Do-it-yourself sofa repair: fixing common problems. Upholstery of furniture with your own hands. Ancient technologies Lessons on upholstering of upholstered furniture

During use, upholstered furniture often becomes unusable, which manifests itself in the form of worn upholstery and sagging foam rubber. In this case, hauling furniture saves the situation. Replacing spring blocks and re-upholstering a sofa or chair is not difficult, it is important to have the necessary tools. We offer a closer look at the process of updating furniture.

To begin the first steps of replacing upholstery and other components, it is important to choose the right materials. These include the selection of fabric, the choice of filler: synthetic winterizer and foam rubber, as well as other components. Repair of upholstered furniture is easy to carry out on your own, because this does not require special skills.

Starting the selection of upholstery material, be guided by the existing interior, so that the updated furniture is harmoniously written out in style and design in the environment. Pay attention to the recommendations:

material for furniture upholstery should not shed or be too rough, therefore, in addition to aesthetic options, also consider the practicality of the fabric;
check that the pile on the fabric is firmly fixed, otherwise during operation these areas will wear out faster;
material of increased thickness will help hide some flaws when fitting a sofa or chair at home, if this is done for the first time.

A private country house is usually equipped with expensive furniture with luxury upholstery. A tapestry is a good option, but it is expensive and is unlikely to be suitable for a first experience in upholstery. It is better to give preference to companion fabrics, which are represented by two variations: plain material, and a fabric with a pattern on the same background.

In order for the restoration of furniture items to be of high quality, it is necessary to choose a good synthetic winterizer. It is placed instead of foam rubber or used simultaneously with it. In addition, it is suitable for upholstering sofa cushions. Below are the criteria that determine the relevance of raw materials in order for the upholstery of furniture to pass without problems, you should take care of the choice of material:

The color of the material indicates its quality. It must be white, and if there are impurities of other colors, then it is recyclable;
the synthetic winterizer should be tight and not torn in the hands at the first attempt to stretch it;
there should be no gaps on the canvases;
the smell of synthetic winterizer is practically absent, but if it exists and has a sharp shade, it is better to refuse to choose such a material - it is necessary to drag the furniture only with high-quality fillers.

Another important component is foam rubber. It has many markings and varieties that differ from each other in the characteristics of density, rigidity and elasticity. Do-it-yourself furniture upholstery involves the use of foam rubber that is suitable for the purpose of the items. For example, for sofas, materials with a thickness of at least 10 cm are used; for chairs, it would be appropriate to use a material of 5 cm.

In addition to the specified raw materials, you will need a special felt that is laid between the layers of foam rubber, as well as batting - when hauling old furniture with your own hands, this material helps to soften the structure of the foam rubber. Sometimes it is used instead of synthetic winterizer.

Necessary tools for the job

To perform the tightening procedure on your own, you need to have a number of tools in your arsenal that are important for obtaining an effective result:

screwdrivers, a screwdriver, wrenches - all of the above devices will be needed in order to dismantle old furniture. Before the hauling, all furniture parts must be twisted and disassembled, because each element is updated separately;
pliers or round-nose pliers, as well as a chisel or a special puller for furniture staples. Having disassembled the furniture, it is necessary to remove the upholstery, which is fixed with brackets. Pulling them out of a sofa or chair, you need to help yourself with pliers;
upholstering of upholstered furniture at home is carried out with the help of a furniture stapler and staples of the appropriate length. When choosing this tool, give preference to the mechanical option if you plan to fit a small number of products. If large-scale work will be done, it is better to purchase an electric stapler.

In addition to the listed devices, sharp scissors, a construction knife, a hammer and a tape measure will come in handy. Immediately after selecting the tools, proceed to the repair of furniture - hauling one medium-sized product will not take much time.

Stages of work

Before proceeding with the process of reupholstering furniture, the photo sequence of which is presented in our article, it is necessary to carefully inspect the products for wear and tear. It is important to identify the main problems that arose during operation. Answer the question: what made the furniture unusable, and which areas should be given the most attention. All stages can be clearly seen in the video tutorial on the implementation of the waist.

The procedure itself consists of the following steps:

disassembly of furniture items;
removal of old upholstery;
replacement of springs and filler;
pattern of details from fabric;
upholstery details;
final assembly.

Do-it-yourself upholstery of upholstered furniture is carried out according to the specified plan, so each of the steps of work must be considered in more detail.

Furniture disassembly

The process of dismantling old furniture depends on its design. If we are talking about a soft sofa, then the side backs and headrests, as well as additional equipment, are first twisted. Further, wherever you can unscrew the mechanisms, you need to remove them from the sofa. After that, disconnect the main part of the product from its frame.

In the case of chair seats, it won't take long. Here it is necessary to remove only those parts that will be dragged. In order not to get confused in the sequence of work, watch the video that is posted in this article, it will help you fully understand the order of tasks.

Disassemble carefully and slowly so as not to accidentally damage the mechanisms and fasteners. If the product has not been disassembled before, it will not be superfluous to mark the mounting seats with a pencil. During the final assembly, you don’t have to look for places for fastening parts for a long time.

Foldable side backs and headrests

Unscrew all mechanisms and hardware

Removing old upholstery

A good tip for beginners in this business is to carefully remove the upholstery for later use as patterns for new fabrics. Updated furniture is also refreshed with leatherette, which has a more affordable price than elite leather. During the process, you will need to perform the following steps:

using a screwdriver, thin chisel or file, carefully pry off all the staples;
pull out the staples using wire cutters or pliers.

Make sure that not a single fixing element remains, because it is easy to get hurt about it when repairing furniture with your own hands. In order not to contaminate the floor surface, it would be appropriate to lay a film or old newspapers. Often, unusable foam rubber begins to crumble from under the upholstery, which is difficult to clean in the future.

Before you drag the furniture, check the quality of the old foam rubber: here you can see which places need to be reinforced.

