You reupholster the back of a dining chair by removing the outer back panel first, stripping the old fabric and any trim from the inside back, replacing worn padding, then fitting the new fabric to the inside back and stapling it to the frame before refitting a freshly covered outer panel to hide the raw edges. On chairs where the back is a padded pad fixed with screws, the job is simpler: remove the pad, cover it like a seat and refit it.
Chair backs are more involved than seats because the fabric is visible on both faces. Where a seat pad hides all its staples underneath, a chair back needs a considered method for concealing the fixings on the outward facing side. Understanding that principle before you start makes the whole process logical.
There are three common constructions and each is approached differently.
A removable back pad is the easiest. It unscrews from the frame in the same way as a drop in seat, and you cover it flat on a table with all staples hidden on the reverse.
A fully upholstered back has padding attached directly to the frame, with fabric on the inside face and a separate outer back panel covering the rear. This is the most common construction on dining chairs with upholstered backs and needs the most care.
An open frame back has a padded insert set within a visible timber surround, often held by trim or a strip of piping. These require neat edge work because the join between fabric and timber is fully visible.
Turn the chair around and look at the back carefully before you touch anything. Photograph how everything sits, because you will want that reference later.
You will need a staple remover, pliers, a staple gun with appropriate staples, sharp scissors, upholstery fabric, and possibly new foam or wadding. For fully upholstered backs, add a curved upholstery needle and matching thread for closing edges by hand, and consider decorative gimp trim or double piping to finish the outer edges neatly.
Choose an upholstery weight fabric rather than a lighter furnishing cloth. Chair backs take less abrasion than seats but more flexing, and a thin fabric will show frame lines through it within months.
On a fully upholstered chair, the outer back is usually attached with staples hidden under a strip of trim, or with tack strip that gives a crisp folded edge.
Ease the trim away gently with a flat blade, working along its length rather than pulling from one end. If the trim is in good condition and you like it, keep it: reusing original trim often gives a better match than anything you can buy.
Underneath you will find the staples or tack strip holding the outer panel. Remove them methodically. Keep the old panel intact, as it is the most accurate template you will get for cutting the new one.
With the outer panel off, the inside back fabric and its fixings are accessible. Remove the staples working around the frame, taking care at the top edge where the fabric usually wraps over the timber.
Pay attention to how the fabric was folded at the top corners and where it met the arms or side posts. Photograph each corner before removing it. Manufacturers solve these shapes efficiently and copying their solution is far easier than inventing your own.
Assess the padding underneath. Foam that has hardened, crumbled at the edges or compressed flat should be replaced. Wadding that has thinned or shifted should be renewed regardless, as it costs little and makes a substantial difference to the finished shape.
Cut new foam to the shape of the back frame using the old piece as a template. A long bladed knife or electric carving knife gives a much cleaner cut than scissors.
Foam for a chair back is usually thinner than for a seat, often two to three centimetres, because the back supports weight differently. Copy the original thickness unless it was clearly inadequate.
Lay polyester wadding over the foam, wrapping it slightly around the edges of the frame. This softens the hard line at the perimeter and gives the finished back a smooth, slightly rounded profile rather than a flat panel with visible edges. It is the step that most distinguishes a professional looking result from an amateur one.
Cut your fabric using the old inside back piece as a template, adding a generous margin of at least five centimetres all round.
Position the fabric over the padding and start stapling at the centre of the top rail on the reverse of the frame. Move to the centre of the bottom rail, pull the fabric down with firm even tension and staple. Then do the centres of each side. These four anchor points set the tension for everything that follows.
Turn the chair around and check the front face looks smooth and correctly positioned before continuing. Adjust now rather than later.
Work outwards from each anchor towards the corners, spacing staples around three centimetres apart and pulling the fabric towards you each time. At the corners, fold the surplus into a single flat pleat rather than allowing it to bunch.
Where the back meets the seat, tuck the fabric down into the gap and staple it to the frame underneath so no raw edge is visible from the front.
Cut the new outer panel from the old one, adding a small margin. There are two ways to fit it.
The straightforward method is to fold the edges of the panel under, press them flat, and staple close to the folded edge, then cover the staple line with gimp trim or double piping glued in place. This is forgiving and looks tidy.
The neater method uses tack strip, a length of card or metal with points, which is stapled along the top edge, folded over the fabric and pressed home to create a sharp invisible edge. Tack strip gives a crisper result but takes practice.
Either way, work the top edge first, then the sides, then the bottom, keeping the fabric under gentle tension so the panel sits flat rather than sagging.
Where a padded insert sits inside a timber surround, the join between fabric and timber is fully on show. Cut the fabric precisely and staple within the recess so the staple line is hidden by the frame edge or by trim.
Double piping is the traditional finish here, glued along the join with a suitable fabric adhesive applied sparingly. Work in short sections and hold each in place briefly rather than trying to fit the full length at once.
If you are reupholstering both the back and the seat, work out the fabric direction across both before cutting. On a patterned fabric the pattern should run in the same direction and, ideally, align between the seat and the back when viewed from the front. On plain fabrics with a nap, such as velvet, run the pile in the same direction on both or they will read as different shades.
Buy all the fabric for a set in one go, from the same roll, so the dye lot matches. Ordering more later frequently produces a noticeable difference.
Reupholstering chair backs takes longer than seats and requires more patience. It is worthwhile on chairs with solid frames and good proportions, and particularly on older chairs where the construction quality justifies the effort.
It is less worthwhile where the frames are loose, where the chair was never comfortable, or where you would need to buy a substantial amount of fabric for a set that has other problems. In those cases, new seating gives a better outcome for similar effort. We carry a wide range of modern dining chairs UK sale in fabric, velvet and faux leather, alongside dining table and chairs sets UK where seating and table are already matched. Anyone updating the wider space will find tables, seating and storage together in our dining room furniture UK sale selection. You can see the full range at Furniture in Fashion, with free delivery to most UK mainland postcodes.
Allow around three quarters of a metre per chair for both the inside back and the outer panel on a standard dining chair. Add more for patterned fabric that needs matching across a set.
Not properly. The outer panel conceals the staples holding the inside back fabric, so it has to come off for the fixings to be accessible. Attempting to work around it leaves visible staples or loose fabric.
Gimp trim or double piping glued over the staple line is the most forgiving method. Tack strip gives a sharper, fully concealed edge but requires more practice to fit evenly.
Only if it has hardened, crumbled or compressed. Even where the foam is sound, adding fresh polyester wadding over it is worthwhile, as it smooths the profile and costs very little.
Expect two to three hours for the first one, including stripping, padding and both faces. Later chairs in the same set usually take around half that once you know the sequence.
Painting faux leather dining chairs is entirely possible, but the outcome depends far more on…
Hard dining chairs can be made genuinely comfortable, and there are three practical routes depending…
Chair spacing has a disproportionate effect on how comfortable a dining table feels, and the…
Comfortable dining comes down to two measurements: around sixty centimetres of table edge per person…
Reupholstering a dining chair cushion is one of the most approachable furniture jobs there is,…
Reupholstering a dining chair in the UK generally costs between sixty and two hundred pounds…
This website uses cookies.