Fluted Chair Reupholstery Rescue!

Chair After

Chair Before

This chair was in desperate need of being rescued from severe damage from an enthusiastic dog or two. The seat was not usable because the springs were exposed from the large tear and were also damaged beneath. The left arm had been chewed to expose the wood. This chair certainly needed a lot of attention and dedication of time to bring it back to life.

The style of this chair is fluted, or channel back. These “flutes” or “channels” are created by sewing the separate front strips of fabric to a large backing with lines marked according to size, then stitched to the backing fabric and stuffed with cotton or polyester fiberfill to create the flutes.

My first approach was to remove all the old fabric, nails, staples, stuffing and webbing. Once I got down to the springs, I realized they needed to be re-tied which meant they had to be removed along with the old webbing which holds the springs in place. This is an intense process that takes a lot of patience and time to do it right. But there are no shortcuts to good upholstery. Once the springs were secured and tied, I began to build up the seat to create that nice “crown” which is an important element in a nicely structured chair. The first step was to cover those springs with burlap and secure it to all the sides, keeping the springs in their respective places. A layer of cotton batting was next, followed by a section of foam to cover the seat, another two layers of batting then covered with a large sheet of high thread count muslin. This gives the seat a pre-finished look and the top fabric a good foundation to adhere to.

Once the seat was done, the next step was the interior of the arms. Like the seat, I added several layers of batting to build up the arms, then covered them with the new fabric. You must have a “feel” for how much batting to use. Once you’re satisfied with the cushy feeling, it’s ready for fabric. Then it was time to install the flutes.  Essentially flutes or channels are constructed with a series of separate fabric sections stitched together to create one large piece, which is then attached to the chair as one unit. This is tricky because the flutes, or channels, must remain centered while you are working the fabric, attaching them to the top and bottom of the chair. Lots of tugging and pulling at this point! The center flutes were pre-stuffed prior to attachment, then the edges are filled in place after the flutes are attached by filling in the areas with layers of cotton or poly batting, then secured with staples.

Next step was the outside of the arms. I attach them using cardboard strips stapled underneath the side arms then pulled downward and attached to the underside of the chair. Snip close to the curve so later you can finish it off with the cording or piping. Lastly was the back. I use ply-grip, which are sharp little spikes on a roll that attaches to the curved back of the chair with staples or nails, then each ply-grip section is bent toward the chair halfway, while gently folding the fabric into it. Once all the fabric is wrapped around the sharp spikes, you pound the ply-grip down with a rubber mallet or hammer to secure it permanently to the back. This provides a seamless, clean back.

The fun part was adding the piping/cording to the front arms and around the back where the ply-grip was attached. This is my favorite part because it means I’m close to being done! The chair was very challenging but each time I work on such a project, I learn a new skill or how to do something a little bit better and that’s the true reward of this type of work.

Left side before - Right side after

Ladies Antique Chair Reupholstered

Antique Chair After

Antique Chair Before

I believe this chair dated back to the late 1800’s. It had a broken arm and lower right side unattached, this chair had seen better days. The fabric, though old, was reupholstered since the chair’s construction, however it was done a long time ago. My guess it was done sometime in the 1940’s, judging by the needlepoint style material they had used. 

This chair had likely been made with seat springs, but during the 1940’s upholstered was replaced with thin plastic webbing on the bottom of the chair. It also had a couple hundred tacks surrounding the bottom seat as well as the arms and back rest. My customer had planned on doing the work herself, so she had already removed the needlepoint fabric from the backrest of the chair, but soon realized it was quite a bit of work.

Removing the material was time consuming and tedious. First I had to remove hundreds of staples. These staples were not your average staple, but extra thick copper staples that were quite difficult to remove. Removing that many staples gives your upper body a workout (translation: you will be sore the next day!) Then I had to remove all those tacks, which were rusted and stuck to the fabric in most of the areas. Using tack removal tools as well as a vice grip helps the process along. 

Once all the staples and tacks were removed, I could remove the old fabric. The chair had a broken right arm, which was obvious, but after I removed the material, I discovered it also had come apart at the lower right leg/seat area as well as a portion of the front of the framework. Jim made the necessary repairs then I could start the process of adding the new fabric.

