Do you have an ugly wood dining room table? One that was a bargain at a garage sale or a family hand-me-down? Do you dream of having upholstered wood dining chairs?
Do you spend countless hours scrolling through Pinterest to find the perfect dining room table and chairs? And then, you see it, you stop scrolling and you daydream of how that table would look in your dining room.
I envisioned my table having a few upholstery chairs like this inspirational photo above from Pottery Barn. My dining room was too dark with all the wood that was in the small dining room area.
I kept telling myself that I could upholster 2 of the existing wood chairs and paint the rest. Painting the dining table was the easy part, the upholstery, not so much. I went back and forth on my decision to DIY upholstered wood dining chairs, because what if I failed, and ruined 2 of my chairs?
This post contains affiliate links. Click here to see my full disclosure policy.
I decided I would forget the whole DIY upholstery and bought some chairs similar to those from Wayfair. After I purchased them, brought them home, put them together and they sat looking so pretty in my dining room.
Now, I had the dilemma of having 10 dining room chairs because my table had 8 and now I just added 2 more and had no room for 10 chairs. What was I thinking?
Guess what happened, I changed my mind and decided I did not need the extra chairs and I would use what I had. Look at it, I did it, they turned out pretty good for my first attempt! Now let’s show you how I did it!
Here is a DIY card to make it easy for the steps to be in one place and you can print the card to have with you as you take on your upholstery project.
Active Time:
1 hour
Total Time:
1 hour
Difficulty:
advanced
Turn a plain wood chair into an upholstered beauty.
See blog post for details on tufting with power tools.
I found this great post from the online fabric store, Calculating Fabric Yardage for your Project. They also share some upholstery charts with images of furniture with the yards needed for that type of furniture. It is a great resource that will help you determine how much fabric you will need for your upholstery project.
My chair took slightly over 1 yard of fabric. This will vary based on the width of the fabric you choose.
Make a cardboard template for the chair back. Place that template on a 1/8-inch hardboard and use a jigsaw to cut out the shape. My chair backs had a curve to them so I needed the thinner hardboard so it would curve with the chair. If you have a straight-back chair, use thicker hardwood for the back. If you are lucky enough to have a solid back chair, omit this step.
Now cut out the foam and fabric. Cut the foam to the exact size of your template. Place the hardboard back and chair seat on foam and trace. Cut the foam shapes using an electric knife. I find using an electric knife is much easier than using hand scissors. This is the 2-inch foam that I prefer to use for the seat cushions. When cutting out the fabric, measure the width, and add the depth of the foam cushion. Also, add an extra 2 to 3 inches extra for wrap-around and tufting.
Example: My chair back measures 20w x 24h. I added 4 extra inches for foam and 3 extra for wrap and tufting. I cut a 27w x 31h piece of fabric for the front.
Attach the hardboard to the back of the chair using the appropriately sized screws for the thickness of your wood and chair.
Using spray adhesive, attach the foam to the hardboard on the chair’s back.
Layout the marks for tufting. Remember I said my chair back was curved, so I needed to tuft the chair in order to keep the fabric flat against the chair back. If you have a flat back chair you can omit the tufting.
The easiest way to lay out the tufting marks was to find the center horizontally and vertically. I measured and marked the tufting spots from the center lines(5 inches). I thought my chairs would look best with 5 rows. Your chair may be a different size so you will need to determine your measurements on your chair. Using scissors, cut an “X” over each tufting mark. The x is done so you can feel where to place your screw when tufting since you place batting and fabric over your marks. Place batting over the foam.
UPDATE: I recommend that you treat your fabric before adding it to your chairs. I used a fabric repellant on my chairs after they were done and I have a small rust spot on the back where the fabric tack must have been wet from the fabric spray. So AVOID the whole thing by treating your fabric before you upholster. I am just trying to save you the work of replacing the fabric later like I need to do. UGH!
Begin the tufting process. I use these 3/4 inch washers and 1-inch wood screws to do my tufting. Yes, you heard that right, washers and screws to do tufting! If you would like more detailed instructions on this tufting process, stop over to read my DIY tufted coffee table bench. I have the complete instructions for that post.
