Recovering lawn chairs (part 3) complete!

I've been working on recovering a couple of patio chairs, here are links to the earlier stages:

Before the chairs were recovered
Making the pattern and assembling the chairs

Now, here's a look at how the chairs were completed!

My last post about recovering the lawn chairs ended with the fabric sleeve (new seat cover) being slightly too large. So, I sewed it smaller (about 1/2") and then reassembled the chair.

Since I was now satisfied with the fit of the cover it was time to sew the fabric at the bottom of the chair together.

To do this I folded the raw edges to the inside of the chair and used clips to keep it in place. Then, with an upholstery needle and sturdy thread, I hand stitched the fabric together.




Pretty simple. Here's how it turned out:




I have an extra yard or so of fabric, so I'm thinking about making little removable pillows to tie on to the back of the chair. We'll see!

Recovering lawn chairs (Part 2)

You may recall Part 1 of my attempt to recover lawn chairs. (or skip ahead to see the completed chair)

Here's where that project went since that post:

1) I cut fabric (with seam allowances) based on the paper pattern I made for the chair.

2) I sewed right sides together leaving the bottom edge open (I will hand stitch this together on the chair when it is complete)

3) I reassembled the chair (having to make holes in the fabric for some screws in the frame to fit through)

** for fabric reinforcement where the screws were to pass through it, I had a strip of two additional pieces of fabric that followed the frame, made button holes and used fray check around the screws location**

I made putting this chair back together more annoying than it had to be :)



4) Inspect the new fabric cover for the chair (before sewing the bottom shut)

In my case, the fabric cover was too large. (hmm I guess it would have been a good idea to actually make measurements hahaha)


More to come on this project, right now I need to take the chair back apart and sew the fabric case 1/2" smaller.

Recovering lawn chairs (Part 1)

A year or two ago, Hubby's parents gave him two lawn chairs they didn't want anymore...

We recently purchased a new patio set (table and chairs) so I was hoping all of our old lawn furniture (some from my parents too) would be thrifted now that we had a matching set (and the old chairs were hard to store). Unfortunately, Hubby felt differently and wanted to keep the ones from his parents.

Since the chairs were full of grime and holes, I agreed to keep them if they could be recovered. Hubby liked that idea.


Before taking the lawn chairs apart, I made a pattern and marked key locations of the chair. Usually I just use the old fabric as the pattern, but it seemed easier to use the paper in this case.



Yuck. Hubby told me he'd clean the chairs up way back when... that did not happen. I'm pretty sure this is even after I sprayed them down with a hose.

The picture below is after I took off a metal support bar from the back of the seat, and the base of the lawn chair.

The chair was ridiculously hard to take apart. So, of course I got my finger pinched by who knows what (nasty!) and was gushing blood everywhere.



I'll leave part one of this post at that... more to come later.


Skip ahead to see how the pattern was made (and tweaked) and the completed chairs!

Completed chair!

Well one chair has made it to the finish line! My first attempt at chair reupholstery was not a complete disaster :) (the other chair is still being taken apart)

I'm happy the final post for this project is on my Grandpa's birthday! He and my Grandma reupholstered these chairs a long time ago, and set me up with what I needed to try the project.

Here are links to the process:

taking the chair apart pt 1
taking the chair apart pt 2
covering buttons with fabric
reupholstering the chair back pt 1
reupholstering the chair back pt 2
reupholstering the seat

Here is the final product:



Front and back views of the chair

Once the other chair is done I'll see what we have left over for fabric (if any, may have to get more). I'm planning on making some throw pillows for the couch to tie the chairs in with it.

Also, I'm thinking of making a piano bench cushion in this fabric, again to tie things together in the room. That's debatable though... it might end up another color/texture/pattern :)

Tutorial - reupholstering the chair back pt 2

The back of the chair I'm reupholstering has fabric now!

Here is how it was done:

1) 3 panels were sewn together (seams matching up with the chair legs) using the old fabric as the pattern.

2) The fabric was stapled right side down, at the top of the chair (so it can be folded over to cover the chair and have a nice finished edge) A TACKING STRIP was used for this step (thin cardboard strip as shown below) to give a nice crisp looking finish.

3) Flip the fabric downwards over the chairs back. Make sure it is pulled completely tight along the entire top so there isn't extra fabric later on.

4) Pull the fabric tight and staple a few sections of fabric to the bottom of the chair, making sure it is centered.

