Can a beginner reupholster a chair?
This style would be great for a beginner. It's fairly straight forward.
When learning to upholster the next step after your webbing and stabilizing your springs is to add padding with foam, cotton and dacron.
Cotton or foam can be used on the arms of chairs. Cotton will also add softness and fullness under or over the foam (shown in the third photo). Dacron is typially used over the foam (shown in the fifth photo). It's meant to add softness and to protect the foam from wear.
There ae two factors to take into consideration when selecting foam. You can read more about that in my previous blog. Foam selection is a very personal thing when it comes to comfortable cushions. For example an average seat cushion has an IFD or firmness around 30#. It would take 30 pounds of pressure to compress a 4″ foam down to 3″. That's works great for a thicker cushion, where you might want an inch or two of give. However if your cushion is 1-2″ thick (like on a dining chair) a higher IFD helps ensure that you don’t sit through to the board or feel the springs. Here, we might use an IFD of 45-65# so you sink in only a tiny bit. Of course this is all relative to how heavy the person sitting on it is. In addition, how your sofa feels when you sit on it is different when you lay down. Same weight, but spread over a much larger area means the foam won’t compress as far. It FEELS firmer.
Back cushions generally need to be softer or a lower IFD.
Seats take all our weight but backs receive very little. So we want them to compress slightly with less force. An IFD of 30 that feels comfortable in a seat would feel very firm in a back cushion. You might choose an IFD of 20 or less.
The next thing to take into account is the density of the foam.
Density is your best indicator of longevity. It tells you how much product the foam contains (versus air). A good foam has more material crammed into the same cubic foot.
It also tells you how heavy your foam is. It’s expressed as a weight per cubic foot.
Density will range from about 1# to just over 3#.
This is the number you need to compare quality, and it is most closely associated with cost (this is where you get what you paid for)
As a rough guideline, a 1# foam can be expected to last about a year with regular, everyday use.
A 3.1# foam is considered a 10-14 year foam, depending on who you ask.
You don’t need the densest foam for every application – lower density foams are often found in occasional use settings like window seats and camper cushions.. There ARE times when it makes sense to spend less.
But for the sofa in your busy living room, a low density seat foam will disappoint in a hurry.
How long it lasts will also depend upon who’s sitting on it, how often it's used and for how long. Cushions that get flipped and swapped will naturally last longer than odd shaped cushions that never get rotated (like the asymmetrical chaise on a sectional sofa)
The same foam will last much longer in a guest bedroom than it will in your favorite chair.
When we talk about “how long will a foam last” there are loads of variables . . . But density is your best tool for approximating an answer.
The next step is fabric. Now the fun part!!
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