2.26.2012

Diving in: Reupholstery 101

I've been wanting to take an upholstery class for awhile now and I was thrilled to learn that there was a course offered at the local technical college.  After some trial and error on my own, I'm ready to understand some of the more technical aspects in addition to learning about the proper tools.

With my first class coming up quickly, I've been obsessively stalking Craigslist to find the perfect chair to redo.  I didn't have a lot of information about what type of project to bring to class.  Since I had already done a pretty basic chair on my own, I really wanted a challenge but was somewhat daunted by the complexities of many chairs.  To add to my indecision, we don't really need any chairs.  Our living room is fully stocked, my first DIY upholstery project is in our bedroom, and our guest room is taken care of by another Craigslist find.

We do, however, plan on having a nursery.... someday.  I'm not fond of the typical rocker-gliders that they sell for nursing at the big box baby stores.  And I really would like something upholstered but was not willing to pay the outrageous prices for a new one.  So after letting a few swivel rockers slip through my grasp on Craigslist, I finally got a pair of chairs (they would only sell the set) at my local Goodwill.


These swivel rocking chairs have petite proportions which fit me just perfect.  The curved back, tufting, and low profile arms provide really nice details.  OK, right now they look pretty old-fashioned.  I can definitely see them sitting in a cute little old lady's living room largely untouched.  Other than extreme fading due to the sun, they are in great condition.  And, bottom line, they are really comfortable.

I'm hoping I haven't set myself up for an unrealistic challenge, but I'm excited to dive in!  Choosing fabric is the next big challenge!


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3 comments :

Unknown said...

How did this come out? I have a chair just like this that needs reupholstered or a cover...it has old brown on it now. Curious how challenging this is??

Unknown said...

How did this come out? I have a chair just like this that needs reupholstered or a cover...it has old brown on it now. Curious how challenging this is??

Amy said...

Hi Jodi, Thanks for checking in on this project. I did finish this and have used it every day since my daughter was born in June 2013! It was pretty challenging - I'm not going to lie. I thought I would get through most of it during a reupholstery class that was 3 hours a week for something like 10 sessions, but I didn't even come close. The hardest part was sewing the cover for the tufted back - that was a bear! But I do wish you good luck. I'll get a photo and post an update soon.