5) Fold the edges under, then, using upholstery strength thread and a special curved upholstery needle, hand sew the two sides of the chair back to the fabric that was stapled on as the chair front. (pic below)

6) Finish stapling the fabric onto the bottom of the chair, folding raw edges under around the chair legs.


7) Get ice, or a cool rag for your very tired, red fingers :)

Here are the two chair pieces (and a cat toy)... next, on to assembly!

Tutorial - reupholstering the chair seat

The first chair being reupholstered now has the seat complete!


Here is a refresher as to what the chairs looked like when removing all the fabric in the first stages of this project.

Basically the seat of the chair ended up being taken apart to just the wooden frame with springs. So, here's how it was put back together:

1) New burlap was stapled (2 layers thick) for protection, over the springs that would be hitting the seat.

2) Another layer that protected the seat from the springs was reused and stacked on top of the burlap. I'm not sure what this layer was... but it was some thick mesh work of straw(ish) like material.

3) The old cushion was added on top of this (along with a couple additional sheets of batting)

4) The new fabric for the seat was cut to size, using the fabric that was removed as a pattern.

5) The fabric was stretched, smoothed, and stapled onto the chairs frame.

(the above pic shows through step 5)

6) Rectangular strips of fabric were cut (and sewn together to match the edges of the chair) to add to the side of the chairs seat.

7) Batting was also used on the side of the chair. (a few layers)

8) TACKING STRIPS! These were amazing. I couldn't find them anywhere in my area, so I had to order them from Joann.com. The picture below shows the process of adding tacking strips with the fabric and batting on the side of the chairs.

Tacking strips give a very smooth finished look, with sharp edges (as in not lumpy)

After stapling the fabric/batting/tacking strips down, the fabric was folded over the edge of the seat and stapled to the bottom of the chair.

So there you have a reupholstered chair seat.

Now, it's time to sew the back fabric on the seat back, and reassemble the chair!

Tutorial - reupholstering the chair back pt 1

Chair #1 is on its way to completion, slowly but surely.

Here is a refresher on the progress of the chair upholstery

First, batting goes on the back of the chair. Make sure the layers are smooth, and that they all cover the entire area that needs batting. For my first attempt at this I added a little extra batting underneath all of the layers that was just a little short of what I needed. The result: a very obvious lumpy look. Needless to say, I took that layer out.


Next, cover that batting with fabric! (I traced the old fabric panel that was removed from the chair and cut the new panel to match. Pretty simple.)



Oh, but make sure the fabric is smooth all over... don't hesitate to take out a few staples or nails to redo an area.


This chair had buttons holding the back fabric tight. So, here I added the buttons using an upholstery needle and some hemp.



This is what the back of the chair looked like with the buttons all fastened on.

Next up, adding the back panels to the chair back (which will require lots of hand sewing... I'll need to pick up some thread) and the chair bottom.

Tutorial - fabric covered buttons

I recently had my first go at covering buttons with fabric. I used the Dritz 1 1/8" cover buttons and bought the assembly kit and two refill packs. These buttons will be used for the chairs I'm upholstering.

Covering the buttons was pretty fun, and easy. But, make sure you buy the assembly kit too and not just the refills! (the pusher and form are really helpful)

Here is how it was done:

Supplies left to right: bottom of assembly kit, fabric to cover button cut in a circle (there is a template on the button package showing the size to cut), top of button, bottom of button, and the pusher that snaps the button together.

Here the fabric (right side down) is pushed into the assembly bottom with the top portion of the button.

Next, the bottom of the button is placed on top of that stack (with the loop facing upwards). Make sure the fabric is tucked under the button bottom so it smoothly snaps in place and is completely covered in fabric.

*This picture is a bit misleading* Place the blue pusher piece on top of the stack and push downward until you hear or feel it snap into place. I used a hammer to help carefully push but DID NOT hammer the button together.

Here are the buttons all covered and ready to go onto the chair. I'm looking for another excuse to cover buttons for a future project, these were really fun to make!

Foam Failure

I attempted to use foam squares and batting for the seat cushions of the chairs I'm upholstering.  Bad idea.  It would have taken an insane amount of batting to potentially make the chair look OK... so instead I'm re-using the old cushion in its entirety and scratching the foam idea.

This realization came to me after cutting the corners off of one of the foam cushions to match the chairs shape with my foam cutting knife.  I then thought the cushion was too thick and should be cut in half... which I did... and was covered in foam chunks (don't wear a sweater that collects everything in sight when cutting foam). 

