. Henry I, who was at that time King of England and Duke of Normandy, granted Villedieu to this order in the 12th century.

They were alternatively know as Order of Knights of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem during the time of their establishment and were originally an early modern Catholic military order who were headquartered in the Kingdom of Jerusalem until 1291, on the island of Rhodes from 1310 until 1522, in Malta from 1530 until 1798 and at Saint Petersburg from 1799 until 1801.

The Hospitallers arose in the time of Henry, early 11th century, during the great monastic reformation. Considering their journey through different countries it is considered that the advanced coppersmithing technology was presumably imported from the Middle East by the Knights.

By the early 14th century, the Corporation of the Coppersmiths of Villedieu was officially recognized by the Kings of France.

In contrast to the people of the surrounding area the people of Villedieu were strong supporters of the French Revolution. This is thought to be primarily because the Revolution abolished customs duties between French regions; before the Revolution, copper pans exported from Villedieu to Brittany, 50 km (31 mi) away, faced higher import duties than copper pans from Portugal.

Their support wasn’t just in principle either – they physically fought for the republican movement.

The Chouannerie was a royalist in 12 of the western départements of France, particularly in the provinces of Brittany and Maine, against the First Republic during the French Revolution. The inhabitants of Villedieu fought with the Chouan troops, and were overcome. However they escaped thanks to their women who threw stones, flowerpots and chamber pots from second-story windows at the pursuing Chouans. The general heading the Chouan troops was getting ready to bombard Villedieu and set it on fire. However, like the war time mayor, a delegation of the town’s women negotiated with him successfully. As a result the inhabitants were given a short time to hide their valuables prior to the Chouan soldiers then plundering the town for food and clothing.

The moral here; don’t mess with the women Villedieu des Poêles .

I often find my way into the village as they have plenty fo amenities like large supermarkets, industries, a large outside market as well as a hospital, opticians and other essential services. These shots below are from one of my favourite parts in the town, the beautiful river that winds through it. There are ducks on it and, as you can see on the photos below, they managed to get out and wander all of the road. Traffic slowed for them and people shoot them out of the way. So lovely.

The town has small, courtyard like roads veering from the main walks. I’m not sure if you are allowed to go in them, but there are certainly little restaurants and shops down some of them. Each has their name on an arch way and a brass plaque in its entrance.

I think you’ll agree from the photos I’ve added it’s a study town, even on a rainy day like the one I took these photos on.

25 Inspiring Fireplaces

Fireplaces make a wonderful focal point in a room; instantly catching your eyes to fix on a place and therefore drawing you in, giving you a sense of welcome.

I really don’t like the one we have though; it’s corner position makes it hard to decorate and it’s chunky structure is at odds with the rest of the house design (you can see it in the first image below).

Added to that the flu is too small as it’s not an original part of the house, but one that’s been created. You can’t light a fire there as a result – the man who came to clean the chimney told me it was dangerous and only small fires could be lit there!

So as I consider what I want to do with a fireplace this and the following points are thing I’m considering.

There are two chimneys that are built into the walls. One is in the room that we now use as a dining room ( so we won’t be using this) and the other is in the corner of one half of the living room – facing the current constructed one. I don’t know why they’ve added this extra fireplace; perhaps because they wanted to keep the bi-fold doors that are there, perhaps because the current fire location is more central to the room. However the original positioning of the two fireplaces would have Ade sense in this pre 1850s house where central heating originally didn’t exist.

However this second fireplace itself poses a problem. If a fire was lit there you couldn’t see it throughout the room, at least in the additional sun room, and it isn’t central to the original room either, as it’s in an awkward corner.

Therefore there are two key points I want to ensure are present when we go ahead with a new fireplace;

it can be seen throughout the room, preferably from the dining room too – this may be tricky as the room is more of an L shape in the living area,
I want to combine both the traditional, period decor elements of the rest of the house with the more modern living room elements.

With that in mind I came up with this list of options and inspiring images to help me on my way; maybe they’ll help you on your way more.

Current Position – Inset Fireplace

The current position could, in theory, be relatively easily be fitted with an inset fireplace. However as you can see in the image above (that’s a vintage woodturner with some fairy lights in it, not an actual fire) the current, square shape doesn’t actually go to the wall edge. It would therefore have to be extended.

In addition there’s that small flu – so perhaps it wouldn’t be safe enough for an inset fire which give off a lot of heat due to the fact they’re so efficient.

If it is possible I’m thinking along the lines of these simple, classic designs that aren’t so modern they jar with the dining room decor…

l like how this modern design has this glossy, tile effect on the chimney casing. Not only could I have an Art Deco style tile pattern – giving the room the air of going from one period era to another – it would be away of mellowing that chunky, angular affect of the current design.

