My mother and I’ve efficiently completed reupholstering my desk chair, and it turned out so good! It’s not excellent, nevertheless it’s fairly good for 2 non-professionals who do reupholstery initiatives perhaps as soon as each three or 4 years.
Right here’s a take a look at the completed chair. Effectively, the upholstery is completed, however I’ve determined that I need to swap out the legs for a type of desk chair swivel bases, so these legs aren’t fully on. If they appear wonky, attempt to look previous that. I’m nonetheless looking for a fairly wooden swivel base on casters. So with that mentioned, right here’s a take a look at the completed reupholstered desk chair.
Right here’s a fast earlier than and after take a look at this chair.
So let me present you ways we completed up this chair. After I left off yesterday, the chair regarded like this…
And I had this uncooked edge of material displaying throughout the arms, wings, and the highest of the chair again.
So at that time, we nonetheless wanted so as to add the trim, nail heads, and stitch the seat cushion. To make the flat trim to cowl the uncooked edges of the material, I minimize strips of material to 1.5 inches vast, after which sewed them collectively end-to-end. With a view to sew them collectively, I positioned the ends collectively at a 90-degree angle and pinned.
After which I sewed them collectively diagonally.
That gave me an angled seam like this. The rationale you need to sew the seam diagonally is in order that your complete bulk of a seam isn’t fully in a single spot on the trim. This manner, the majority of that seam is unfold out over a bigger space, so it may be hid a bit simpler.
The trim for this half is only a flat trim, so there’s no cording wanted. I did a zigzag sew all alongside one fringe of the material to maintain my velvet from fraying, after which I folded the material into thirds lengthwise. First, I folded the uncooked, unstitched edge over…
After which I folded the zigzag stitched edge over that, ensuring that it overlapped the primary edge only a bit.
After which I sewed proper down the center. Right here’s what the entrance of that trim regarded like as soon as it was sewn.
With that trim sewn, I discovered the middle of the trim piece, and lined that up within the middle of the chair again and pinned it into place. After which utilizing my sizzling glue gun, I fastidiously connected the trim over the uncooked fringe of the material, ensuring to line up the trim in order that the sting of the trim was on the fringe of the wooden body. Since I used to be going to be including nailhead trim, I wanted this trim to be over the wooden body and never simply over foam and batting. If you happen to’re not including nailhead trim, you don’t need to be as cautious about placement, you simply need to be sure you’re masking the uncooked edges of the material.
I continued working from the middle of the again, across the nook onto the wing, and down onto the arm till the entire facet had trim masking that uncooked edge.
After which I completed it by glueing the tip of the trim below the chair and trimming off the surplus.
Then I repeated that complete course of, beginning on the middle of the chair again and dealing in the wrong way till the opposite facet had trim masking the uncooked edges on that complete facet.
With the trim connected, I used to be prepared so as to add the nailheads. I solely ever use particular person nailheads. I don’t like these nailhead trim strips the place you add an precise nailhead about as soon as each 4 or 5 nails as a result of I can spot these a mile away. That product, in my humble opinion, won’t ever give knowledgeable look as a result of these precise nailheads each 5 or 6 spots are at all times a barely completely different colour than the strips, they usually stick out like a sore thumb. So if I’m going to do nailhead trim, I’m going to take the time and do it the suitable method.
You should buy instruments particularly made to make this course of simpler, however since I solely do upholstery about as soon as each three years or so, I haven’t spent cash on particular instruments. You want a spacer , a hammer, and one thing to carry the nailhead. For my spacer, I used just a few caught collectively nails that have been the proper width. A tack hammer works one of the best, however I don’t have one, so I used my common hammer. And whereas I began off utilizing needle nostril pliers to carry my nailheads, I discovered that the nostril of my wire strippers labored so significantly better due to the flat form of the nostril which allowed me rather more management over the nailhead as I hammer it in.
