How to cover a computer chair. DIY office chair repair

Computer chairs are very popular among schoolchildren and students. In addition to accessibility, these pieces of furniture are distinguished, if not by increased reliability, although this cannot be taken away, but also by their maintainability.

All replacement parts are offered in stores specialized in the trade office furniture. The armrest costs from 120 rubles, for the crosspiece they will ask from 300. There are also control levers, although they rarely break.

But there is one element that is not often changed and this service is not offered everywhere. We are talking about the upholstery of the seat and backrest. The materials used here are simple, but abrasion-resistant. And more often than not, chairs are thrown away because of mechanical failures rather than because of shabby upholstery.

True, if the chair is in order, you can change the covering material for purely aesthetic reasons. Why not update? workplace and not please the eye?

First you need to remove all the bolts and screws. You will get several separate parts:

Two armrests.
Cross with wheels and lift mechanism.
Seat.
Back.
Control levers.

To work you need:

Linear meter material you like.
Scissors.
Staple gun.
Staples, size 10 - 14.

The design of the seat and back of a computer chair is the same. You need to insert your hand or some object half a meter long between the plastic cover and the foam rubber and separate one from the other. It is necessary to disconnect the latches, clips, and caps.

Remove the lift mechanism from the seat base

There are only 4 of them, located closer to the corners. Whatever it is called, it unfastens and a characteristic click will be heard. In the photo, the holes for them are marked in red.

Remove the back cover

As a result, the lid and base of the seat remain covered with material. Staples are visible along its perimeter; they need to be pulled out of the plastic, prying them up with a thin screwdriver and removing them with pliers. This way you will remove the old coating and foam rubber, it can also be replaced.

Cover removed

Assembly

The foam rubber is cut to the size of the base, maybe a couple of centimeters more. It is better to cut out the upholstery material with an allowance of 5-6 cm. There is no need to go wider, otherwise, when hammering in staples and stretching the material, the extra folds will interfere.

Seat base with new foam

The most difficult moment during assembly is to evenly stretch the upholstery and “shoot” it to the base. It is important not to overtighten to avoid distortions and loosening. In the second case, the foam rubber will walk under the casing.

The process of stretching new upholstery

It's not about saving

Any repair is done not only because the time has come. But also to improve the surrounding atmosphere.

Take the same one computer chair , you can change the color of the base, usually it is black. You need to buy a can of paint for automotive plastic, any color. It's cheap and dries quickly. Disassemble the chair, paint all the plastic parts and now you have an updated piece of furniture, good mood and a reason to be proud.

The chair is ready!

After counting all expenses, you get new chair for a third of the price. Don't be afraid to start something new and see it through to the end. Good luck!

And chairs), which became unusable over time. “It’s a shame to throw it away, and there’s not always enough money to buy a new one,” many people are immediately upset about this, without even suspecting that old furniture can be restored, restored. As an example, in this article we will reupholster an old chair with our own hands.

Let's move from words to action. In order to restore an old chair, we will need the following tools:

Hammer, pliers, screwdriver (flat),
Manual stapler, staples from 4 to 6 mm, scissors,
Wide sling (textile),
Foam rubber, batting, synthetic winterizer,
Fabric (1.5 – 2 m),
PVA glue, gauze.

Disassembling the chair

Before you start working, you need to disassemble the old chair and see what's inside.

Typically this is wooden frame, foam rubber on the back and seat. It is held in place by rubber or textile slings.

Also included in the components are legs and armrests (polished or fabric-look). The back wall of the chair is secured with plywood. That's probably all.

After parsing:

We determine what needs to be replaced. We carefully knock out all the tenon parts with a rubber hammer so as not to damage the edges and preserve the polish.
Using a scalpel or a knife with a thin tip, we clean the grooves so that there are no glue residues inside.
We coat the tenon parts with PVA glue, and then wrap the bandage directly onto the tenon.
We carefully hammer everything into place and wait a day for it to dry completely.

Do-it-yourself chair reupholstery

Let's take a step-by-step look at the process of reupholstering a chair

Replacing foam rubber

The next stage of do-it-yourself chair restoration will be replacing the foam rubber. List of brands used in furniture production:

EL – has a medium degree of hardness,
HS – soft type,
HL – super hard,
HR – low degree of rigidity, most often used in manufacturing upholstered furniture.

In our case, HR is the best option.

It is best to cut foam rubber with a knife with a long blade sharpened on an abrasive stone. We cut in several stages.

Replacing passes (belts)

After we have decided on the foam rubber, we check the passes. They can be made of rubber or thick canvas fabric.

They are fixed on wooden frame with the help of nails, in rare cases they are broken through with staples.

We remove the old belts, measure their length and, with a little tension, replace them with new ones. The edges of the belt must be folded (folded at least in two). In this position they will serve for a long time and will not stretch under heavy weight.

