How to Reupholster an Armchair

Step 1: Gather your tools

The first step is gathering all the tools you’ll need for the job. Your reupholstery toolbox should include a staple remover, pliers, sharp fabric scissors, a heavy-duty staple gun, a tape measure, chalk, and some fresh wadding.

Step 2: Photograph the chair

Take photos of the armchair from every angle, and make sure you pay particular attention to how the fabric folds around the arms. You can then refer to these photographs when putting your armchair back together.

Step 3: Remove the old fabric

Turn your chair over and place a dust cloth underneath it. Then remove the outside back, outside arms, inside back, inside arms, and finally the seat. Ease out the staples so that each piece of fabric comes away whole.

Step 4: Check the frame and padding

Inspect the frame and look for any wobbly joints, loose springs, or flattened padding. You can then re-glue the joints and top up the padding with wadding. If the springs have gone, you may need to call in a professional upholsterer, as re-springing a seat takes specialist tools and skill.

Step 5: Measure your fabric

Lay each panel of the old fabric you removed in step 3 flat, and measure it at its widest and longest points. Then add 5cm to every side so that you have enough fabric to grip and staple to the frame. Add all the pieces together to work out how many metres you need.

Step 6: Cut your new pieces of fabric

Lay the old fabric pieces onto the back of your new fabric as templates. Chalk around each one and check that the pattern runs the right way up before cutting.

Step 7: Attach the new fabric

Attach each fabric in reverse order to how you removed it: seat, inside arms, inside back, outside arms, then outside back. Staple the centre of each side first, then pull the fabric taut and work out to the corners.

Step 8: Finish underneath

Now it’s time for the finishing touches. Make sure you fold all the corners neatly and that you trim off any excess fabric. You could also staple a new dust cover to the base.

1) Pick a durable material

The best fabrics for upholstery should be hardwearing and durable enough to withstand everyday use, while also softening beautifully with age. Our unique linen union fabric is the perfect example – it’s made from a blend of certified organic cotton and eco-friendly flax, giving you the softness of cotton with the strength and natural texture of linen.

2) Consider the pattern scale

Next, select the pattern that really sings to you. There’s a few different types you could choose, for example:

• Large-scale patterns like florals, geometrics, or painterly prints are ideal for a feature chair. Fabrics like Fern & Dragonfly and Up the Garden Path look best on a generous, traditional shape where the pattern has room to read.

• Medium-scale patterns are often the easiest ones to choose, adding visual interest in a way that doesn't dominate your room. Try our Wild Fern or Floral Sprig designs.

• Small-scale patterns like ditsy florals, small checks, stripes, and subtle geometrics feel timeless and sit beautifully alongside your patterned soft furnishings. Plain Dotty, Dotty Check, and Stripe & Dash are some of our most popular smaller-scale designs.

3) Select the right colour

Colour is also an important consideration when choosing an upholstery fabric. Here are a few ways to decide on your fabric colour:

• Pick up a secondary colour from elsewhere in your room to create cohesion without making everything match. Read our guide to combining colour for more inspiration.

• Choose warm neutrals like limestone, muted sage, smoky blue, ochre, or terracotta if you’re looking to create a calm and layered scheme.

• Go one shade deeper than your wall or curtain colour for an elegant look.

• Introduce one stronger colour like damson, tomato, cornflower, terracotta, or ochre if most of the room is neutral.

• Pull out a less obvious colour from your rug or artwork. These shades are usually more interesting than the dominant colour.

4) Think about the role of the chair

Finally, decide what you want your reupholstered armchair to do in the room. For example:

• Do you want it to become the focal point? If so, choose a larger-scale print or a stronger colour, and let the rest of your room provide a calmer backdrop.

• Would you rather it blend in? Opt for a plain or small-scale pattern in a colour that already lives in your room.

• Prefer your armchair to support the scheme? Select a medium-scale pattern that brings together two or three colours from your existing colour palette.

We offer a fantastic selection of upholstery fabrics in beautiful, nature-inspired designs – from the calm simplicity of French Ticking, to the vibrant playfulness of Fruit Garden. Every fabric is inspired by the Cotswold countryside and created here in the UK, using the highest quality materials and sustainable processes.

All our fabrics are available to purchase by the metre for your next DIY upholstery project. But if your armchair is past its best, we can make you a new one in your chosen fabric via our made to measure service.

Not sure which fabric is right for your armchair? Order up to five free samples to see how they look in your space before you decide.