Since I did not have a solid back, I had to add a few wood pieces to the middle tufting row so those screws were secure. All but 3 screws went directly into the chair wood, so there is no going back now!
Staple front upholstery to the back of the chair. Please refer to this Tufted Coffee Table Bench, on how to carefully adjust the tufting on the front before securing the back. This is an important step.
Place back fabric on top of the chair and place a thin cardboard strip on top of the fabric. Staple the cardboard and fabric in place. The cardboard creates a clean edge when flipping over.
I made my own cardboard strip or you can purchase an upholstery tack strip.
Staple flex-grip on to sides of chairs. The direction of the flex-grip is important, it needs to be placed on the open side facing out to the edges. See the picture above, because I placed it incorrectly the first time and had to remove it and do it again. Learn from my mistakes.
Place batting on the back, pull down the fabric, and begin to secure the back fabric in flex grip.
Before closing the flex grip, trim off the excess fabric and tuck it into the flex-grip.
Tip: I used an envelope opener to tuck the fabric into the flex grip before and after trimming the extra fabric.
Gently tap the flex-grip closed.
Finish the bottom edge. I folded the fabric under itself to make a clean edge around the chair’s back.
Staple the fabric to the underside chairback.
Using a button cover kit, make buttons and glue over the washers using E6000. Again, click here for detailed tufting instructions. The benefit of gluing on the button covers, if one pops off, you just glue it back in place. With traditional tufting, if a button comes off, the tufting thread breaks and that is not as easy as gluing on a button cover.
Would I do it again? Yes, if I already had the chairs. It was a difficult process so I would recommend tufting something else first like this first.
I am so pleased with how these tufted dining chairs turned out, they are not perfect as this was my first attempt with upholstering wood dining chairs.
Make sure to stop over and see how I painted the rest of my table with this Dining Table Makeover. You also might want to read up on 5 easy tips for picking the perfect accent chair.
Have you taken on a DIY project like this?
Join the Designed Decor Community and receive weekly free tips on DIY home projects, painted furniture, decorating, and much more.
Welcome to the DD Community! Please check your email to confirm your subscription.
Today’s post has been in the works for a while. It’s a topic that has been talked about many a time in the EHD office, requested by more than a few of our readers and that one piece of furniture that Emily had been on the search for years til she found them here. That’s right. It’s time for a comfortable dining chair roundup! As someone who has truly never owned or had a comfortable dining chair growing up, I feel your pain (especially in the buttocks region) but fret no more since we have 96 chairs with and without arms for you to choose from at all different price points. Plus, some very useful tips to consider when choosing the right chair for your own dining area.
Before we get into all of those pretty and more importantly comfy dining chair options below, let’s first take a moment to go over some of our tried and true ‘rules’ (aka guidelines) you can implement in your own space. Even as a trained interior designer I am constantly referring back to all of our design rules posts because let’s be honest sometimes design can be a tad overwhelming and very subjective so it’s nice to go back to the basics of why a space will visually work better than others. It all comes down to measurements which is something that makes sense to me. Not really the math aspect since that is not my forte…shhhh, I know it’s used a lot in interior design (hello best friend aka my calculator). But proportions and spatial planning is ‘my thing‘, it’s probably the reason why I also love to organize and help others pack to move.
OKAY, enough about my odd hobbies, let’s get into those Dining Chair Rules…
You can’t really pick out your dining chairs without first knowing the scale of your dining table. I mean you can but it will probably be easier to start with the larger furniture piece and then add in your chairs later. So what size table do you have and how many chairs will you need to purchase?
Here is a seat guideline for rectangle tables depending on size:
And for round / square tables depending on size:
Keep in mind that no matter the size of your table you will want to leave approximately 24″-26″ width of eating space per person + an additional 6″ between the chairs to account for elbow room and ease of a person getting up, out of their chair from a fully occupied table. This will spare your guest (once we have those again) from an awkward moment of asking the person next to them to ‘scooch over a bit’ to be able to get out to use the bathroom during a dinner party. The width of most dining chairs will be between 16″-20″ with the ‘more comfortable’ ones in the 20″-25″ range.
