How
If old furniture is leaking, this is not a reason to throw it away. A simple alteration of an old chair will breathe a second life into it. The choice of design and materials according to your own taste will allow you to create an exclusive item, update the interior and significantly save on the purchase of new furniture.
What to do with an old chair
There are various ways to renew an old chair. Even if the springs are broken or the upholstery has deteriorated, everything is fixable. The main thing is that a strong frame is preserved, and with the help of a special tool and available materials, you can transform any furniture.
- Padding. They replace the old upholstery material with a new one, and also change the inner filler. If necessary, replace the springs and restore the wooden elements.
- Repainting the upholstery. They are used if the material is well preserved, there are no serious damages and tears, but the fabric has faded, there are irreducible stains on it, or there is simply a desire to renew it. Then it is enough to repaint the fabric with paint or acrylic for the fabric.
- Repair. Full restoration of the chair, in particular, of the frame, is assumed. In addition, if necessary, replace the legs, sliding mechanisms, hinges. Finally, the inner filling and upholstery are changed.
Additional Information. In addition to the listed methods, there is a restoration of the chair. It is usually carried out to restore the original appearance of antique furniture. The process requires certain professional skills; it is carried out without disassembling the chair, using materials and parts identical to those of the family.
Features of updating an old chair
Renovation of furniture includes restoration of its appearance and functionality, therefore, the purchase of the necessary tools, replacement parts and upholstery fabrics will be required. There are a number of things to look out for before getting started.
- Instruments. In addition to the standard set of accessories, a chisel, a sander, a stapler and a screwdriver may be needed to repair the chair.
- Materials. For painting with a set of brushes, roller, varnish. This is necessary for the restoration of wooden elements. For dyeing fabrics, purchase a universal fabric dye or acrylic paint.
- Details. You may need rollers, a spider to secure them, and new springs and bolts.
- Upholstery fabric. The material for the cladding is chosen of high-quality and wear-resistant. These types include velor, chenille, jacquard, tapestry, eco or natural leather. Krylon is used for interior upholstery. Ordinary foam rubber can be used as a filler.
Important! It is better to entrust the restoration of antique furniture and mahogany armchairs to specialists, since in this case restoration of historical authenticity will be required.Here you may need special finishing, gilding, painting, patinating and other processes that are difficult to perform at home.
How to remodel an old chair with your own hands
The process of restoring the chair is quite laborious and includes several stages. To begin with, they are determined with the front of work. The volume depends on the type of product, the degree of wear and tear and the presence of breakdowns. Consider how to remodel a standard armchair with your own hands, in simple and affordable ways.
Repainting upholstery
This is the easiest way to freshen up your furniture. At the same time, the old material does not need to be replaced; to restore it, you will need to purchase a primer, paint in a can or a spray can, a primer and brushes.
The process takes place in several stages:
- The chair is wiped and cleaned of dust, removable pillows (if any) are disconnected. Wooden surfaces are protected with masking tape.
- Impregnate the upholstery surface with water and prime.
- A small amount of paint is diluted with water (in a 1: 1 ratio) and applied to a damp cloth. This is important in order to saturate thick layers of fabric. Allow to dry.
- The second layer is applied with undiluted paint, carefully treating all areas.
After drying, check the quality of the paint. If there are gaps or spots, apply another layer.
Chair upholstery
Rendering furniture is a more difficult and time-consuming process, but in this case, you can radically alter the chair. To begin with, they choose and buy material and filler, and you should also take care of the availability of the necessary tools.
Nails, a screwdriver, a hammer and a stapler must be available. To begin with, they disassemble the structure, remove the armrests and the bottom.
Then proceed as follows:
- Carefully remove the old upholstery from all parts of the chair, as it will be a template for the pattern of new elements.
- Dismantle the filler, also preserving its integrity.
- The upholstery elements are cut out on new fabric: the details of the backrest, seat and armrests are fitted, and the details are cut to size, taking into account an allowance of several centimeters.
- Cut out foam rubber is placed in the structure and the inner upholstery is attached to the frame with a stapler or nails.
- Smooth the fabric on the surface, level and fix with a stapler.
Note! Fastening the fabric should start from the middle so that there are no distortions and folds. After that, you need to fix the material in the corners, and only after making sure that it is evenly distributed, they continue to fix it with staples.
Complete renovation
A complete repair of the chair involves a full range of work, so this is not always easy to do. It all depends on the design features of the product. The office version and the shell chair are more difficult to repair, and the regular wooden model is much easier.
First, the structure is disassembled and the parts that need to be repaired or replaced are determined. In particular, there may be a need for such repairs:
- Inspect for cracks and chips. They are glued with glue, fixed with staples.
- Strengthen the frame with metal corners.
- In case of significant breakdowns, it is recommended to replace the elements with new ones.
- Loose parts are strengthened by tightening the bolts tightly.
To recreate faded wood surfaces you will need: sandpaper, a scraper, varnish and stain. Every detail is sanded, polished and dust removed.Then nitro varnish is applied and allowed to dry. Then they are passed with fine-grained sandpaper. Finally, cover the surface with a stain, apply varnish.
Decor Feature
For those who are not ready to deal with the laborious process of chair constriction, there are simpler ways to improve its appearance. Also, with the help of simple manipulations, you can additionally protect the updated furniture and add zest to the interior.
We offer three options for the decor of the chair:
- The cover for the chair will look stylish and extraordinary. You can sew it yourself or order a finished product.
- Textile decoration. In this case, you can protect and decorate the seat with a pillow or blanket, which should be in harmony with other accessories.
- The easiest way is to get a blanket. The coating will hide the flaws of the old upholstery, protect the new one and transform the interior of the room.
Capes and textiles are chosen in accordance with the color scheme of the wallpaper or to match individual decor elements: in accordance with the color of curtains or carpet.
How to do a complete cleaning of the chair
To preserve the beauty and novelty of furniture, it is important to take proper and timely care of it. In most cases, these are standard procedures: removing dust and debris with a vacuum cleaner or wet cleaning with special chemicals.
The choice of the method largely depends on the quality of the upholstery material:
- Microfiber. Scoring is carried out with a brush or sponge soaked in soapy water or a chlorine-free detergent.
- Velours. It is a decalite material that can only be vacuumed. To remove stains, use water-based products, in small quantities or diluted. You can fluff up the pile and update the look with a velor brush.
- Flock and chenille do not tolerate abundant moisture - the structure of the fabric is destroyed when wet. Cleaned with dry methods.
- Leather products are cleaned with soapy water. After drying, it is treated with leather polish.
When cleaning the chair, pay special attention to the joints, curves and base of the backrest. If possible, remove the pillows and armrests, and treat the area under them. They also regularly clean the wheels - they can become clogged with dust and stop functioning.
Where can you put the chair
The times when the chair was placed exclusively under the wall or next to the sofa are long gone. Nowadays, non-standard solutions are in trend both in the choice of upholstery and decor, and in the place of its installation. At the same time, the layout of the room is taken into account, depending on it, circular placement, symmetrical or asymmetrical, can be used.
The armchair can be placed next to a coffee table, near a fireplace, bookcase or TV. The main thing is to determine the central element and from it to plan the arrangement of furniture.
Video: how to update an old armchair with your own hands