When performing this range of tasks, it is necessary to comply with the technologies that were incorporated into the furniture by the manufacturer. If innovations are used instead, there is a risk of a complete reconfiguration of the product, which may affect its quality in the future.

If the springs are still in good condition, then they are repaired. This is done with the help of improvised tools, by bending the devices in the right direction. When the material is damaged, it is better to purchase a new spring block that pleases all users with its elasticity.

The banner of old furniture is carried out taking into account the replacement of the filler, which is foam rubber, synthetic winterizer, felt or batting. Foam rubber is used constantly, only its elasticity and thickness differ. For armchairs and sofas, thicker material is used, and for chairs and upholstered stools, raw materials of lower density are used.

Structurally, first the spring side is laid, after which the foam rubber is placed, sandwiched with felt for reliability. Before upholstering the product, it is covered with batting or synthetic winterizer, which serves to prevent slipping. In order to clearly understand how to drag upholstered furniture, study a special master class that helps you understand all the stages of the procedure.

Pattern of fabric details

For the pattern, use the old upholstery: it will be easier to get the right sizes. Remember to leave 2-3 cm in allowances, in case the fabric does not lie flat.

Before making an independent pattern, it is necessary to thoroughly measure all the dimensions of the fitted part and carefully develop a drawing. Doing it yourself is difficult and time consuming, so it is still recommended to use old material templates. Therefore, do not tear or cut, and even more so do not throw away the canvases that have just been removed, but leave them for the subsequent stages of work.

We measure furniture

We prepare tools and materials

Cut out the details

upholstery details

To upholster furniture with your own hands, you will need a stapler and a new fabric material cut out according to patterns. Start by upholstering the simplest pieces, such as the armrests or square-shaped side panels. Pay attention to the recommendations:

test the stapler with staples on an unnecessary piece of fabric and wood;
correctly select the depth of the staples so that the new upholstery is firmly fixed to the frame;
pull the fabric tighter to avoid warping the pattern;
if upholstery is done for the first time, use materials with ordinary embossed ornaments - it is better to refuse complex patterns that require docking.

If the sofa book is dragged, after updating the main part, check its viability. Fold and unfold the sofa to see if the upholstery is slipping and what places need to be corrected.

Furniture can be expensive and not very, high and low quality. Regardless of this, after a certain time it wears out and it becomes necessary to repair the sofa with your own hands. All work can really be done independently, it is enough to have elementary work skills, the necessary tools and materials.

If you have an old sofa with a chipboard frame, then it will be harder to repair it than one with a wooden frame, but everything will depend on the condition of the frame.

In order to repair the sofa with our own hands, we need to know its design.

Design features

There are various models of sofas, but almost all of them consist of basic elements:

the armrest can be soft or not, made of metal, wood, chipboard or MDF;
upholstery material can also be different: leather, leatherette, fabric;
a layer of batting or synthetic winterizer; furniture foam rubber is usually used as a filler;
to improve cushioning, some models install a layer of polyurethane foam;
the main shock-absorbing element is the spring block;
burlap is used so that when rubbing against plywood or metal there are no extraneous sounds;
the frame of the sofa is made of wood or chipboard.

Your sofa may not have all of the items listed, but now you will know their name and purpose.

In many ways, the durability of your sofa will depend on the quality of the frame and the material from which it is made. The life of the sofa, the comfort of its use and environmental friendliness will depend on what filler is used.

Parsing the sofa should begin with the removal of the sidewalls, after which the elements of the back and seat are removed.

Types of transformation mechanisms:

the most common is a sofa book;
when using the eurobook, the seat extends and the back rests in its place;
eurobook tick-tock does not extend, but moves in a circle;
type accordion consists of 3 parts, but it is practically not repaired;
the use of the click-clack mechanism allows you to make 3 positions: in the form of a sofa, in a semi-unfolded state and in the form of a bed;
the dolphin mechanism is used in corner sofas.

In the event of a breakdown, the transformation mechanism of the old sofa should only be changed to the one used in the specified model.

If we talk about fillers, then one of the best is considered to be a spring block covered with batting and burlap, but this option is expensive, and often foam rubber and calico are used to reduce the cost. The cheapest models do not use a spring block, instead they put several layers of polyurethane foam or similar material.

Since you are renovating an old sofa for yourself, you need to use quality materials. Polyurethane foam must be taken with a thickness of at least 40 mm. The use of holofiber allows you to do wet cleaning of the sofa. The synthetic winterizer does not absorb moisture, makes the furniture embossed.

A padded jacket is well suited for a spring block - 5 cm of cotton wool, covered with a layer of coarse fabric. Periotek holds its shape well, has high strength and heat resistance.

The upholstery is fabric or leather. Working with leather is quite difficult, so this work should be done by specialists. You can work with the fabric yourself, it is divided into woven and non-woven textiles. Most often, when deciding how to repair a sofa, the following fabrics are used: flock, velor, jacquard, chenille, tapestry.

Work sequence

Knowing all the main elements of the sofa and the materials that are used for its restoration, you can begin to carry out the repair itself.

To complete the work you will need:

screwdrivers;
pliers;
stapler;
wood glue;
hammer, scissors;
screwdriver and screws.

Upholstery replacement

Before proceeding with the repair, it is necessary to disassemble the sofa. You need to remember the location of the parts so that you can put everything back together later. To simplify the assembly process, you can use a camera or video camera during disassembly.

First remove the armrests, they can be combined with the legs. The sidewalls are mounted on two bolts, in order to unscrew them, you need to lift the seat. After that, the transformation mechanism is removed, it is unscrewed from the frame, seat and backrest. Now the rest of the sofa is dismantled until one frame remains.

The upholstery must be removed carefully so as not to damage it, as it will then be used as a template for cutting a new upholstery. If the mattress is in good condition, then you should not disassemble it.