The only downside would be there is not mantle – what to do at Christmas????

A final, inspiring image I found in this series is this corner, inset fireplace with a mantle…

Mantle…check, adaptable design…check…can be seen throughout the room….

Here’s my problem. You can in theory see this fire throughout the room, but the right hand glass with be flat against the wall. So you’ll only just be able to see it in our summer room when you’re sat on the main sofa.

The “summer room” is just an extension with large windows in it, I’m calling it a summer room to differentiate it from the period part of the house. We use the room all year round though.

We won’t light the fire that often, it will be just for when the heating breaks down or special occasions like Christmas. As it will be a treat I want to be able to get the most out of it, if you have a cosy fire going you really want to be able to see it after all, and as a result this option is unsatisfactory on all levels.

Summer room, corner fireplace

Did you know you can put a woodburner in a conservatory? (Find some information on that here).

In order to see the fire through the length of the room I’m considering this as an option. Our summer room doesn’t have so much glazing, and there are only stone walls on the side wall and left hand corner. As a result we’d have to have a corner fireplace. A woodburner would be the obvious choice….

The alternative is an inset fireplace like this one…

I love this option below, but for many reasons that I don’t want to bore you with, it wouldn’t suit our home. I put it in here so that it may give you an idea that you hadn’t had before (if it does and you are able to do it, FYI, I’m jealous).

Positioned beside the entrance doorway

Exploring the house I’ve found integral chimneys. In France chimney breasts are encased in thick walls most of the time, unlike the UK where they tend to jut out of thinner walls. In this picture below of the central part of the area you can see a radiator. On the other side of the wall is the old chimney breast that now houses the heating system, which has a flu going up through it.

However the boiler doesn’t take up the entire chimney breast, so it is a possibility to remove the current radiator and put a woodbrner there, with a flu going into the chimney using the spare space. It could look something like this directly next to the door..

Or this ivory version..

However that would take a lot of plumbing work and may well need the disruption of our tiled floor.

A Fireplace on the back wall

The other hidden chimney beast is on the opposing back wall seen below…

The difficulty with this is the positioning is very close to the bi fold doors which separate the living area from the formal dining area, effectively splitting the entire space in three. It is not central to the wall itself, but takes up the left side of the wall. In effect it starts in the middle of the painting and ends where the diving wall just out. So I wouldn’t so much have an option like this…

….or this…

I’m uncertain if I had a woodburner if I could reposition it to the centre with an angled flu pipe (an open fire certainly wouldn’t be suitable so close to the doors). In any case, with the L shaped layout you couldn’t see it throughout the room.

Central Corner Fireplace

We could remove one of the central doors and then have a corner fireplace, which could be done one of two ways. By placing a woodburner in the corner…

Or a traditional option of an inset fireplace like this…

Do you get the impression I was seriously thinking of this as an option? Yes, there are a lot of images!

Double sided, room divider

Another way to ensure that all the room can see the fire is it have the fire as a room divider like these to the side, with the flu being directed into the existing chimney.

Both are more modern options. Alternatively we could go for either modern or traditional elements but in a central fireplace by removing two of our four bi fold doors, and putting in a chimney breast to house either an integrated fire or woodburner. All these would require a flu which would have to go up to our bedroom skimming the wall and into the loft through the roof. However, even though this sounds intense, the ammount of work involved will be at least comparable to all the other options.

This is what I found..

The first option is a little too rustic for me, and the second too modern, but the third (in the words of Goldilocks) is just right. If you look at this comparable final image, my favourite, you can see how it would look with doors either side too….

As with some of the options above it is double sided, so you could see the fire from the dining room as well as every other area in this oddly shaped room. With an inset you could turn the fire down when you wanted to eat and therefore remain comfortable too. I love this classic look, which can easily combine both decor styles. I could have a more elaborate style on the dining room side, with cleaner lines like the one above on the more modern, living side.

What do you think? Which styles inspire you?

20 Tips To Help You Do Your Own Upholstery

1. Thread

The first tip is to consider the thread you’re going to use. Your furniture has a lot of use. If you’re sat on your sofa reading this think about how it’s impacting the fabric and seams. As your body pushes the filling to compact the material is pulled down also and this causes stress on the seams. If you’ve ever worn clothes that are too tight (guilty) you’ll have noticed how this extra pressure on the seams causes them to give. You don’t want that to happen to your sofa after you’ve spent lots of time making them (and it’s hard work).