So while you’re not a professional, and also you don’t have the entire particular instruments, I’m very a lot a “use what you’ve received” form of individual. A strip of nails, a wire stripper, and a building hammer labored simply high-quality and received the job executed.
Right here’s one facet fully finshed.
After the nailheads have been all connected, I wanted to complete off the trim by including coated cording across the backside of the chair. Protecting cording is tremendous straightforward. Simply minimize a strip of material about 1.5 inches vast, place the wire in the course of the again of the material, fold the material across the wire, and stitch the 2 layers of material collectively as near the wire as doable. A zipper foot on the stitching machine works completely for this.
After which to connect this cording, I flipped the chair on it’s entrance in order that the underside of the chair was accessible, and I positioned the cording on the sting of the body…
After which used this cardboard strip to carry the cording, and stapled them each into place.
The aim of the cardboard is to maintain the cording from rolling again on itself. If you happen to attempt to staple cording on a chair like this with out utilizing the cardboard, you gained’t find yourself with a clear, polished look. The cording will attempt to fold again and roll up on itself in areas, and also you gained’t have a constant look throughout. The cardboard strip is available in a roll, and is accessible at any upholstery store and at locations like JoAnn Materials.
The final remaining step was to make the chair cushion. I’m not going to do a radical tutorial on the way to make a cushion. I’ll say this. If you happen to don’t have any expertise stitching, the cushion could be venture to both rent out or perform a little bartering with a pal who is aware of the way to sew. Stitching cushions with cording and a zipper isn’t a newbie venture, particularly when working with thick upholstery cloth. However I’ll present you the fundamental idea right here.
For the cushion, you want a high and backside piece, that are equivalent. Then you definitely’ll want the sting strip that goes all the best way across the fringe of the cushion. And you then’ll want two lengthy strips of coated cording.
The strip that goes across the edge is make of three items of material plus a zipper. Piece 1 covers the entrance edge and a lot of the edge on either side. Items 2 and three embrace a zipper, and this piece is lengthy sufficient to not solely cowl the again fringe of the seat cushion, but additionally to wrap round to the perimeters about two or three inches on either side. So when you get piece 2 and three sewn along with the zipper, you clean it out in order that it’s flat, after which sew it to piece 1.
Set that apart after which work on the highest and the underside. You’ll need to connect the cording to the highest piece as a separate step, after which connect the cording to the underside piece as a separate step. In different phrases, don’t ever attempt to sew every little thing collectively (high, cording, and edge piece) in a single step. Get the cording connected to the highest piece, after which sew on the sting piece. Sew the cording onto the underside piece first, after which sew on the sting piece. This image is my mother stitching the cording onto the highest cushion piece as a separate step earlier than even trying to stitch the highest to the sting piece.
After which when you get all these items collectively, you’ve gotten a cushion cowl, and you’ll insert the cushion. And also you’ll most likely want an additional set of palms for that.
As soon as the seat cushion was executed, the chair was completed!
I’m so happy with how this turned out. The material is so deep and wealthy in individual. I’m unsure if that’s coming throughout within the photos, nevertheless it’s such a deep pink with out being too darkish.
And with it being velvet, it’ll be straightforward to scrub when my cat sleeps on it, and I’m hoping she gained’t be capable of shred this one since velvet appears to be a clawing deterrent for her.
I’m actually enthusiastic about discovering a brand new, fairly swivel base for this chair. I believe swapping these black legs for a fairly wooden swivel base will take it up just a few extra notches.
And eventually, right here’s a peek on the chair by my pink cupboards and behind my desk.
This can be a HUGE venture that I can now mark off of my listing! This was undoubtedly the most important venture I nonetheless needed to do on this room, so it ought to a fast dash to the end line now.
Addicted 2 Adorning is the place I share my DIY and adorning journey as I rework and embellish the 1948 fixer higher that my husband, Matt, and I purchased in 2013. Matt has M.S. and is unable to do bodily work, so I do the vast majority of the work on the home on my own. You can learn more about me here.
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