In order to make a cover, you need to have basic sewing skills. If the sofa has a complex shape, then you will have to work harder. Fasten the finished cover with staples. If the tension is carried out manually, then first the fabric is attached from the front side, at the attachment points it must be folded in half. After that, they are attached on the opposite side, and then in the corners, making sure that the fabric is stretched and there are no folds.

Similarly, the upholstery is replaced on all other structural elements. After that, the sofa is assembled in the reverse order.

Any thing eventually becomes unusable and upholstered furniture is no exception. But in the case of furniture, it is possible to restore its original appearance and properties. This article will discuss self-upholstery of the sofa. How, what and in what order to do, what materials to use.

Damage and types of repairs

Damage to a sofa or other upholstered furniture can be of different "severity". Depending on the existing injuries, a different set of works is required. Here's what might happen to your furniture:

So the upholstery of the sofa may include different work. From a simple upholstery replacement to a complete refurbishment, including part of the frame. The most troublesome part is with spring blocks. This is a long and painstaking job. If the “historical accuracy” of your furniture is not important to you, it is easier to replace a failed spring block with foam rubber or (better, but more expensive) furniture silicone. If everything is done correctly, the sofa will become even more comfortable: incorrectly tightened springs cause a lot of inconvenience.

Types of "soft part"

In general terms, let's talk about what the seat and back of the sofa can be made of. There are options:

Without springs:
- Foam rubber (polyurethane foam, the name PPU is also found) of high density (also called furniture).
- Foam latex. In terms of quality and convenience, it is better than foam rubber, but also much more expensive.
With springs:
- with classic springs connected in one block;
- serpentine springs that support the foam/latex filling.

These are the most common types of sofa seats. In more expensive models, the spring block can be supplemented with a layer of polyurethane foam or latex, which makes the seat more elastic and comfortable at the same time. When constricting, then they look at the state of both parts, replace or leave - depending on the desire and possibilities.

But these are not all layers. In addition to springs, polyurethane foam / latex, a synthetic winterizer or thermal felt (or ordinary felt) is also laid. This is if the sofa is more or less modern and not too expensive. Older exhibits may contain matting or burlap, batting (or something very similar), horsehair, dried seaweed, and other now almost exotic materials for stuffing a sofa. When repairing a sofa, they will need to be replaced with the same ones (if there is a desire to look) or similar in thickness and properties. So, in order to understand how a sofa upholstery should be done, first figure out what is inside it.

We disassemble the sofa and evaluate the scale of work

The upholstery of the sofa begins with its disassembly. In the process, you will be able to assess the extent of the damage and decide what exactly you will need to do. For this part of the job, you will need:

a large screwdriver to unscrew the visible bolts (if any);
a small flathead screwdriver, pliers, or a staple remover to remove the staples that hold the upholstery in place.

The main thing is to remove the old upholstery. Then everything will become clear

Actually, everything. First, remove the individual pillows, if any, remove the sidewalls. It's hard to tell here - there are a lot of designs. Look carefully, you will definitely find something. If there are sliding parts, you can try to start with them.

Separating the upholstery

The next step is to separate the fabric from the frame. It is attached with staples to the wooden bars of the frame. We pry the brackets with a flat screwdriver, pull them out. Some can sit very tightly, it is easier to pull them out by grabbing them by the raised back with pliers or pliers.

We remove the fabric carefully, trying not to damage too much. We then use it as a sample for a new sofa upholstery. There are several layers under the upholstery fabric. Maybe felt, synthetic winterizer, some kind of fabric. If the repair of the sofa was started only for the sake of replacing the upholstery, look at the condition of these materials. If there are signs of wear, it is better to replace. After all, it would be a shame if, in a few months, the sofa would need to be reupholstered again, but already due to the fact that the layers of the lining were worn down.

Once the fabric is off, it's time to evaluate which parts you'll need to change. With upholstery and lining under it, everything is clear. It is desirable to keep the pie in the same composition. If old materials were used that are not currently on sale or they are too expensive, replace them with modern analogues. The main thing for folding sofas is to reach the same seat and back height as before, since folding mechanisms are designed for certain parameters of “pillows”. In order not to make a mistake with the thickness of materials, find unworn (or least worn) areas and measure the thickness.

Assessing the damage

This stage is needed if the sofa seat is uneven, there are humps and depressions, protruding springs (and from below too). In seats that consist only of foam rubber, everything is simple: they usually go under replacement. They can be made from high-density foam rubber, having folded several layers, you can order ready-made foam rubber in a store selling furniture parts. It is reasonable to order a latex mattress according to the exact dimensions (measure after the fabric and all layers have been removed).

If there are springs in the sofa, having removed all the covering layers, we get to them. If there are no broken springs, the frame and its connections are strong, without backlash and cracks, the substrate for the springs is in good condition, you can stop there. We change the covering layers, sew a new cover, stretch and fasten. This completes the upholstery of the sofa.

One of the common defects of spring blocks is a broken spring. There are also such sofas - with spring snakes that are attached to the frame and give elasticity to the foam mattress standing on top

If there is at least one damage listed above, the spring block will have to be separated. It is attached to the frame frame with U-shaped brackets or nails. Now you have completely disassembled your sofa into components. Next is the replacement and repair of damaged parts, and then reassembly.