So when I started to upholster my couches I made sure to buy thread that was specifically made for upholstery. I got mine here and even though it was expensive it was well worth it. You can alternatively use a zig zag stitch to make your seams stronger, but I would highly recommend this.

As you can see by the picture the spoils are big as they’re designed for professional machines. However I just place mine in something beside the machine and it continues to work fine.

2. Needles

As with the thread your choice of needle is essential. You’re going to be going through thick fabric designed to take a lot of stress, so your needle will face a lot of stress too. I was delighted with how these needles worked, they didn’t snap and considering I’ve broken a lot of needles when I sew that’s saying something!

3. Material

When selecting the material you need to consider how strong it is and what you’re using it for. I’ve used lighter fabrics on dining chairs when I’ve upholstered them in the past and, even though they looked stunning when I first did them, they didn’t wear well over time. They’ll have to be redone soon meaning not only more time but additional cost too.

If it’s something like an occasional chair you can use mid-weight fabrics, but you have to be honest about how often it will be sat in. For example this Queen Anne chair is only ever sat in when all our other seats are taken when we have a lot of people over – so high days and holidays. So a mid-weight fabric was fine for it.

4. Amount

I use this chart from here to assess how much material I’ll need, but I always order more than necessary by about three metres. It means that if something should go terribly wrong I have additional material quickly to rectify the situation- and as it takes a long time to reupholster a sofa or chair you don’t want additional days waiting for new fabric to complete a frustrating project.

Also if you ever have a section of your upholstered piece ruined beyond redemption then you can replace that section if need be. No matter how good Vanish is (and I always have a bottle of the spray around for wine spills and it’s been a life saver) it can’t fix holes. My original sofa fabric has holes in it from wear and although there was a patch of fabric so I could salvage it prior to having the time to cover it it’s still a patch, even though it’s successfully concealed (for my tips on this look here).

5. When selecting the design think about this

Does it have a big bold pattern? If so you’ll also need to think about pattern repeat and the additional material you’ll need to make sure the pattern ‘flows’ throughout the sofa. This is tricky – this was the first sofa I upholstered with a pattern and, although it’s not a deal breaker, I wish I’d thought more carefully about how I was going to match the pattern when I was cutting out.

This leads me on to the next topic too…

6. Buying fabric as inexpensively as possible

Good upholstery material is expensive. A durable, heavy weight fabric is going to be setting you back at least £20/€25 euros a metre. Since a regular couch require up to 16 metres, excluding piping, then that’s a lot of money (for my pocket anyway). It’s still less expensive than a new couch, but the whole point of learning this skill is to save as much as possible.

What I do now is go on eBay and put in ‘upholstery fabric’ in the search engine and then in the criteria options on the let hand of the page I tick over ten metres, bail and whole rolls. You see when a fabric is distincontinued as fashion and seasons change there are often half or whole rolls of fabric that are removed from general sale an de they pass into the hands of discounters who sell them as whole batches on eBay.

So for example, as duck egg blue goes out fabric in that shade passes on to discounters.

I bought th fabric for the sofa above for £50 for 27.5 metres and it cost me about £30 for delivery. I used eBay uk because there doesn’t seem to be a similar discount system in France. However even with the cost of delivery it works out at about £3 per metre!

As we have two sofas I stick to similar tones so that I can buy sufficient fabric in this way.

7. Wash the fabric before you start

I didn’t do this once and when I did wash the fabric it shrunk significantly. Luckily it was the first couch I’d covered and I’d sewn them too baggy and after washing they fit perfectly. For obvious reasons I wouldn’t want to chance repeating this experience and risk them going too small next time.

8. Piping

As upholstery fabric is expensive you may want to consider whether you choose a contrasting piping that’s premade or make your own piping. Making piping is relatively easy, however it takes a lot of fabric when you consider the price. So you may save time and money by buying piping separately.

In terms of the sofa above I used the same fabric and made my piping as there was a significant amount left over.

9. Re-use fabric from elsewhere

I’ve trawled second hand shops before searching for good quality, mid weight curtains that have been kindly donated by someone. I’ve used this kind of material to cover occasional chairs too.

I’ve mentioned the first couch I covered, which I don’t use in our living room now as it’s a sofa bed. I’m probably going to use it elsewhere and I think I will cover it again in more neutral tones. It was pink velvet and with the lilacs seemed too feminine in our new living room. However I hated wasting the fabric, so I dyed it and covered another chair with it. Once you learn the skill of upholstery covers it can be very beneficial in getting a new look relatively inexpensively.

10. Pinterest

I spoke in this post about how I used Pinterest as a source of inspiration for design details. I’ve also used it to find upholstery how tos. They’re so good I decided to do this list of tips rather than my own!

