Ideas on How to Recover a French Sofa

Shabby Chic

• Redesign your French sofa with shabby chic style in mind. Remove the old fabric carefully from the frame and use it as a template for the new fabric. Paint the frame white, with or without a crackling effect, depending on your personal taste. For the fabric, choose something in white, gray, khaki and beige tones. Choose durable fabric you feel comfortable working with for best results. Romantic floral patterns, honeycomb designs and limited botanicals such as trees or foliage work well for this type of re-upholstery project.

Sleek and Modern

• Turn your old French sofa into a sleek modern piece apt to become a focal point. Once you have a template from the removed fabric, trace an area with an extra 3 inches all the way around in order to fit the fabric over the frame. Paint the frame a high-gloss black or white and let dry before upholstering. One idea is to use a glossy black vinyl to cover the sofa. When working with vinyl, it needs to be heated slightly as you work with it to help it stretch over the frame properly. Use a hairdryer to prevent burns. Staple the vinyl in place and finish it with silver upholstery tacks.

Color Pop

• Look for a bolt of boldly colored velvet in a shade like cherry red, orange, cerulean or chartreuse for the backrest and the back of the chair. Choose a different pattern for the seat or cushions in a colorful geometric pattern like polka dots, stripes or abstract art. Upholster the cushions and pipe them with the same color used in the backrest. For the frame, choose a neutral shade like chocolate or look for a complementary color in the graphic pattern and paint it the same shade.

Understated Damask

• Begin with a freshly painted frame in a pastel shade. Think of hues like baby blue, shell pink, khaki and cream. Pair the understated frame with a damask fabric. One idea is to create a monochromatic French sofa with beige and cream tones of damask on a frame in the same tone. If you wish to attempt tufting, look for tutorials online or in your local book store. Another idea is to tuft the cushion or the seat instead of the back rest.