Your sofa has been through it all: stains, snags, tears and at least two cats. The fabric is faded, the edges are worn, and its shabby condition is way beyond a simple cleaning. Yet it’s still a perfectly functional piece of furniture. Even if you’re a complete amateur, you can reupholster that sofa yourself, saving the planet from yet another couch and your curb from resembling the above photo.
Measure your sofa and its cushions and take these dimensions with you to a fabric store. Make sure that you purchase home décor fabrics because they’re specifically designed for maximum durability. You can visit Eclectrix for a selection of organic options. Be careful when removing your current upholstery because this fabric is what you, Miss Amateur Sofa Seamstress, are going to use as a perfect pattern piece. Spread your new upholstery out on the floor and trace the outline with a colored pencil. Cut these pieces and stretch them to fit all surfaces of your sofa, using a staple gun to secure the edges. With the right sides together, sew three sides of your new cushion covers and install a zipper on the fourth side. Flip them inside out, slip in the cushion padding, zip them up and place them back onto your sofa. Now, take a load off and ponder how much you just saved with a little ingenuity and elbow grease. Fantastic!
Image: Chaz Wags