Classic box spring sofa pie and possible problems

To understand how to repair a sofa at home, you need to know what layers of materials and in what sequence are needed. For example, in a sofa seat with a spring block, the sequence would be like this (from bottom to top):

Frame made of plywood or wooden blocks. The plywood frame is more reliable, but it is longer and more difficult to make. Therefore, pine bars are usually used. They are connected according to the tenon-groove principle, gluing the connection with wood glue. If desired, the connections can be reinforced with dowels or corners (aluminum).
Base for spring block. There may be options: lamellas (slats of elastic material), fiberboard, plywood. The most budget option is fiberboard, the most expensive is lamellas. The slats are attached to special stops (lat holders). When using plastic stops, there is a possibility of breakage. At the same time, low-quality lamellas can bend (in the normal state they are bent slightly upwards) or break - to reduce the cost, they are often placed through a large gap. All this leads to the fact that the sofa seat is pressed through. Instead of wooden lamellas, snake springs can still be used. They also have sufficient elasticity, but cost less. The problems with them are the same.
The spring block. The block can be with independent or dependent springs. The first is cheaper, the second supports the body well. Such mattresses are also called orthopedic.
Felt or heavy fabric(Tick, another similar dense fabric will do). This layer is needed so that the springs do not push through the foam rubber above.
If the fabric is thin, it will tear, then the foam rubber will begin to crumble. But this is not the saddest thing - the lamellas arched in the opposite direction. In the normal state, they should be curved up
polyurethane foam(PPU, foam rubber - all names of one material). A special dense foam rubber is used. If you choose, in addition to density, look at such an indicator as the durability coefficient - the higher the number, the better (and more expensive). This indicator displays how long the foam rubber will restore its original shape after the load is removed. Its thickness is taken from the original, factory cake. It is possible to make thicker without restrictions only on upholstered furniture that does not unfold (bench, sofa, armchair).
Sintepon. It is necessary so that the fabric does not “wash” PPU. It is usually glued to a layer of foam rubber - so that during operation it does not gather into folds. Glue is taken in a can.
upholstery fabric. The best are tapestry, chenille. They do not crumble, it is easy to sew from them. Flock and jacquard are good fabrics, but some of them “creep” at the seams. Therefore, when sewing, the seams must be strengthened. By the way, it is better to sew upholstery for a sofa with special threads of the Tytan brand. Ordinary, even thick ones, will quickly tear.

These are all layers and their features. You can add something (for example, a double layer of synthetic winterizer), remove it - it is highly undesirable.

The device of the sofa on the springs "snake" and options for its restoration

Snake springs in expensive models are used as an additional means to increase elasticity. In budget models, a foam block can be placed on this base. They are attached to a wooden or metal frame across the seat - each spring is separate. The installation step depends on the planned load. If your sofa began to sag, or the springs lost their elasticity, or broke, it is treated by replacement.

To increase elasticity and extend the life of the sofa, the number of "snakes" can be increased when reupholstering the sofa. Another option is transverse reinforcement with hard corsage ribbons (which are used for straps on bags, backpacks).

The tape is nailed on one side to the frame. Professional furniture makers then stretch it with a special tool, but you can replace it with an ordinary bar wrapped around in the middle with coarse-grained sandpaper. You wind a couple of turns of tape on this beam, pull with both hands (make sure that the frame does not bend), fix the tape with staples or nails, release and cut off the excess. The same method is also suitable for increasing the life of a mattress with slats.

An example of sofa repair with step by step photos

The old sofa became quite uncomfortable, began to fail in places and creak. There is no way to buy a new one, it was decided to drag and change the upholstery. As usual, the sofa upholstery begins with disassembly. The legs were removed first. The railing was fastened on two large bolts, they were unscrewed and removed without any problems. Further disassembly is also easy - we unscrew the bolts that appear in turn.

When all the components were separated, the old upholstery was removed. Staples were removed easily - a frame made of pine timber. The spring block itself turned out to be without defects, but there was a crack in the frame, one of the bars of the frame led, the fiberboard sank, although there were no cracks.

Frame repair

Since the frame bears the main load, it is better to replace damaged elements. We carefully measure them, draw them schematically, put down the dimensions in millimeters. With the drawing we go to the carpentry shop. Pay special attention: the wood must be dry, preferably kiln dried. If you know how to work with wood yourself, you can do it yourself.

It was decided to connect the frame, as it was, with a spike / groove, smearing it with carpentry glue. But in order not to loosen up, the connection was reinforced with metal dowels.

First, the joints are glued, clamped in a vise. A hole of small diameter is drilled under the dowel, the dowel is driven in. The frame is in a vice until the glue dries.

We will use plywood 4 mm thick as the basis for the spring block. The sheets are standard, a little more than 1.5 meters, and the length of the sofa is almost two. It turns out two pieces. It is better to make the joint of the pieces on the jumper, it is more reliable. We cut out the rectangles of the desired size, coat the frame with wood glue, lay plywood, nail it with small nails. The length of the nails - so that they do not stick out from the outside of the frame. We additionally support the junction with a bar (50 * 20 mm).

The updated sofa will serve in the country, so we are trying to make the budget minimal, we use an old blanket instead of a backing for springs. We stretch it well, fasten it with staples using a manual one.

The base for the springs is an old fleece blanket

If possible, it is advisable to put thermal felt here. It is more reliable and not so expensive. It is cut to size, straightened and nailed around the perimeter. You can use staples or carnations with large hats.

Repair and fix the spring block

To fasten the spring block, you can use powerful U-shaped brackets, and it is better if their legs are sharpened. But the stapler does not work with such, therefore, staples were cut from steel wire with a diameter of 1.5 mm, hammered.

In addition to fastening to the frame, the springs are also fixed with nylon constrictions. Twine was taken, folded in two layers, fixed with the same wire staples. We tighten the constriction so that it does not press down on the springs, but the tension should be sufficient so that the block does not “ride”.

Some dense material should be placed on top of the springs, usually felt. In this case, the old flooring was used. Something like felt. It is quite dense and durable. Fold in two layers, cut to size. This layer must be attached to the spring block. The coating is dense, you can’t pierce it with a needle, even a gypsy one. An awl of a large diameter will do, but it is not. We pierce the coating with a nail, which we push with the handle of a screwdriver. We thread a thick thread into the holes made. The stitch pitch is about 3.5 cm. To speed up the process, we use several nails at once.