11. Unpicking V pinning

In order to get a pattern for your sofa you can do it one of two ways. You can remove and unpick all of the previous covers, preferably salvaging zips, cord for piping etc as you go. To do this it’s best to have a marker with you to label each piece (cushion 1 front, cushion 1 side, cushion 1 back etc) as well as details such as whether it’s joined to the other parts by a seam, with piping, has a zip fastening etc. It’s also a good idea to get you phone out and photograph each section as you taken it apart to give you a record to refer back to in case how you’ve marked each piece suddenly stops making sense.

I tend to use that method when a cover is beyond any chance of saving for obvious reasons. However if that’s not the case, and if feeling the original material through the new fabric isn’t an issue, I take the material still in its entirety and pin it to the part I want to replicate. I then cut an approximate size of the piece and use that as a pattern to make a cover for the top of the upholstered piece.

I will do this as a unique post later because it bares explaining in detail. However it’s far better in your initial upholstery attempts to go with the unpicking method if possible. There will be trickier areas where you will have to work out how to make a slipcover work – you’ll have to ensure the material fits neatly on the seat of the chair frame and under the cushions for example. Previous experience will help you do this.

12. Placing the new ‘pattern’ to get the most out of your fabric

As I said in fabric selection you need to be able to ensure that any pattern is used successfully prior to cutting. Back to this sofa you can see how the couch cushions have the main focus of the pattern centrally to the cushion cover. If you flip these over you’d see that it’s not the case the other side. It was only after I’d cut out the first part of these that I realised I needed to be thinking about doing it! Lesson learned.

13. Use pinking shears for the hems

I haven’t the capacity on my machine for a blanket stitch to protect the edges – at least I don’t think I do, not an expert sewer – so I use these to stop fraying.

14. Cutting before mitring

This is an obvious, but so essential it bears spelling out just in case. Upholstery material is thick. A piece of fabric, sewed onto piping grosgrain, then another piece of thick material! If you’re not mitring you’ll find it won’t fit under the sewing machine foot.

15. Design details for mistakes

The first couch I covered I didn’t notice that the previous cover that I’d unpicked and used as a pattern didn’t actually fit anymore. I’d bought it second hand and the cover had evidently been washed and had shrunk. As a result when I went to put the new cover on it didn’t fit. It took me ages to realise what had happened and I confirmed it by spreading the old cover along to back of the couch – it was too short!

I was so frustrated. What was I going to do? All the cutting had taken place and there was no material big enough to replace what was needed. Unfortunately as the cover has now been used for my new arm chair as I’ve previously said, I can’t show you the eventual outcome. However what I did was make a sort of capped sleeve of pleated fabric to create extra width.

Simmilarly when I reused that material I found there wasn’t a piece big enough for the back of the sofa. So I divided what would be the back into three parts and made a button, fastening feature to disguise it. The back of that chair you can now see below.

16. Alternative fastening

Just because you have your ‘pattern’ doesn’t mean you can’t make intelligent changes. My original couch covers were very fitted and it was always a struggle to get them on and off when they needed cleaning. So when I recovered this couch I used a flap and butting fastening. A great way to make it easier and prettier!

17. Zip foot

Obviously you have to use a zip foot for the zip closing, but to be honest I keep mine on throughout. Thick fabric and piping elements make the material a challenge to handle and it helps with my use of time to just use this.

18. Make sure that you organise your time

I spent a week working pretty consistently on my last armchair, so you need to know from the outset this will take some time and plan accordingly. Obviously you can cover the sofa with a throw, but you don’t want a naked sofa around a long time – particularly if you have little ones around. I stripped an ottoman to cover recently, went to the kitchen to do something and found my youngest had torn holes out of the foam!

Which leads me to…

19. Remember your mirror images

Unless your going to re-use zips etc you can just unpick one back cushion and one seat cushion. Then reuse the pattern with the opposite side to create a mirror. It means at least one set of cushion covers will remain on the couch at all time throughout and that’s less of an opportunity for little fingers.

It also means you can unpick the back cushion, make the two cushions, then unpick the base cushion for the same reason.

Obviously if you use the pinning method above you don’t have to strip the sofa or armchair of the current material and therefor you can spend longer completing the project.

20. Upholstery staples

When upholstering with a staple gun you must ensure your staples are fit for purpose. This means making sure they have sufficient depth, so always buy the largest staples to fit your gun and a heavy duty staple gun that fires well.

I’m about to do a post on covering the main body of a couch with a scalloped edge so stay tune for that; hit subscribe and follow on Instagram and Pinterest to be alerted when it comes out. Any comments – or tips you want to add – I’d love to hear from you!