How to Use Upholstery Foam

Upholstery foam is the material used to add padding to the backs and seats of chairs or other pieces of furniture. Once cut to size and glued onto the frame of the furniture, the foam is covered with fabric to conceal it. While most professional upholsterers have specialized machines designed for cutting this foam, you can use a simple serrated blade to cut foam to fit your upholstery project.

Upholstery foam
Electric carving knife
Spray adhesive

Instructions

- 1
  Set the piece of furniture you are going to be covering with the foam on top of the sheet of foam. For example, if you are recovering a chair seat, you will need to remove the seat to set it on top of the foam for proper measuring.
- 2
  Press the object into the foam to make sure the foam will be large enough to cover the area, even when pressure is applied to the foam from the weight of a person sitting on the furniture.
- 3
  Mark around the edges of the foam with a marker. Use an electric serrated carving knife to cut out the foam shape. To cut the foam, hold the knife perfectly straight, turn it on and then cut out the traced shape.
- 4
  Set the piece of furniture to which the foam will be attached onto a protected surface. Spray the entire surface with spray adhesive and apply the foam directly on top to secure the foam.
- 5
  Allow the foam to dry and adhere to the surface of the wood before continuing with your upholstering.

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