Further, “according to the plan”, foam rubber should go, on top of which a synthetic winterizer is placed. In this project, it was replaced with two layers of densely elastic material that had been stored in the attic for a long time. Instead of a synthetic winterizer, another old blanket was used. To prevent the blanket from moving, it was grabbed around the perimeter with threads (in the usual technology, the synthetic winterizer is glued to polyurethane foam or latex using glue from a spray can).

Case and cover

Sheathing this sofa turned out to be easy: the shape is simple, without decorations. The old cover was torn open, and a pattern was made from a new, not very expensive upholstery fabric. In the place that falls on the corner of the sofa cushion / seat, a thick tape was sewn from the inside - so that the fabric would not be rubbed. The fabric is inexpensive, so the edges had to be tucked up so as not to fray. Often they are left untreated.

The finished cover was laid out on the floor, the restored part of the sofa was placed in it. At this stage, it is important that the fabric is stretched evenly and does not wrinkle. We began to nail the cover from the middle, moving towards the edges. Staples with thick backs are used so as not to damage the fabric.

The back of the sofa was restored in a similar way, the armrests were fitted, then all the parts were screwed to the folding mechanism. The thickness of the pillows matched, so there were no problems.

Sofa upholstery completed. Result checked 🙂

According to the test results: the seat turned out to be harsh, but for a tired back it is the most. For the house, of course, it is better to put foam rubber, and for lovers of comfort - latex.

Sooner or later, we all usually face the need to reupholster furniture. We are talking about upholstered furniture, in which you just need to change the upholstery. Furniture repair in the form of reupholstery is commonly referred to as furniture upholstery. Today we will tell you how you can drag furniture with your own hands, changing its upholstery to a new one. As an example, we will describe the process of reupholstering a bed upholstery and show photos of the main points of the process. Believe me, this is not such a difficult task (for those who have arms growing from their shoulders, and not from anywhere else). In order to drag a sofa, bed or something else, you will need three basic things:

upholstery;
staples to the stapler;

The reasons why the upholstery fails are different, for example:

fabric upholstery may fade in areas regularly exposed to strong sunlight;
leatherette upholstery may crack and begin to peel off;
any upholstery can be damaged by the claws of pets;
any upholstery can be simply accidentally torn or soiled;

Preparing for furniture upholstery

Preparation for furniture upholstery should begin with the selection of upholstery material. Depending on your financial capabilities and tastes, I recommend choosing between natural leather and fabric. Leatherette is not durable.

Upholstery in leather

If you decide to buy genuine leather as upholstery, then choose it in such a thickness that it still remains quite elastic. Do not try to buy thick leather with a thickness of more than 3 mm (unless you are pursuing some goals known only to you). Thick skin will be difficult to work with. This is especially true in those cases when the length of the purchased piece is not enough to fit any part and you need to sew several pieces together. It is quite easy to work with thin skin (up to 1.5 mm thick - as with thick material). You need to work with dry skin. If the skin is wetted, it stretches significantly in size, followed by shrinkage when dried. They work with wet skin only in those cases when it is necessary to pull it like a drum, in this case it is wetted, pulled and fastened. When the skin dries out, it stretches even more. To buy genuine leather inexpensively and in the form of large pieces, you need to look for shops in your city that sell materials and accessories for shoemakers. In St. Petersburg, one of these stores is located in the courtyard of the house at 93 Obukhovskaya Oborony Avenue (the intersection of Obukhovskaya Oborony Avenue and Elizarov Avenue). It’s easier to find it by entering the courtyard through the arch from Elizarov Avenue (in the picture below) and immediately turn right. The shop is located immediately to the right behind the archway in the basement.

upholstery fabric

If you decide to buy material as upholstery, then you can not look for special upholstery materials, but take an ordinary tapestry. You may be surprised, but tapestry is often cheaper than many upholstery fabrics. A positive characteristic of the tapestry is that its structure virtually eliminates the possibility of puffs. Even if your pet catches a thread with its claw and a hook is formed, it will not break the pattern of the fabric and will not form a tie, so you can safely just cut off the loop that has formed and the tapestry will not begin to “crumble” in this place. In St. Petersburg, a fairly wide selection of tapestries at low prices is presented in the Uzor store, located at 9 Pyatiletok Avenue, building 1 (the intersection of Pyatiletok Avenue and John Reed Street).

In our case, a tapestry purchased from this store was chosen. It is he who is present as upholstery material in all the photos below. Unlike real leather, the material has the advantage that you can buy it in a size that saves you the hassle of splicing several pieces to get one, but with dimensions sufficient to upholster any large piece of drag-and-drop furniture.

Tool selection

Furniture upholstery will require the use of tools that can solve the following tasks:

Carry out partial disassembly of furniture into separate elements and dismantle hinged elements, such as legs (for this you may need screwdrivers or a screwdriver, wrenches or adjustable wrenches);
Remove the old brackets holding the old upholstery. The task is not at all simple, given that there can be hundreds of such brackets and in order to remove them, you first need to pick them up with something (to pick up old brackets, a chisel, a chisel, a sharpened unnecessary screwdriver or some kind of strong knife can come up). After you've hooked up the old braces and lifted them up a little, you'll need something to grab onto and pull them out. (For this purpose, pliers or round nose pliers are perfect);
Stretch and fasten the new upholstery (For this you need a stapler and appropriate staples to it with the required length). If you are going to drag a bed or sofa, then I recommend using an electric stapler (but not a manual mechanical one). A manual mechanical stapler is suitable for a maximum chair hauling or similar work of a small volume. It is also worth noting that staplers vary in power and not everyone can suit you. Read more about the types of staplers and their comparison in our article.Stapler… Which stapler should I buy?

Furniture upholstery - where to start?

As we already wrote at the very beginning of the article, as an example, we will talk about the upholstery of a double bed and show photos of the process.

First you need to carefully inspect the furniture, the upholstery of which you are going to change. The purpose of the inspection is to understand how it is disassembled and to identify the attachment points. In our case, the headboard was the first element to be dismantled.