The straps are tight, now you need to secure the foam. We coat the passes with foam glue and carefully adjust the seat first, and then the back.

After we have the frame ready, we proceed to choosing the fabric.

Chair upholstery with fabric

Today, the textile industry offers a wide range of fabrics for repairing and upholstering chairs.

Fabric for upholstery:

You need to remember one simple truth: if the fabric has a pattern or abstraction, you need to make sure that the image does not move during the pattern.

We cut out the front and back parts of the backrest from the first meter of fabric, and the seat from the remainder.

Having made the cut, we need to check whether we have maintained the dimensions correctly by covering the seat with a cut piece of fabric. Having set the angles correctly as shown in the figure, we begin to “shoot” our cover to the frame of the chair.

We fix the rest of the fabric with staples, and make sure to pull it towards ourselves.

The corners can be sewn by machine or, if not essential, by hand, using a fine seam.

At the moment of fixing the cover to the frame, we punch the staples at intervals of 3-4 cm. If these are nails with a wide head, then the distance should be slightly less.

Once we have changed the seat upholstery, we do the same with the backrest.

You should always remember that restoring a chair with your own hands always requires consistency in work, as well as attention.

When removing each of the parts, you need to remember where and how it stood. Some craftsmen use a camera for such purposes.

Restoration of frame parts

The concept of “restoration” includes not only reupholstery, but also restoration of the wooden parts of the chair. After time, decorative details (armrests, turned elements, curly legs chairs) become unusable, that is, they become dull, the varnish surface wears off, and small cracks appear on the furniture frame.

What can be done in this case?

To solve this problem we will need:

Sandpaper,
Scraper,
Blade from a stationery knife.
Varnish, stain.

Every part needs to be sanded. You need to start with coarse grains, gradually moving to smaller ones.

Sanding should only be done in the direction of the grain. If you make movements against the grain, the varnish will definitely show transverse lines.

Many master restorers use drill with special sanding drums. They are different widths and lengths, very convenient for grinding in hard-to-reach places.

After the parts have been sanded, carefully remove the dust with a damp cloth or foam sponge.
Apply nitro varnish with a soft brush until completely dry.
After the varnish has dried, you can run your hand over the surface and feel how the pile rises. Using the finest sandpaper, we carefully “knock down” the raised fibers, that is, we make the surface smooth.
Then you can apply a stain (alcohol, water or white spirit based) and only then cover it with any commercially available varnish.

Video: DIY restoration of an old chair

That's all the wisdom - how to easily and efficiently restore a chair at home.

Good luck to all masters!

Chair restoration can be global or fragmentary. Sometimes it includes not only upholstery with new fabric, but also replacement of springs and soft parts - backrest and seat. We will consider what actions and in what sequence to perform.

You will need: an old chair, jute strands, foam rubber, padding polyester, burlap, batting, any rough fabric for a template, soft fabric for upholstery (for example, velvet), furniture buttons, staples for hidden trim, scissors, needle, thread, furniture gun, electric knife, tailor's chalk, spray glue.

1. Not only the soft seat helps you enjoy comfort in the chair, but also the correct base, which is hidden under the upholstery. Springs that have become unusable can be replaced with bundles of jute, a fiber with characteristics similar to rope.

2. We intertwine the jute strips in a checkerboard pattern and sew them with a furniture gun to the back of the chair frame.

3. Next in line is the soft seat padding. Let's make it three-layer: from foam rubber, burlap and padding polyester.

4. Before cutting out the seat from foam rubber, let's make a template from fabric: we apply the fabric to the seat frame, and outline the edges with tailor's chalk.

5. Using this template, we cut out two more layers - from burlap and padding polyester. In this case, the cut from padding polyester should exceed the size of the template by 5-10 cm.

It is better to use an electric knife for cutting. The usual one tears and spoils the material, especially in the hands of beginners.

6. We attach the “soft cake” of the seat in this order: burlap (covers the jute from below and above), padding polyester on the burlap; then foam rubber (this is the soft part of the “pie”) and again padding polyester - its edges cover the entire “pie” and are sewn to the frame.

For greater reliability, we attach all layers of the “pie” to each other using aerosol glue.

7. Let's start covering the seat. We place a piece of fabric, cut according to the template, in the center of the seat. The edge allowances should cover the entire “soft cake”.

8. We shoot the fabric from the underside of the chair frame. First with large intervals, then reducing them. Methodically align the folds of the fabric on the seat.

If you are upholstering a chair for the first time, practice on pieces of old fabric: make a pattern, apply it, try to feel the fabric. For both the trial and final upholstery, it is better to choose soft textiles. Velvet is perfect for home use. It stretches a little, which successfully hides the shortcomings of amateur upholstery.

9. The most difficult part is to sew beautifully the corners of the chair and the places where the armrests are attached. We use the so-called attachment method. If possible, it is advisable to remove the armrests before upholstering the chair.

