How to cover the sofa with your own hands

27-08-2018

Useful

In the process of repair changes are subject to all objects and elements of the room. But not everyone has sufficient funds to upgrade furniture. If the frame is still durable and reliable, then there is no need to go to the store for shopping - you can modify and restore the upholstered furniture yourself. The central place in the living room is a sofa or sofa. If you do not know how to make a constriction for a small amount of money, then we recommend that you read this article.

Instruments

As in any other process, everything starts with planning and preliminary work. If you are going to cover the sofa at home without the involvement of specialists, then you should perform all the steps in order. To begin to pick up the tool. It is necessary to stock up this:

set of screwdrivers;
hammers;
scissors;
construction or furniture stapler with brackets (optimal size 8–10 mm);
passages;
set of wrenches;
self-tapping screws;
screwdriver;
PVA glue).

In addition, you should choose new materials: filler and upholstery material. Consider the most popular options.

Filler

Among modern fillers, polyurethane foam occupies the leading place, which can be bought in a hardware store at an affordable price. When buying foam rubber, you need to pay attention to the following characteristics:

Density. It depends on which element the filler is selected for. For example, for sitting you need a larger indicator, and for the back and armrests - a smaller one. So, experts recommend for sitting to choose the density of 30 kg / m³ (brand EL3040 and EL4050), and for armrests - 25 kg / m³.
Softness.
Elasticity.

Among the domestic manufacturers of foam rubber stands out the company Muropomoron, which has been offering its customers high-quality products for many years with a large list of advantages:

quality;
security;
environmental friendliness;
hypoallergenic material;
affordable cost.

Coating materials

Once you have decided on the filler, you can proceed to the choice of material for upholstery. The choice is large enough, most often consumers stop at such options:

Tapestry - dense and noble fabric, which has anti-dust properties. A great option for rooms made in retro style.
Jacquard - artificial silk with double-sided pattern. The material is very aesthetic, so it looks solid. Cleared without problems.
Flock is made from natural (cotton) or artificial (polyester) base. The material has a velvety in a small volume, thanks to which it is pleasant to touch it. Can be cleaned dry or wet. Cat's claws are not afraid of such a sofa, since there are no traces left on it.
Velor has a high durability and low pile. Not wrinkled.
Shinil is quite similar in appearance to velor, but in contrast to it, the material is of higher quality. In addition, he breathes, has a slight hairiness.
Artificial suede - can be both non-woven and woven. The material is well cleaned, you can carry out wet cleaning with warm soapy water.
The skin can be either natural or artificial, depending on the restoration budget and your own preferences. The material is durable and practical, but is afraid of the effects of animal claws.

Regardless of what is chosen, these requirements are taken into account:

strength;
ease of cleansing;
resistance to ultraviolet radiation;
environmental friendliness;
attractive appearance.

Also in the list of necessary materials should be recorded furniture tape, braid and piping. This consumables, which will be needed when upholstery.

Getting Started

When all the necessary materials and tools are collected and purchased, you can proceed to work. To start the sofa should be disassembled into basic elements Standardly, each model consists of the following parts:

back;
seats;
armrests;
lower part (tsarga);
locks for fixing the back.

To do everything correctly and not to break down the components, follow the simple algorithm of actions:

Remove the bolts that secure the armrests to the base.
Remove the seat.
Detach the rye.
Lay out the sofa and turn it over to the floor.
Remove the back.
Remove the locks.
Remove the seat.
Remove old fasteners: nails and staples.
Remove old padding and filler.
In the presence of defective and broken springs - completely remove the unit.

Upholstery and filler must be carefully removed, because later on they will be patterned new elements.

Main part

The main part of the process includes several stages. To know exactly how to fit the sofa, you should perform everything in stages and carefully.

Internal repair

It should start with the repair of the frame, namely with the spring unit:

defective items gently unscrewed with pliers;
install new springs;
insert the block back and fasten with nails.

It is possible to make the old springs more elastic with the help of pieces of foam or the old blanket. Springs stuffed with sliced foam. If an old blanket was chosen, then they would cover the entire block from above and sew it with a needle with a string. To sheets of foam rubber lay tight, they are pre-coated with glue. To make the foam look more voluminous, you can lay a padding polyester over the foam.

Sagging springs can not be removed, just stretch them - so they will last longer.

Sewing covers

Regardless of whether the leather or fabric will be upholstered sofa, the scheme of action is very simple:

on the floor with the wrong side up we lay out the fabric on which we lay out the elements of the old upholstery on top;
we fix with needles so that the elements do not shift;
we trace all the components with chalk, not forgetting the seam allowances;
cutting out the material;
sew everything on a sewing machine.

We cover the elements of the sofa

When everything is ready, the sofa is directly upholstered, or rather its individual components:

надеваем сшитые чехлы на спинку, сиденья и armrests;
the places where new things will be fixed should be exactly where the old covers were placed;
we fix new covers with the help of a stapler, while the material must be tightened every time we drive the next fastener.

It remains only to collect all the components in the reverse order of disassembly, while paying attention:

matching tags;
fastening of the lock occurs first to the back, then to the seat and to the chest;
монтируют боковины, а потом armrests;
at the end, we fasten the wooden panels, pre-varnishing them, if necessary.

All processes are quite simple and require only care. Now you know how to cover the sofa yourself and save a decent amount on this.

Continuing to stretch the upholstery is required so that the material lies flat and smooth. Work should be done on the long side and move towards the short.

Features skin stitching

If leather was chosen as a new material, then the process of fitting is somewhat different, more precisely, it will be necessary to take into account several important points. It should be noted that the sofa, covered with leather, will look somewhat more respectable, and the process of care will be easy, because unlike textiles, it is easy to remove dirt, dust, grease stains and other types of dirt from skin.

The sequence of work when disassembling and repairing the sofa frame is no different from the previous description, so we will not dwell on it again. We pay great attention to the removal of the old upholstery, which will be used as a pattern for the pattern of a new material. In addition, you will also need a lining in which any adhesive material will act.

When tailoring new covers, we take into account such features:

the process of sweeping is excluded, since the needle can leave holes in the material;
all the elements of the upholstery from the seamy side fix with adhesive tape;
In order not to damage the skin when sewing (the sewing machine foot may leave marks), it is necessary to pre-lubricate the material with petroleum jelly.

You will have to work with allowances, which were left for the seams in the process of cutting. If they are put together, then from the front side they can bulge a hill. To get a flat and smooth surface, you need to well separate and iron the allowances through gauze with an iron.

The stitches will be securely fastened using tape.

Summing up, we can say that the restoration process can be completely performed independently without the assistance of outside help. It is enough to purchase the necessary materials, assemble a simple tool for the work and start the painstaking work of covering the sofa.

Video

Old sofa can be "brought to life":