What happened to that back to make it look like this? It's simple - the old leatherette cracked and began to peel off and roll down from the friction of the pillows on the back. So, having removed the back, you need to carefully study it in order to understand where to start dismantling the old upholstery. Usually the upholstery is attached in a certain order and dismantled in the reverse order. When disassembling the backrest, we ran into a dilemma when it was not clear how the upholstery was fixed on the sides and how the side linings could be removed. The lack of visible fasteners and the lack of access to invisible fasteners led to the idea that the pads are attached with glue and/or pins. Therefore, with the help of a chisel, we carefully try to pry and tear off the side linings around the perimeter (without fanaticism, so as not to break), they finally give in and separate.

Pay attention to the cardboard tape, which was found nailed to both ends of the back. We damaged this cardboard strip when we chiseled the wooden end caps. The purpose of this tape is to create a ledge around the perimeter of both ends of the back. These protrusions are covered with upholstery material, after which the end plates are, as it were, “recessed”. This is done not only for beauty and giving volume to the upholstery. No matter how tightly you fasten the end pads, there will be a certain gap between them and the back. And only the creation of protrusions, inside of which the linings are heated, hide any gaps from the observer.

We decided to replace the damaged cardboard with leather, after making it more rigid. In order to give the skin stiffness, hardness and reduce its elasticity, you need to soak it in water containing a small amount of ordinary PVA glue, and then dry it. In the photos below you can see the result of this - the strips of leather are angled upwards without bending.

After that, you can start hauling the back with new upholstery. Before you start shooting the upholstery fabric, its edge should be bent (just as it is done when working on a sewing machine - by bending the edge, you prevent it from crumbling into fibers. In general, hauling furniture in its approaches practically does not differ from approaches used when sewing on a sewing machine.For example, to hide the staples with which you attach the first edge of the upholstery - put the fabric inside out and attach with a stapler, then turn the fabric over, covering the clogged staples.We forgot to photograph this moment separately, but if Take a close look at the photos of the backrest constriction below - you will understand what we are talking about.

So, having changed the upholstery of the headboard with your own hands, you can proceed to the constriction of the bed base. First we need to dismantle all the elements that prevent the removal of the old skin. In our case, these are the legs and side shelves.

Next, we study how the old upholstery is fixed, from which side you need to start dismantling it. In our case, there was a secret mount on top, from which the installation began at the factory, and an open (visible from the outside) mount was found below (under the bed). Therefore, the dismantling was carried out in the same order - first from the bottom, then from the top. To be honest, in our case, in order to simplify installation, we decided not to use a hidden fastening from above, since it will still not be visible when the bed is closed. Therefore, we started the installation of the upholstery fabric not from above, but from below, then, evenly stretching, we began to fasten it from above. It is very important to maintain the same tension of this fabric over the entire surface of the furniture before attaching the upholstery fabric. Otherwise, the upholstery will not lie flat, but in waves or folds (where it is stretched more, there will be recesses, where it is weaker, bulges). To evenly stretch the upholstery, you can use a narrow strip cut from fiberboard. In this case, the edge of the upholstery fabric is attached to the strip, then the strip is scrolled, winding the fabric around it in one turn. After that, it is easier to stretch the entire upholstery fabric evenly along the entire length with a strip. Having stretched the fabric, the strip is fixed with a stapler, nailing it to the product along with the fabric.

As you can see, do-it-yourself furniture upholstery is not such a complicated process. It took 2 days to change the upholstery of the bed shown in the photo.

Good furniture has always been expensive. And, despite the fact that it is, unlike, more durable than its cheap counterparts, it also becomes unusable. Especially upholstered furniture, such as a sofa, because it is constantly used. And when this happens, the question arises before us, what to do with it? What to do with a sofa in which the upholstery has lost its aesthetic appearance or the springs have broken free? There are three ways to solve this issue: throw it away and buy a new one (the most expensive option), call a furniture repairman or, armed with a tool, repair the sofa yourself.

We note right away that the last two solutions are for an “old”, but high-quality wooden sofa. Cheap sofas, the frame of which is made of chipboard, are very difficult to repair and in most cases it is easier to purchase a new one. But if the frame is intact, you can try to restore it too. So, to repair the sofa with our own hands, we need, in addition to desire, to know the structure of the sofa, the materials that are used and the sequence of work. Our article will try to answer all this.

sofa design

Before proceeding with the repair, let's look at the elements of the sofa and their purpose. And although your sofa may differ from the one shown in the picture, nevertheless, the purpose of the main elements is identical. The sofa consists of:

The armrest can be made of wood, chipboard, MDF, metal, it can be soft (upholstered).
Upholstery fabric or leather, there is a fairly large variety of upholstery materials, both natural and synthetic.
A layer of synthetic winterizer or batting.
Foam rubber, in high-quality sofas, furniture with a density of 35 mm is used.
Polyurethane foam pads are not used in all models. It serves for additional cushioning and weight distribution, thanks to such inserts, the surface of the sofa has orthopedic properties.
Spring block, the main shock-absorbing structural element.
Burlap or felt prevents unpleasant sounds from rubbing metal against plywood.
Fiberboard, serves as the base of the sofa mattress.
The frame of the sofa can be made of wood, metal and chipboard.
Flazelin.
Rail for rollers, can be located at the bottom of the box for the bed and be either wooden or metal.
Box or niche for bedding.

Design and construction features may differ from the presented version, but all these items will be available. Therefore, when you disassemble your sofa, you will know the purpose of certain parts of it.

Let us consider in more detail those parts of the sofa that affect its main characteristics.

Frame - the main supporting structure. Production material: wood, metal, chipboard or combined. The durability of the entire sofa depends on the quality of the selected materials and its assembly. Chipboard, fiberboard are used as panel elements and parts of the frame filling.

