How to Make a Pattern to Reupholster a Sofa

Reupholstering furniture will give your space a whole new look for less. At a fraction of what you might spend at the furniture store, you can find the look and quality of upholstery fabric you want for your home. While it will mean making a mess of the piece in the process, the end result will be a beautiful looking sofa custom fitted to coordinate with your personal home decor. Begin by making a reupholstery pattern that exactly matches your sofa.

Chisel
Muslin cloth
Fabric pen or permanent marker
Straight pins
Scissors

Instructions

- 1
  Remove cushions or slip covers and set aside. If cushions have removable covers, take them off the cushions for use in creating a new pattern.
- 2
  Preserve existing fabric to use as a new upholstery pattern. As you pull away staples and scrape away glue with a chisel to loosen the fabric, gently reserve the previous fabric pieces. If you are able to keep the previous fabric intact, creating a new pattern is as simple as tracing the shape of the fabric pieces directly onto new upholstery fabric.
- 3
  Drape a piece of muslin cloth over the inside back of the sofa. Smooth with your hand and use straight pins to hold the fabric in place. Trace out the shape of the area you want to cover by drawing directly onto the muslin with a fabric pen or permanent marker.
- 4
  Remove the pins and lay the muslin on a flat surface. Add 2 inches along each side to account for give.
- 5
  Repeat this process by draping muslin cloth over the back of the sofa, the skirt, the armrests and the seat. Cut out fabric pieces and label if desired.
- 6
  Create cushion patterns by similarly tracing cushion covers onto a piece of doubled over muslin cloth. Add 1 inch on all sides for seam allowance.

Sofa Fabric Durability

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Couches