The chair had a very old, very brittle cushion which was shaped to fit the chair but was no longer usable as it had the texture of a loaf of dry bread. As I was removing the staples the foam was leaking a yellow powder which resembled a cake mix. No way would I reused this foam. Instead I created a new foam seat base after I built the foundation with webbing. 

I used 2” foam cut to size which covered the underside webbing, then I added criss-cross webbing on top of the foam, front to back and left to right, for a more stable seat. Next I added a thick layer of raw cotton, which comes on a roll and can be torn apart, easily filling the seat area. This cotton is very soft and wonderful to use on a chair’s seat. On the raw cotton I added a fitted cut size of 1” foam followed by a second layer of raw cotton. Finally I topped it off with a double layer of polyester batting to hold everything together with a good top base. I always use the “sit on it” test before adding the fabric, which means I sit on the chair and if it feels good to me, it’s ready for material. 

The customer provided two identical fabric panels, each with a single large flower which she had wanted centered in the seat and back portions of the chair. She also brought purple velour for the small section of the arms and the open back facing fabric (not seen in photos). The purple color choice was perfect as it pulled the color from purple flowers. I added gimp trim along the bottom edge, arms and top front to cover the staples and add a touch of elegance to the chair. It was once again a beauty that will last another hundred years. 

Eastlake Chair Reupholstered

Eastlake Chair After

Eastlake Chair Before

This was a very old Eastlake chair which had been thrown away. My customer saw the potential of this chair and brought it to me to reupholster. Originally he had just wanted the springs to be restrung, as they had been popping through the fabric on the bottom, but upon closer inspection, I realized the chair’s springs were not the only thing this chair needed. The seat was rock hard, which meant that the foam was completely deteriorated beyond usage, so I told him it needed to be completely restrung, with new webbing. 

After I removed the old fabric, as I had guessed, the foam was so deteriorated it resembled a dried out loaf of bread. Yellow dust had sifted out of the chair’s bottom edges as I pried the old fabric off. It was indeed a mess and was simply not usable in its condition. Once I removed all the fabric, I made yet another discovery. The springs were tied to the chair upside-down, meaning they were strung to the bottom of the chair instead of the top of the chair’s seat, as it should have been done. This involved removing all the “guts” of the seat, which was the old deteriorated webbing as well as the springs and strings. 

Plus instead of using webbing to secure the springs to, they had used burlap only, which was definitely inadequate. Webbing is attached to the bottom of the chair then the springs are attached to the webbing. After this step, the springs are tied in the “eight-way” tying technique so that they are secure and do not move as well as adding the proper support and structure to the seat. Retying strings is a time-consuming job and requires accuracy and a bit of upper body work, or they won’t hold up for the long haul. I tend to over-tie springs, erring on the side of extra instead of under-tying them. Better more than less in this application.

New Webbing
With Springs
Ready for Tying

After the springs were securely tied, I stapled burlap to the top of them, snugging them tightly on all sides. A one inch layer of foam was the next layer, followed by a 1/4” layer of foam for added comfort. For the final padding I used loose cotton which is commonly used for upholstery. This is a very soft, comfortable cotton that comes on a roll. In some applications, many layers of this cotton is applied when a seat (or couch) needs more stuffing. 

Once I had the cotton in place, I stapled a layer of high quality muslin to cover everything else I had applied. The muslin makes a nice final surface on which to attach the fabric. Because my customer was on a tight budget and didn’t want to purchase new fabric, I chose a soft gray plush material, which was left over from a previous job, and was just enough to complete this chair. 

The cushion on the arms needed to be replaced as they too were beyond usage. I used the old cushions as templates and cut new ones using my carving knife. It worked quite well and covered the area nicely. The back of the chair needed new webbing and foam. The fabric was applied to both front and back of the upper part of the chair and the entire chair was finished with piping, which I prefer to using decorative nail heads which are difficult to pound into hardwood, such as this. I polished the metal wheels, which were original to the chair. The chair was once again usable.