What you will need:
Main Fabric
Fabric for the base layer - Dacron or wadding or wool safe
Fabric for the back of the seat pad – Lining, Hessian
Fabric Scissors
Foam
Felt tip pen
Spray glue
Staple Gun
Step 1
To begin, strip your seat pad by removing the seat pad from your chair frame and using a chisel and pincers, remove the fabric.
Step 2
Cut out the new foam by placing the seat pad face down onto the foam and mark around the edges using a felt tip pen, making sure to take into consideration any curved edges and cut using scissors.
Step 3
Next, carefully place the foam back onto the seat pad, making sure to match up the edges and using spray glue, press firmly in place. Now, for extra security, staple the foam to the seat by catching and stapling the edges of the foam to the frame.
Step 4
Next, we are going to cover the foam with a base layer of fabric, this creates a nice base for the fabric. You can use Dacron or wadding; Jen has used wool safe.
Cut out the wool safe, making sure to cut enough to cover the depth of the foam and place seat pad face down onto this layer.
Step 5
Smooth the wool safe over the front of the seat pad and staple in the middle of the back of the pad. Repeat for the back and sides.
Now, go back along the front edge, smoothing the wool safe out to the corner and easing over the frame, pulling diagonally to take away any slackness, staple towards the corner. Now repeat this for the back edge and then go back to front edge and fill in gaps with a few more staples, repeat on the back edge.
Step 6
Now the front and back edges are fully stapled, staple the sides. Next, move to the front corner, ease and smooth the fabric to the corners and staple. As the corners for this seat pad are right angled, we are going to do one pleat for each corner.
Pull the wool safe tightly and add staple onto edge, cutting any excess fabric away. Now fold the pleat over and staple, cutting off any excess fabric away to avoid any bulkiness, pull for tension and staple. Repeat on the other 3 corners.
Step 7
Now, cut out your main fabric. Measure the seat pad, taking the widest point. Take into consideration of the design of your fabric when cutting out your seat pad and which part of the pattern you would like on your seat pad.
Step 8
Place your fabric over the seat pad – positioning the fabric where you would like the pattern to sit. Put in a temp (a staple or tack which you don’t put all the way in, so it can be taken out) in on all four sides to hold the fabric in place, making sure to smooth edges as you go.
Working towards the corners, ease the fabric over the corners, repeat on the back edge and take out the temps as you go. Go back to the front edge and fill in the gaps with more staples. Move onto the sides, taking the temps out and making sure to ease the fabric up and over corners and staple.
Step 9
Moving onto the corners, use the same as the technique we used for the wool safe layer. (please see video for an in depth guide to this part)
Step 10
Now, add a lining to the bottom of the seat pad, Jen has used black lining fabric. Cut this to the seat pad size and starting from the front edge, fold the edges of the lining over, making sure to cover up all the staples, and staple around the edges, starting from the front. Make sure to pull tightly for a smooth finish.
Step 12
Place your seat pad back into the chair frame and you now have a transformed chair!
