Reupholstery Turns Trash to Treasure

One day I noticed a neighbor had thrown out three dining chairs. They were the cheap, basic starter chairs you find at discount stores. Two were broken, which is probably why they were thrown out. But one was in great condition except for a few spots on the seat.

I knew I could turn that trash into treasure. When I was a girl, my mother, a creative woman who reupholstered our living room sofa three times, taught me how to easily reupholster dining chairs. This skill has saved me tons of money over the years. 

You can do it, too. No sewing is required. All you need is fabric, a staple gun, screwdrivers, scissors and paint. It’s easy, inexpensive and can be completed in a couple hours.

Here is how you do it:

1. Purchase fabric. Every fabric store has a remnants section where they sell leftover pieces of fabric at a discount. I like the selection at G Street Fabrics in Seven Corners. I recommend upholstery fabric, but some drapery fabrics work as well. I chose sage green microsuede to coordinate with a suede sofa I own. Cost: $9. And I have enough left over to make a couple of pillows. 
2. Purchase paint. Use whatever color you want. You could use primer, but who has time for that? This chair had a glossy light finish and did not need sanding. I splurged on the paint and chose a cast bronze metallic paint from the Martha Stewart Living collection at Home Depot. Cost: $6 for 10 ounces. I used less than half the container. 
3. Remove the seat. Most dining chair seats are screwed to the base and can easily be unscrewed with a Philips screwdriver.
4. Use the seat cushion fabric to measure. Remove the existing fabric by removing the staples and use that to measure the new fabric. Or just use the seat as a guide. I chose the latter and kept the old fabric as added cushion.
5. Paint. You can sponge, spray or brush on the paint. I enjoy using a brush and find spray painting too messy. Unless you have a large garage, paint outside, preferably on a sunny day, and give the chair plenty of time to dry. I applied two generous coats to enhance the metallic look.
6. Pull the fabric tight over the seat. Staple using the manufacturers stapling pattern as a guide.  
7. After the chair is dry, replace the seat, making sure the screws are tight.

Enjoy your new creation. I threw a pillow on my chair to complete the look.

Don’t worry about making mistakes. The worst that can happen is that you hate the makeover and you throw it back in the trash. More likely, you will love what you've done and take on bigger projects in the future.