10. Let's start covering the back. We chose the most decorative type of upholstery - capitonné stitch, with deep-set furniture buttons covered with fabric. It is this technique that will help beginners in reupholstery to disguise all the shortcomings of the work. Smooth, smooth upholstery, on the other hand, is much more difficult to achieve.

11. As in the case of restoring the seat, we sew strands of jute to the frame. We cover them with burlap, which we also attach to the chair frame.

12. Using an electric knife, we cut out the foam filling for the seat. This is where considerable effort and an excellent eye will come in handy, because even after making the back according to a template, it is important to trim it on the spot until it perfectly matches the contours of the frame.

13. Having carefully calculated the proportions, we cut out holes in the foam rubber for the legs of furniture buttons - screws.

14. We cover the foam rubber with batting, in which we also cut out holes.

15. We cover the back of the “soft pie” and wrap it with thin padding polyester. We shoot the edges with a pistol. We secure all layers with aerosol glue.

16. We cut out the fabric (with a margin at the edges) for the front part of the back. On the wrong side of the fabric we mark and cut out holes for the legs of furniture buttons.

17. Cover front part backrests with fabric, insert buttons, shoot them with a furniture gun with reverse side. We trim off the excess fabric.

Please note: the “legs” of the screws must be long enough so as not to overtighten the stitch, i.e. Do not push the caps too far into the back upholstery.

18. To sew the fabric to the back without showing a single stitch, we use a special fastener called a “clip-grip”* (English: ply grip, flex grip, curve grip, pli grip). They have only one drawback - the difficulty of purchasing: brackets (slats) for hidden cladding are sold in specialized stores that sell furniture fittings.

If you were unable to purchase a bracket, you can sew the fabric onto the back of the back by hand - as furniture restorers did hundreds of years ago. Another option is to shoot it with a pistol and manually close the staples with decorative piping. Or sew the fabric with furniture nails with decorative hats - you must agree, it’s very original and practical decor, accessible even to beginners!

Reupholstering upholstered furniture yourself is not as simple a task as it might seem at first glance. To make the updated chair look modern, stylish and appropriate, you need to study the technology and strictly follow the instructions.

If the upholstery on an old chair has become unusable, do not rush to throw it away, just reupholster it with new fabric.

For the restoration to be successful, you need to take into account all the details; only with a thorough approach to the matter will the updated furniture look good. This scheme of work can be used to update any upholstered furniture. But if the worn-out sofa or chair has a complex shape, it is better to turn to professionals (Fig. 1).

Preparatory work

To reupholster a chair you will need not only materials and tools, you also need to have sufficient sewing skills and perseverance. Shouldn't be ignored preparatory stage, otherwise difficulties may arise at the most inopportune moment.

For successful reupholstery you will need:

screwdriver;
pliers;
anti-stapler;
furniture fabric;
foam;
padding polyester;
strong threads;
scissors, needles, pins;
sewing machine;
stapler with staples.

Figure 1. Chair diagram.

If the chair has wooden parts, you will additionally need sandpaper, stain or furniture varnish.

First of all, you need to photograph the furniture from different angles. This will greatly simplify the assembly process and avoid incidents. Once the alteration item has been captured, you can move on to the next stage.

The chair needs to be disassembled. Remove everything decorative elements and pillows. If you make a surface constriction and leave wooden parts if worn out, the overall impression will be hopelessly spoiled.

Next, you need to very carefully remove old upholstery. It is important not to damage the fabric, as it will act as a pattern. You can use an anti-staple gun, a screwdriver and any other tools with a flat edge for this work. After the fabric is removed, you need to measure it and calculate how much fabric will be needed to sew new upholstery. It is important to take into account the supply of material for hems and darts.

It is necessary to assess the condition of the soft part of the chair. If the foam rubber shows signs of dirt and wear, it should be replaced. It is better to do this right away, so that after a few years the updated chair will not surprise you with a change in shape.

Figure 2. Fabrics such as tapestry, jacquard, matting, velor, and chenille are suitable for upholstering a chair.

After that you can go to the store for consumables. To work, you will need foam rubber 3-5 cm thick, standard or increased hardness. This sealant is used for furniture production, and can be purchased in specialized stores. You will need upholstery material; it is better to choose fabric labeled “furniture”. Tapestry, jacquard, matting, velor, and chenille are suitable for finishing upholstered furniture (Fig. 2). When purchasing, you need to take into account the supply of material. The presence of a pattern on the fabric will increase the consumption by about 1-2 steps of repetition of image elements. And, of course, threads of a suitable shade must be durable, designed for working with furniture. Reinforced threads 45-70 LL are suitable (lavsan is an analogue of polyester).

Return to contents

Intermediate stage of restoration

Once all the tools and materials have been prepared, restoration can begin.