Hot Tip
To make sure that the number of chairs will work with your table size, measure from the widest point of the chair and from the inner of the legs of your dining table instead of the top of the table.
Two other things to take into consideration – 1. If your dining table is on the smaller side try opting for a chair without arms to save on space. 2. If you buy additional chairs for when the table is extended to the maximum length be sure to figure out a designated spot for them to live since that might happen only a couple of times throughout the year.
Now, let’s figure out the right scale of your chairs for your dining table. Most standard dining tables range in height between 28″-30″ but there are some dining tables that are more counter height in the 34-36″ range so make sure to take a second look at the dimensions before you ‘add to cart’. We are going to focus on the standard dimensions today as they are the most common.
The seat height of a dining chair will be between 17-23″ and there should be about 12” of space between the top of the seat and underside of the tabletop or bottom of the apron. If your dining chairs have arms they should be able to slide under your table with ease so be sure to have at least 7” of clearance between the top of the arm height to the underside of the table or bottom of the apron.
Speaking of height let’s talk about your chair’s overall height in consideration to the scale of your table. Meaning that if you have a table that seats 4, approx. 42-48″ in diameter, steer clear of the chair that measures 48″ high overall and leave that to the larger more formal dining table sizes. It will just feel more proportional
6 Factors to Consider that Will Make Your Dining Chair More Comfortable:
Hot Tip
On big box retailers websites take a look around to see if you can search by customer rating, that way you are starting with the furniture pieces that others have verified to be comfortable or to be a quality product.
Now that the school lesson portion of this post is over, let’s talk about the fun stuff and get into our comfortable dining chair roundups. 🙂
Personally, I am a fan of the “armless” dining chair because typically they are less expensive than those with arms. Who wouldn’t want to save some cash on a surprisingly expensive piece of furniture that you have to buy multiples of them??? Speaking of cost, be sure to take a close look at the prices cause some of these beauties come in a “set of 2”.
1. Faux Leather and Metal Dining Chair (Set of 2) | 2. Middleton Side Chair | 3. Ardi Side Chair |4. Trysta Dining Chair | 5. Proper Chair | 6. Modern Curved Upholstered Dining Chair | 7. Leather-Backed Dining Chair| 8. Anderson Upholstered Dining Chair | 9. Astrid Mid Century Dining Chair (Set of 2) |10. Sadove Dining Chair | 11. Nadia Cane Chair | 12. Velvet Channel Back Dining Chair (Set of 2) |13. Manteli Upholstered Dining Chair | 14. Blythe Square Back Dining Chair | 15. Neat Dining Chair | 16. Lecture Upholstered Chair | 17. Aspinwall Upholstered Side Chair (Set of 2) | 18. Curran Quilted Granite Dining Chair |19. Addison Golden Flange Slipcovered Dining Chair | 20. Corella Cane and Wood Dining Chair | 21. Lowe Navy Upholstered Dining Chair | 22. Curran Crema Dining Chair | 23. Woven Rattan Dining Chair (Set of 2) |24. Keyra Folkthread Dining Chair
Out of our first round of picks I have to say that I am very into the style and pop of color of #3, the clean lines and comfort level of #8, & the very low price point but high rave reviews of #17.
25. Leon Dining Chair | 26. Brix Dining Chair (Set of 2) | 27. Zoey Caned Armless Dining Chair | 28. Boucle Dining Chair | 29. Portside Dining Chair | 30. Bayley Side Chair | 31. Oak Park Cane Dining Chair | 32. Salduro Sculptural Wood Dining Chair with Upholstered Seat | 33. Copely Upholstered Dining Chair (Set of 2) |34. Roadhouse Black Leather Chair | 35. Rhodes Green Upholstered Chair | 36. Holland Dining Chair | 37. 2pk Copley Armless Dining Chairs | 38. Naomi Dempsey Flax Tufted Dining Chair | 39. Lennox Dining Chair | 40. Baltimore Dining Chair (Set of 2) | 41. Palma Dining Chair in Various Colors |42. Zoe Dining Chair, Basketweave Slub Oatmeal, Set of 2 |43. Cowhide Black Chair | 44. Andover Side Chairs (Set of 2) | 45. Quincy Basketweave Dining Chair | 46. Ceylon Woven Dining Chair | 47. Finley High-Back Upholstered Dining Chair | 48. Burano White Leather Sling Chair | 49. Framework Leather Dining Chair | 50. Ninette Dining Chair |51. Holmdel Mid-Century Dining Chair
Yes, we did have to divide up the graphics cause we rounded up so many options in each category for you all, fingers crossed at least a few might work for your own dining room. The chairs I have my eye on are #26 for a comfy take on a classic style and I would splurge on #38 and save on #40.
