Dining Room Chair DIY

As promised, I’m excited to share our dining room chair DIY that we finished up just in time for the holidays. Ever since we moved into our “new to us” home two years ago, I’ve been itching to recover my dining room chairs. I loved the fun, floral pattern of the old fabric (and honestly I’m a little sad to see it go) but the new home has a more neutral, modern vibe and I wanted something to match that.

I  contacted my favourite place for fabric (which happens to be the same place I got the old fabric),  Tonic Living.  They have an amazing selection of fabric for home décor applications like upholstery, window coverings and pillows. They were great to work with and super helpful suggesting fabric options and how much I would need for my project. Their swatches really come in handy too! If you’re looking for fabric, this is your place!

Step 1: Remove Screws and Chair Pads

Since I’m working with a pretty old piece, I’m leaving the original leather intact and placing the new fabric overtop. Tip: I used cotton flannel underneath as a liner as the dark leather was showing through the lighter fabric a bit.

Step 2: Measure & Cut Fabric To Fit
Since this is our second time doing this with these chairs, we were able to remove the old fabric and use that as our template. If you’re doing it for the first time, I suggest measuring the size of your seat and allowing 2 to 3 inches around to work with. You can always trim the excess off later. Tip: If your fabric has a pattern, when you lay your fabric out, be sure to cut the fabric in the same direction as your seat.  We almost cut ours the wrong way!

Step 3: Wrap & Staple Fabric 

With the fabric measured and cut,  it’s time to fold the fabric over, pull it taut, and staple away. Tip: Pay special attention to getting the fabric sharp at the corners, it’s kinda like wrapping a present.

Step 4: Replace Chair Pads & Screws
And that’s it your done! A pretty dramatic and inexpensive change for a days worth of work! I do need to give my hubby props for his help with this DIY…it was pretty fun working together.

Time to go shopping for artwork and mirrors for this room and then it will finally be complete. Thanks for stopping by, what do you think of my new chairs? Hope you’ve had an amazing start to the New Year!

Judy xo