The first thing you need to do is update the armrests, legs and everything wooden elements. They must be carefully processed using sandpaper, cover with stain or varnish and leave to dry.

Figure 3. Carefully remove the old upholstery from the chair and disconnect all the parts to create a new pattern.

Then you can move on to making new upholstery. The old one, if this has not been done before, needs to be ripped open, taking care not to damage the fabric. Each part should be numbered and set aside. After this, you need to mark and cut out the new upholstery (Fig. 3).

It is most convenient to do this on the floor. Marks are applied using a special marker, chalk or a simple pencil. It is more convenient to cut large sharp scissors. After all the parts are cut out, you need to process the sections so that the fabric does not unravel. The easiest way is to hem it using the double fold method or lightly singe it over an open fire. When choosing the second method, you need to act extremely carefully, checking the reaction of the material on unnecessary trimmings.

After this, you need to sew all the details of the new upholstery on sewing machine. It’s better to “try on” a new case several times than to redo everything.

Once the upholstery is ready, you can move on to the main part of the work on restoring the chair.

The process of reupholstering a computer chair with your own hands. We will not just drag, but also embellish and experiment. By clicking, the photos are enlarged as much as the screen of your device allows.

We have such a chair (in the photo the armrests are already twisted). Task: replace the crosspiece, upholstery fabric, foam rubber

In addition, it was decided to make the seat cushion removable and with a zipper, so that later it would be easier to change the filling - foam rubber. And also raise the lumbar support in the back.

We use:

Fabric (microvelour) because I prefer to sit on fabric and, in no case, on leather
We will use genuine leather to cover the armrests and crosspieces of the chair
Foam rubber 40mm and 20mm thick
Sintepon
Tools: drill, stapler, long needles 15cm

Let's start disassembling the chair. This is not difficult to do - just turn the chair over and look for something to unscrew somewhere:

We remove all the old fabric, removing the staples that hold it. You can remove the staples with a simple flat-head screwdriver, but I have special tool:

Old fabric and foam have been removed. I hoped that the chair was made of bent plywood, but it turned out to be just fiberboard in several layers = (But in general the frame of the chair is metal, so it’s not that scary.

Since you make a chair for yourself, experiments are allowed. As a backing for the seat I use a sheet of something like foamed polyethylene. It is much more rigid and elastic than foam rubber and deforms little over time. Pasting:

I tell you what kind of glue you can use for foam rubber. Then I glue 2 cm thick foam rubber onto the backing, bend it and shoot it with a stapler:

The article belongs to the site site

We measure, make patterns, sew a cover from leather and technical fabric. So the leather is natural, and not disgusting, cold leatherette, we make the seams with an inversion outward. Fashionable, stylish, youthful. We sew on strips of Velcro to attach the seat cushion (yes, this is not the whole seat, there will still be a cushion on top). They put it on and shot it from below, again with a stapler:

Now we make the seat cushion. I made it from two layers of foam rubber 2 cm + 4 cm = 8 cm. We cut it out, apply it, try it on, trim it... Then we take measurements and sew a cover with a zipper. We sew Velcro on the bottom. We put on the cover, having previously wrapped the foam pillow with synthetic padding. I didn’t take any photos of the process, and the article is already long. Here is the finished pillow on both sides:

In fact, it is not necessary to sew; you can immediately stick thicker foam rubber, for example 8 cm, onto the seat and cover it with one in one piece fabrics.

Let's start with the back. We definitely won’t be sewing anything here. We make markings, draw diamonds. We drill holes. Got 17 pieces

We glue the foam rubber onto the back of the chair. The bottom layer is placed in places to create thickening where necessary (for example, I made the lumbar roll higher). Upper layer whole. On the foam rubber we make the same markings as on the fiberboard of the back, we also drill holes, making sure that they coincide with the holes on the fiberboard.

With a regular drill you won't drill through the foam. You can, of course, cut it out with a knife, but it’s more accurate with a drill. I did this homemade drill for foam rubber, I think it’s clear what and how:

Now comes the most interesting and difficult part. We make a peak on the back. Or, as they also call it, a carriage screed, also known as “capito”. There are many techniques for such a screed, and how to make a carriage screed is a separate big topic. I will only say that you can only learn this by working personally, through trial and error. Laying out fabric using this technique is more difficult than laying out leather, because... fabrics do not stretch in all directions and their elasticity is usually lower. Although the fabric I chose does not lay out very well, I wanted to create a relief with deep draw-wells. I picked it in place, without marking the fabric, using two large needles and a cord.

We take a piece of fabric with a reserve and go on our way - we lay out the folds, fasten them by stitching them with cord through the holes. Making a carriage screed:

On the back side of the back we fasten the cord with a stapler. Don’t forget to put a padding polyester between the fabric and the foam rubber.