Up next, we have all of your ‘with arms’ options. Debatably more comfortable than the armless counterpart given that after a long meal with family or close friends you could casually tuck your legs up, slouch down a little and enjoy a long conversation over many cocktails or play one of EHD’s favorite board games – Anomia.
1. Lerri Dining Chair | 2. Leather Upholstered Dining Chair (set of 2) | 3. Dexter Arm Chair | 4. Audrey Heathered Dining Chair Beige | 5. Curvo Mid-Century Modern Dining Accent Chair| 6. Lee Faux Leather Dining Armchair (set of 2) | 7. Weber Chair | 8. Azalea Brown Chair | 9. Elise Cane Arm Chair | 10. Unruh Upholstered Arm Chair in Gray (Set of 2) | 11. Callie Upholstered Tub Chair | 12. Cleo Black Cantilever Chair | 13. Balboa Armchair | 14. Sandia Leather Dining Chair | 15. Velvet Open Back Shawn Dining Armchairs (set of 2) | 16. Gaff Metal Frame Chair | 17. Coppice Upholstered Armchair | 18. Islesboro Chair | 19. Matleena Dining Chair | 20. Modern Upholstered Dining | 21. TOSSBERG
The muted jewel tones of #1 & #3 are calling my name & I am loving the leather detail of #10 plus it looks absolutely so comfortable.
22. Mast Leather Director’s Chair | 23. Viceroy Chair | 24. Feast Dining Chair | 25. Burta Upholstered Arm Chair (Set of 2) | 26. Salvi Velvet Arm Chair in Denim Blue (Set of 2) | 27. James Armchair | 28. Pensil Armchair | 29. Wingback Upholstered Dining Side Chair | 30. Dexter Leather Arm Chair | 31. Boxwell Linen Arm Chair | 32. Lyon Dining Chair | 33. Muller Dining Chair | 34. Upholstered Arm Chair | 35. Mazie Chair | 36. Aesop Armchair | 37. Edward Lounge | 38. Soren Chair | 39. Foley Faux Mohai Dining Chair | 40. Evan Chair | 41. Bayley Armchair | 42. Hawkins Dining Chair
The simplistic style and price point of #24 would be a great chair in either a traditional or modern home, of course, I am drawn to #32 because it is a part of the semi-new Leanne Ford’s Crate & Barrel Collection which I am obsessed with everything from the line (Leanne, if you are reading this it’s amazing!). And if you are a part of the EHD Insider Community you might’ve already seen the special sneak peek of the mood board where we are using these nightstands from her line in an upcoming project! Also, I can personally attest to the comfort factor of #40 since we used them in the dining room of Portland project (see photo above) and where I did countless hours of work in that very chair on the end by the french doors.
So there you have it! I hope by now you feel confident to pick out the most comfortable dining chair for your home and again if you need to check out the rest of the dining room rules do so here. And if you don’t really care so much about only the comfort factor but want some more affordable options check out this post here or want to know how to mix and match dining chairs like a boss click over to this post here. Fair warning both of these posts are over a year old so some links may be broken but maybe it’s time for us to update them? Yes, no, or maybe? Let me know your thoughts on that or if you have any other design questions in the comments below, talk to you soon!
Opening Image Credit: Photo by Sara Ligorria-Tramp | From: Mountain House “Reveal”: The Dining Room Built-in Dilemma (+ The 3 Mistakes We Made)
0
0
votes
If you want to learn more, please visit our website Green Bamboo Leaves for United Arab Emirates, Fresh bamboo leaves for liver health, Dried Bamboo Leaves for Philippines.