Tips and ideas to make old or damaged furniture look better. Post your ideas.
Have a couch or chair with worn out upholstery, but not money to replace it? Just use a large bedspread or comforter to cover it. Some of the prints look just beautiful and they are much less expensive than furniture covers or replacing the furniture, especially if you have an extra around the house or if you get one from a thrift store or Goodwill.
By Robin (11/19/2004)
By ThriftyFun
When we lived in a mobile home, years ago, we had young children at the time. The kitchen cupboards were a dark brown wood of some sort. Each dint or bang took off the top bit of wood, leaving a light colored scratch or dint. I took the kid's pencil crayons, found a dark brown and a black and went to work "coloring" the scratches on my walls. The walls and cupboards looked like new when I was done. I would go "coloring" about once a year. The pencil crayon covered scratches took a light washing, also. (11/19/2004)
I bought a new loveseat and didn't want to spend a lot for a cover because my cat sleeps on the back of it all the time. So I had a queen fitted sheet and thought I will just put this on it. It's flannel and it fits perfect. It doesn't even move around because of the elastic corners on it. It looks nice, too.
By Rose from Flemington, NJ (11/20/2004)
By ThriftyFun
I upholster all of my own furniture and it is easier than you think. Time consuming, but easy. You will save a ton of money and get exactly what you want. I never sew anything (I'm not a sewer). For the most part it is not needed.
If repairing sofa damage, I would try to take a piece from a part of your sofa that isn't noticeable, if possible. You may want to consider going the two or more different fabric look if you cannot use any existing areas to take fabric from.
Remove the section that is damaged, carefully taking it off. Remember any piece you remove will be your pattern, so keep it in good shape, and number it, indicating which way is up or down. If doing more than one section or if doing your whole sofa you will need to keep track of all pieces.
I use pliers and a big screw driver for prying up old staples. Keep an extra set handy in case a friend drops by. This is time consuming and boring, so take advantage of any help. Warning, you could discourage friends from dropping over. Use staple gun to attach new piece, and add gimp (that zig zag upholstery trim). Trim using hot glue gun to hide staples.
I always send cushions out to be upholstered for a nice professional look. If you sew you will save even more money. Sending them out is inexpensive if you shop around or take them to a trade school that teaches upholstery. Upholstery fabric is readily available in many places now, at very good prices, so shop around. Check with the person who will be doing your cushions on measuring your sofa for the amount of fabric you will need, including the cushions.
Make sure your furniture is in good sturdy repair before starting and fix anything that needs repair. The most work is removing the old fabric, and old tacks and staples, but do it a little at a time and before you know it you will be upholstering everything in sight, like me. Remember too, that you can change the look of your piece. If you don't like tufting, just put a layer of upholstering batting over to smooth out prior to putting on your new fabric.
It is fun and exciting. Reasonable changes are easy. Extra batting might be needed in some areas so be sure to pick some up. I always use existing stuffing, only adding to places that may need it. Why replace everything if you don't need to. If you take your time, you will have a professional looking piece of furniture that no one will ever guess you did. My kind of project.
By JakiS
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