Sofa filling. This includes all materials between the frame and the upholstery fabric. Not only the service life of the sofa, its convenience, but also its environmental safety depend on the layout, types and quality of these materials. In more detail about the materials that are used to fill the sofas, we will talk in the second part of the article.

Transformation mechanism. The type and design of your sofa depends on the design of this mechanism. That is, if the mechanism of your sofa is, say, “click-clack”, then it will not work to make a “Eurobook” out of the sofa. Is it possible to change the elements of the frame, and this is tantamount to creating furniture with your own hands. In addition, the comfort of using such furniture depends on the quality of manufacture of such mechanisms. Not to mention the time of operation before the first repair.

Types of materials and accessories

We have come to the second part of the article, where we will take a closer look at the materials for filling sofas and the transformation mechanisms. You need to know this at least in general terms, since in addition to disassembly and assembly, you will also have to go to the store for the appropriate elements and materials. And since the choice in modern stores is very diverse, and sellers are not always eager to help the buyer make a reasonable purchase, it remains to rely on your own head and intuition.

Let's start with an overview of the main mechanisms of transformation. To date, the following options are usually common:

Book, the most common option and the most reliable. The seat rises to a click and falls - the sofa is laid out.
Eurobook, the design of such a sofa is transformed as follows - the back cushions are removed, the seat rolls out and the back is lowered in its place.

Eurobook "tick - so", unlike the previous mechanism, the seat does not roll out, but moves in a semicircle.
Accordion, the sofa layout mechanism is implemented according to the accordion principle. Consists of three parts. When the seat is slightly raised until it clicks, the mechanism moves forward, spreading the sofa. Repairing the accordion sofa mechanism makes almost no sense if the elements are bent, they can be leveled, but since the transformation takes place with effort, the mechanism will bend again in that place.

Click - klyak, allows the sofa to have three positions of the sofa, "relax" (half-folded) and the actual bed. It should be noted that such sofas have a metal frame.

Dolphin is used, as a rule, in corner sofas, in the lower part of the sofa there is a strap, by pulling which the transformation mechanism is activated, the second part of the bed leaves and rises to the height of the seat.

If the transformation mechanism is faulty and needs to be replaced, buy the type that was originally. Other types of mechanisms are not interchangeable, they simply will not work. So, for example, when repairing a sofa “click-clack”, the mechanism for transforming a sofa-book will not work, despite the fact that the difference is only in one position - “relax”. They are different both in size and in the principle of operation. And the frames of such sofas are different.

Consider the materials that are used in filling the sofa. The best option was and still is the spring block, which is lined with burlap and covered with burlap and batting. But this is one of the most expensive options. Therefore, to reduce the cost, foam rubber and calico are used. In the cheapest versions of sofas, the spring block is generally abandoned and replaced with several layers of polyurethane foam, comfort, etc.

Since we do everything for ourselves, we need sufficiently high-quality materials. These include:

Polyurethane foam (PPU) is an environmentally friendly material with increased wear resistance. To repair the sofa, we need special furniture foam rubber, as a rule, it has a thickness of 40 mm or more. It provides maximum seating comfort.
Hollofiber is a material that perfectly retains its shape over a long service life. Environmentally friendly and safe. Refers to the "breathable" materials, allows wet cleaning of the sofa.
The synthetic winterizer - elastic - elastic material, is ecologically safe. It has a high resistance to fungal contamination, does not absorb water and gives softness and relief to upholstered furniture.
The padded jacket is a kind of sandwich - two layers of coarse fabric with a 5 cm layer of cotton wool. Excellent material for covering the spring block.
Periotek - has a high resistance to deformation, holds its shape well. Hypoallergenic, durable and heat-resistant material.

And the last necessary material for repairing a sofa is upholstery fabric or leather. Leather is a very troublesome business, and it is better to entrust the repair of leather sofas to professional furniture makers. But with fabric it is much easier and you can replace such upholstery yourself. All upholstery fabrics are divided into woven and non-woven textiles. In this case, non-woven, as a rule, have a synthetic base and a synthetic coating. The most common upholstery fabrics are:

Flock is a soft, pleasant to the touch material. Strong, durable, does not fade. Good for cleaning with neutral detergents. Composition: approximately 65% synthetic and 35% cotton.

Velor - pile fabric. Unlike flock, it is woven, not glued. Accordingly, it is more durable and natural, but the price is higher. The basis of two types: cotton and wool.
Jacquard - artificial silk, very durable material with high resistance to fading. The fabric is made in two layers, so either side can be used in furniture upholstery.
Chenille - strong and durable, velvet fabric. They produce two options: adhesive and woven, the latter are more natural and, accordingly, more expensive. High-quality chenille is prone to the formation of pile on the surface.
Tapestry is a natural upholstery fabric, one might say "elite" among upholstery materials. Easy to clean with detergents. The most expensive material

sofa repair

We got acquainted with the structural elements of the sofa, selected and purchased the materials, it's time to take the tool and repair it. For this work we need:

Screwdrivers, flat and Phillips;
Pliers;
A set of open end wrenches for 8/10 and 12/14;
Stapler with a set of staples 10 and 16 mm;
Joiner's glue or, at worst, PVA;
Scissors, a fitter's knife and a hammer;
Self-tapping screws 35 - 45 mm long;
If there is a screwdriver or a drill, we put a bed in the access zone.

Upholstery replacement

All repairs will require complete or partial disassembly of the sofa. It is advisable to carry out these works in two persons, but if it is not possible, you can use wooden blocks as a backup. Before disassembly, prepare a camera (mobile with a camera) or a piece of paper and a pen. This is necessary in order to mark the installation locations of some elements and their correct position (right / left, etc.).

Dismantling the sofa begins with the armrests. In some models, they can be combined with legs, in others separate. In the first case, place a wooden beam under the base of the sofa, so that it “hangs” from one end. So you will not pinch the bolts of the side elements. The "sides" are fastened with two bolts, in order to get to them it is necessary to raise the seat of the sofa, or pull out the retractable part, it depends on the design of the sofa.

