I’m Stephanie, a wedding + lifestyle photographer based in Colorado Springs, Colorado and Warrenton, Virginia. Whether I’m by the mountains of Colorado or Virginia, my soul feels at home, surrounded by rural living and the raw beauty of nature. I genuinely love what I do, and feel so passionate to share the enthusiasm and joy of these celebrations with you!

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March 21, 2017

DIY FARMHOUSE REPURPOSED TABLE | PART III

DIY Farmhouse Table | Upholster Chairs

This is the last and final post for the series, “DIY Farmhouse Repurposed Table!” I have shown you the big transformation as well as how to repurpose a table, now I’m sharing how you can repurpose dining room chairs! Typically, dining room chairs are wood/upholstery. Of course, though, there are different styles, but I hope that this post will give you some inspiration/direction how you can do this to your set of chairs.

I still cannot believe that these five seats were sold for $12 each at a local thrift shop in Bealeton, VA called Noah’s Ark! BINGO! Although looking at the dirty blue fabric, you can see why I thought to repurpose this set. When I was designing what to do with the dining room set, I was honestly stumped what to do with the chairs at first. With the help of my mom, who is a pro in sewing, we were able to devise a plan of action! The tall, curved upholstered back intimidated me at first!

DIY Farmhouse Table | Upholster Chairs

You will need:
*Screwdriver
*Fabric
*Scissors
*Staple Gun with staples
*Sewing Machine with thread (you might not need this unless you have a tall upholstered back, like mine)
*Hammer (again, you might not need this unless you have a tall upholstered back with stapled trim)
*Spray Paint
*Fabric Glue
*Upholstery Tacks (if desired for the chair back)

1) Figure out a plan of action! Do you want the wood to stay as is? If not, what color do you want to paint the wood? What color fabric do wish to cover the old material? GO SHOPPING! I knew that I loved the idea of a fun print on the backside of the chair, with a simple gray on the front side. I didn’t know what type of “fun” print I wanted until I went out shopping. So much fun!!! Make sure you measure how much fabric you need to purchase. You will need to buy upholstery fabric, so it’s durable! 🙂

2) Prep the furniture and upholster the seat! I took a hammer to the trim and pulled it off. Unscrew the bottom of the seat off so you can upholster it. Super easy project!!! If you haven’t done that before, check out this blog post HERE!

DIY Farmhouse Table | Upholster Chairs

This photo below shows the “rough draft” before I decided to paint the wood. The seat cushions have been fully done, and the back of the seat was looking feasible, after all!

3) This might not apply to your project — Upholster the back of the seat! I would advise for this project to be tackled by someone with sewing experience since I’m not diving into individual steps how to sew. My mom took two large pieces of paper and sketched out the front AND the back side of the chair. I was surprised when we found that both sides measured out differently! We made a pattern from those two sketches, and I drew on the fabric and cut it out based on those two plans with a half inch added around (sewing purposes). I only sewed the front and back side at the top where it’s curved. I fitted the fabric over top of the chair back to make sure it fit securely, and I folded in the edges along the sides to make sure the design worked. 🙂 It did!! I had to take the fabric off as well as the seat cushion once I decided to paint the wood.

DIY Farmhouse Table | Upholster Chairs

4) Spray paint the wood (if desired)! I definitely prefer the white over the wood for this project!! I used Rust-Oleum’s spray paint (the best stuff out there!!), and it worked like a charm! Although, I went through at least six cans. WHEW! So many angles and curves!

DIY Farmhouse Table | Upholster Chairs

5) Assemble!! Screw the seat back on the chair. If you have a backside, it’s time to officially upholster! Fit the fabric over the top and fold in the edges. To ensure the material is firmly secured, I used a staple gun along the bottom edge, where the two fabrics met. Once that is done, use fabric glue to secure down the edges. If you wish to use upholstery tacks, take a hammer and secure them in about half an inch to a full inch apart along the sides. I used a little bit of fabric glue on the tack before hammering it in.

You’re Done!!!

DIY Farmhouse Table | Upholster Chairs

I hope these blog posts inspired you to take on your own project. 🙂 I cannot wait to tackle another one!!

  1. Kelsey says:

    Beautiful! What shop did you go to for the table and chairs? We’re in the market for a farm table for our new house and love what you did!

    • Hi, Kelsey!!

      I purchased the set from a local thrift shop called Noah’s Arc in Bealeton, VA! 🙂 It’s small, but I find treasures once in a while! Another favorite shop of mine to find treasures like this is Restore!

      Thank you so much!!!
      Steph