DIY ~ Dining Room Chair Makeover

Whohoo!

I am finally starting to get back to normal after our month in Phoenix! That means that I am finally starting to tackle some of the projects that have been sitting on my never ending to do list. *sigh* We need to start a petition to have more hours in the day. 

One of the projects I have been looking forward to the most is recovering our dining room chairs. Our dining set is nothing fancy. Our whole theory on furniture these days is that we refuse to get really great pieces until the kids are old enough to treat it with respect. So for the next little while we are stuck with our Ikea set that has functioned perfectly for us over the past 5 years. 

The original chair covers were a plain cream. Although I loved the simplicity I was tired of trying to keep them clean. Cream seats and a toddler eating anything with sauce just don't mix. So I headed out to Ikea check out their fabric selection. I had already scoured the specialty design stores and decided that I would try to be price conscious instead.

If you are looking to update your dining set on a small budget give this a try.

The Necessities:

~ About 2 meters of upholstery fabric or cotton canvas

~ Good scissors

~ Staple gun and staples

The Process:

~ The first step for us was to pull off all of the chair cushions and remove the original cream covers

~ The fabric I chose was this great graphic pattern in a cotton canvas from Ikea ($5.99 a meter!)

~ Lay your chair cushion on top pf the fabric

~ Measure and cut your fabric ensuring that you have enough to wrap the fabric around to the bottom of the cushion with at least 2" inches of fabric to work with on all sides

~ Pulling the fabric as tight and smooth as possible, staple in the center of all four sides

~ Choose a side to start working on and slowly pull the fabric tight and staple right beside the center staple

~ Continue pulling and stapling stopping approximately 2" from the corners

~ take your time and ensure everything is looking nice and smooth

~ Once you finish your first side move on to the opposite side

~ Then work the other two edges

~ When you get to the corners take your time. How you choose to tackle them depends on your seat cushion type. I squared mine off as best I could ensuring that it looked perfect from the top.

~ Trim away any excess fabric and add staples to any section you feel needs more support

~ Place the seat cushion back on the chair

Yay! I am so happy with how all of these turned out. It was super easy to finish this project and I only had to make a tiny mess in the front room. The best part is that it was incredibly cheap and made a huge impact! Love it. 

Mrs. E