After having dealt with the armrests, it is necessary to remove the transformation mechanism. To do this, use a screwdriver or screwdriver / drill. It is attached with one part to the frame, and the other to the seat and backrest. In an ordinary sofa - a book, this is not difficult, it is enough to turn the seat and backs with a soft part to the floor - access to the mechanism is free. When repairing corner sofas with a dolphin mechanism, there are no special problems either. In other models, it is not so free, nor should there be insurmountable difficulties. Accordion sofa repair is similar. We take pictures or write down which mechanism, where it stood.

After that, depending on the design of the sofa, it is necessary to disassemble the rest of the sofa, back and seat, so that the frame remains. All these elements either freely “sit” in their places, or are bolted.

This is followed by the removal of the upholstery, since we have to replace it, then we remove it from all parts of the sofa. This is easy enough to do with a regular flathead screwdriver and pliers. At the same time, we take out all the metal parts, whether it be screws, nails or staples. Make sure not to miss anything, if they stay in the future they can break through the new upholstery, and this is very disappointing.

After removing the upholstery, take a closer look at the mattress, if its condition is suspicious, disassemble it as well. Read more about mattress repair below. In this case, we need to replace the upholstery. We removed the old one and now we have two ways to solve the replacement problem. The first is to try, as in workshops, to sew a cover. To do this, you must have a sewing machine capable of sewing coarse fabric and sewing skills. You can use the services of a tailoring studio. And the second is to upholster by hand. If the design of the sofa is not intricate, it will turn out easily. But in the case of complex design decisions, you still have to sew a cover. With a cover, changing the upholstery is much easier, because. You just need to pull it and fix it with staples, the dimensions are already adjusted.

If the cover is sewn, we stretch and fasten it with a stapler with 10 mm staples around the entire perimeter. In the case of manual stretching, the procedure is as follows: we measure the exact length and width of the sofa element that we plan to upholster, cut it out, it is possible with a small margin, the main thing is to have enough tension. We always start fastening the fabric from the front side, you never know, it will suddenly be a stretch. It is better to fold the edge of the fabric in half, so there is less chance that the fabric will break through at the place where the staple is attached. Fasten the entire front side with staples. After that, we do the same procedure on the opposite side. In this case, it is necessary to ensure that the fabric is as stretched as possible around the entire perimeter. Creases or tissue separation from paralon or silicone are not allowed, it must be tightly pressed against it. After that, we move on to fastening on the sides, fastening in the center. Then you need to lay the fabric in the corners, the excess can be cut or wrapped. We sew up.

Thus, we change the upholstery on all elements of the sofa. It is important to ensure that all the staples fit tightly into the tree, we finish it off with a hammer. If some staples do not “fit” - remove them, in the future they may cause damage to the new upholstery.

After the change - proceed to the assembly. Assemble in reverse order of disassembly. We put all the elements in their places, twist them with bolts, install the transformation mechanism with the help of new self-tapping screws. Don't confuse right with left. We put the armrests, twist and admire the work done.

Foam rubber replacement

This repair is almost the same as replacing the upholstery, with the only difference being that we keep the upholstery and do not change it. Usually these two works are combined, but the situations are different, and if the “skin” of the sofa is in good condition, why is it also spent on fabric.

The disassembly procedure is similar, we need to get to the foam rubber. We delete the old one. As we already know, we need special furniture foam rubber, with a density of 35-40 mm, this is a guarantee of the durability of your repair. If the springs have broken through the foam rubber, it means that the replacement of the spring block cover will also be required. We cut out the burlap, tarpaulin or batting, which is available, in size and cover the block in two layers. Cut out the foam and lay on top. With the help of staples we fasten the foam rubber to the frame, it is also possible to glue it to the burlap. The main thing is that it is fixed. We put a synthetic winterizer on the foam rubber, it is not necessary, but it will greatly facilitate the stretching of the fabric. You don't need to fix it. We stretch the weave, fasten it with staples and assemble the sofa.

Repair of the frame and transformation mechanism

Disassembly is similar. To repair the sofa mechanism, remove it and determine the degree of damage. If the fittings are intact, it may be enough to lubricate the nodes with engine oil and develop them. You can replace the spring if it is damaged, if it is overstretched, try shortening it. The transformation mechanism itself is deformed or burst - we acquire an identical one and install it.

It will be more difficult to repair the frame, but you can do it quite well. If there are cracked or broken frame elements, they must be replaced. To do this, measure their exact dimensions, sketch their appearance and, taking the money, go to the nearest carpentry shop or construction hypermarket, there is a department that will cut out the necessary frame element. Change the element, twist and glue the remaining joints. In this case, pay special attention to the plywood under the spring block. If she "walks" fasten with screws instead of nails and glue the PVA, the unpleasant creak will disappear when you sit on the sofa. Collect and use to your heart's content.

Restoration of the spring block

Disassembly - assembly is identical. There are two types of springs:

- "old" - height about 20 cm, diameter - 15 cm, thickness - 5 mm;

- "modern" - height - 12, diameter - 10 cm, thickness 2.2 mm.

All modern springs are interconnected by a spiral. To replace damaged elements, if there are not many of them, it is necessary to dissolve the fixation of the spiral from one end, and unscrew it like a screw with the help of the other end. We release the spring on both sides, change it, twist the spiral and then proceed as when replacing foam rubber.

If there are a lot of such damaged elements in the spring block, it is easier to buy a new block, because. the rest of the elements will also begin to break down, and disassembling the sofa once every six months is below average pleasure.

It was not possible and will not be possible to mention all the nuances, but we hope that the basic procedure for repairing a sofa is clear. The main thing is to start, and over time, all the necessary skills will appear.

Do-it-yourself sofa repair video