Madison, one of our designers, came up with this chic and cheap DIY project! Here’s how she took a second hand find and turned it into a first rate design!

Last week I decided that my office needed a new guest chair. So instead of searching for something perfect I bought a used one, and with a little TLC, gave it a face lift! After hours of sanding and pulling staples out, this was the result:

Here’s how I did it!

Step 1: Buy your chair (I found mine on kijiji.ca for $20) take it all apart i.e. arms, legs, seat back etc.

Step 2: Rip out all those pesky staples. My chair needed a little WD-40 where the legs go as it is a slight rocking chair. This is the time to make any fixes and adjustments that could end up staining/ripping/breaking your chair.

Step 3: Sand all stained wood areas. I recommend an electric sander. I only had small pieces of sand paper and my hand still hurts…

Step 4: Buy your fabric! (make sure it is a stiff, sturdy material) I bought 2 meters of the white fabric and had tons left over! You will also need new padding for your chair. I bought 2 meters of batting and layered it together until it was comfy enough to sit on.

Step 5: I saved the fabric that was originally on the chair to have a pattern to go off of. Lay your fabric out, pin the heck out of it, and cut! (Give yourself at least 1 extra inch on all sides)

The typical “pin spill”

Step 6: The batting/padding part was the easiest. If you are using batting, just lay it over your seat and cut enough to wrap around the edges. Alternate the direction of your batting to make sure you cover all four sides.

Hint: Grab a staple gun and throw a few staples in the batting just to keep it down so you’re not fighting batting and fabric at the same time.

Step 7: Once all your batting or padding is secured in place, comes the not so fun part – applying your fabric. I struggled with this part only because a) it was my first time upholstering anything and b) I needed to make sure my corners looked beautiful. I did a lot of searching on the internet to see how other people stapled down their fabric and let me tell you, there are many ways. Just do whatever works best for you!

Step 8: Put your chair back together!

*All photos are personal*