Wrap and Staple a Chair Seat Cushion

I wanted to cover this chair with a new fabric.I recovered this once already chair! But, it was so dark and seemed kind of detached from the rest of the room. I’ve been asked how to do a basic re-cover on a simple chair, so I thought it was the perfect time for a tutorial on how to wrap and staple a chair seat cushion.

You need a few things to wrap and staple a chair seat cushion

Wear your eye protection, and measure your chair seat and add two inches all of the way around for the fabric wrap. If the chair cushion is flat and hard, you’ll need to buy foam and batting (about 2′ thick or so ,depending on how padded you like it for your tushie. The batting goes between the foam and new fabric.)

Then get your staple gun. I like staples that are 1/2 inch to 3/4 inch depending on the thickness of the fabric.

After unscrewing the seat, place the seat upside down in the center of the cut fabric. No need to remove the old fabric if it’s in good condition. With 54′ inch wide fabric it takes approximately 3/4 of a yard to cover 2 seats. It only cost $7 to recover this chair (I bought the fabric on sale with a coupon at Jo Ann fabrics.).

It will take about 15-20 minutes to recover the chair start to finish.

( If you are re-padding, place the batting and foam between the fabric and the seat.)

The first staple goes in the front center. Fold the fabric about an inch over and to the inside. This will help it from fraying or pulling later. When stapling make sure to keep hands and other parts clear of the staple gun.

The second staple goes in the back center. After folding the edge over, pull the fabric lightly while you staple to keep it taught, but not over tight so it depresses the cushion. I’d show you if I had just one more hand.

how to wrap and staple a chair seat cushion

It’s important to keep the tension even around the entire seat cushion when recovering the chair seat

The third staple goes in a side, repeat the folding and pulling on the fabric, keeping tension. Continue to wrap and staple the fabric around the outside.

Then do the last side the same way with the fabric and seat cushion.

how to wrap and staple a chair seat cushion with a detached seat

When all of your sides are done, go back to the front and start at an edge next to the corner, pulling so the pattern and tautness are even with the first staple.

Go immediately to the opposite corner of the chair cushion in the front and then fill in across the front. Staple the same way in the back next and then do each side. It’s important to do this in this order so the fabric doesn’t pull funny or become off-center. It will take some practice, but pick an easy, non-stretchy fabric to use the first time like a chenille or cotton duck. The corners next… AAARRGGHHHHH! :0 -No, I’m kidding!

Fold down a chair corner for reupholstering

Just pull the point up, tuck the sides in and then pull the corner down (If your fabric is really thick, you can trim it.).

Once it’s down, staple.

Repeat for the other four corners when recovering the chair.

I find it’s easier to get the chair seat on and off if it’s on another chair or table. When you screw the newly covered chair seat down, after making sure it’s lined up, apply pressure down to compress the seat. This will help the screw to grab the wood and new fabric.