Looking back on it, I think I could "make it work" (oh, how I love Tim Gunn!)  but oh well.  The foam cushions were pricey, so now I can return the one I didn't use. 

On a related note, the foam cutting knife was OK.  Better than scissors... but still not great.  I've heard the best way to cut foam is with a serrated electric knife, but I didn't want to spend the money on one.

Now for the fate of the cushion I butchered... I'm thinking it will be made into a dog or cat bed.  Probably a cat one... the dog still likes to eat his.

I love Mail :)

I got a package in the mail the other day... just what I have been waiting for!  My order from Joanns.com arrived, complete with the rest of the supplies I needed to finish the chair upholstery.  I'm such a geek for snail mail and packages (yes, it was still exciting even though I knew it was coming :)  )

Muslin, tack strips, and the much awaited foam cutter.  I also got some buttons to hold the fabric covered buttons I will be making onto the chair.  I thought about re-using the buttons that were hidden inside the chair before... but thought they were pretty neat (and antique) so I bought some cheap-o's to use instead. 

Oh, and I also ordered some other buttons... I have no idea what I'll use them for at this time, I just thought they were cute.

Fabric for chairs

I'm still waiting for tack strips and a foam cutter to come in the mail before I can continue on the chairs, but hubby and I did find fabric! 

The fabric we'll be using on the chairs is on the back of the couch.  This couch, pillow, wall color, and grey carpet was what we were trying to blend with. 

Before adding the batting and new fabric, I used wood filler to fill in the old nail and staple holes.

We're going to use the batting for the back rest of the chairs, and the foam cushions for the seat.  The foam is pretty close to the right size, but it needs to have a curved front.  We also got burlap, which will replace the old stuff to protect the cushions from the springs.  (there is another layer of something that protected the old cushion from the springs, which we will re-use) 

Tutorial - taking chair apart to reupholster pt 2

In the first post about reupholstering chairs I showed the seat portion completely dissected. Now, lets take a look at the back rest of the chair:

Here's the underside of the chairs back rest. As you can see, nail removal is not even close to complete!

Ah, the fabric on the back of the chair was beautifully hand stitched on, covering many more nails :)

Here we see the panels of the fabric (which hopefully I can duplicate) and where the buttons are attached.

Almost got it, except the tack strips (which were the easiest part to remove)

Fabric removal = DONE (well, on one chair that is, hubby still has some left on his chair :) )

Next step: Measuring the panels of fabric that were removed, and picking out new fabric!

Tutorial - taking chair apart to reupholster pt 1

About a year ago, my Grandparents offered these beautiful, old chairs to me since I had recently purchased a house and didn't have anywhere to sit! They suggested that I either have them reupholstered, or have a go at it myself because the fabric on the chairs was worn and a little dirty (I thought they looked great). I'm finally getting a chance to work on them, and am really excited! (oh, and I've never done this before, so things may get interesting...)

I don't know how many yards of fabric I'll need, so I'm removing the old stuff first to make measurements. Then it's time to pick out fabric. Thanks to the beagle destroying one of our couch cushions in the room the chairs will be in, I have a nice, large fabric swatch to match to new fabric. (Beagle is banned from the living room now, so the couch, and chairs can rest easy)

Here we go:

This comfy, goldenrod chair was actually reupholstered by my Grandparents back in the day (not sure when) So they did give me some tips :)

Here's the duo, before

This is what the bottoms of the chairs look like

Separated into the seat and backrest

There were TONS of nails holding the fabric on, and by tons, I mean the cushion portion of the chair I worked on had approximately 220 little nails, and a couple dozen staples.

I thought this was really neat: you can see an old nail with a few strands of red fabric on it. It makes me believe the chair was red before my Grandparents reupholstered it. (I wonder if it was a solid color or patterned?)

I thought that little nail and extra strands of fabric was so neat, I purposely left a nail in nearby with a few strands of the yellow fabric I was removing. Maybe it will be a surprise for the next person :)

The cushion fabric removed from the wood, then there was burlap and padding above the springs.

This was written on the curved part of the frame of the seat, I thought it was cool. I'm not sure what it says though.

Here's the cleaned off seat frame of the first chair

I started removing the fabric from the back rest but didn't finish it, hopefully that will be done soon! Hubby is simultaneously working on the other chair.