Upholstery tools: names, pictures and what each one is used for

Upholstery is layers, and the order is fixed

A traditionally upholstered chair is built up in a specific sequence, and every layer depends on the one under it. Frame, webbing, springs, hessian, stuffing, scrim, wadding, calico, then the top cover.

Modern foam construction shortens that considerably, but the principle holds: a sagging seat is almost never a cover problem. It is the webbing underneath having stretched or snapped. Recovering a chair with tired webbing gives you a beautiful chair that sags again within a year.

So the useful discipline is to strip far enough to see what is actually wrong, then rebuild from that layer up rather than covering over it.

Strip until you find the real fault

A sag is webbing, a lump is stuffing, a squeak is the frame. None of them are the cover, and none can be fixed from the outside.

Photograph everything as you take it apart

The chair is the pattern and the instructions. Photograph each layer before removing it and you have both.

Keep the old cover as a template

Unpick it carefully rather than cutting it off. Every piece, labelled, is a pattern that already fits.

Webbing before anything else

It carries the whole load. Renew it whenever you strip a seat, because it is cheap and it is the part that always goes.

Check the frame joints

Loose mortise joints need re gluing and cramping while the frame is bare. It is the only chance you will get.

Webbing and tension, which is the whole seat

The seat of a chair is a tensioned platform, not a cushion. Get the tension right and the seat feels supportive for decades. Get it loose and everything above it sags into the gap.

This is what a web stretcher is for, and it is the tool people try hardest to improvise. Pulling webbing by hand gets nowhere near the tension needed. The stretcher gives you leverage against the frame so you can pull it drum tight and tack it while it is held.

Interwoven rather than parallel, too. Webbing woven in both directions supports across the whole seat, while parallel strips let the middle drop.

Use a web stretcher, always

Hand tension is nowhere close. This is the single tool that most decides whether the finished chair is any good.

Interweave in both directions

Woven webbing supports the whole area. Parallel strips let the centre drop between them within months.

Tack, fold and tack again

Three tacks, fold the end back over, then two more through the double thickness. A single row pulls through.

English webbing for traditional work

Black and white herringbone jute is what a sprung seat needs. Elastic webbing suits foam seats and behaves differently.

Do not stretch elastic webbing tight

It is meant to have give. Tensioning it like jute removes the suspension it was chosen for.

Tacks or staples, and when each is right

Traditional upholstery is tacked, modern upholstery is stapled, and both are correct in their place.

Tacks hold better in old dry timber, can be removed and repositioned easily, and are what a period piece should have. They are also slower and need a hammer and a free hand. Staples are much faster, hold well in sound timber, and are almost impossible to remove neatly.

The important practical point is that both destroy the frame if you keep going back to the same spot. An old chair rail can be so full of old tack holes that nothing holds, and then it needs a new strip of timber let in before any covering happens.

Tacks for period and for old timber

They grip dry old wood better, come out cleanly, and are correct on anything being restored rather than recovered.

Staples for speed on sound frames

A pneumatic or electric stapler is several times faster and perfectly sound in good timber.

Slip tack first, then commit

Drive tacks halfway so the cover can be adjusted, check the tension and the pattern, then drive them home.

Move along the rail, do not reuse holes

A rail full of old holes holds nothing. Space new fixings between the old ones or let in fresh timber.

Watch for the grain splitting

Tacks and staples close together along the grain split a rail. Stagger them slightly rather than driving a straight line.

What to buy first, in order

Stage one: stripping

A ripping chisel, a mallet, a tack lifter, pincers, a staple remover, a craft knife and dust protection. Almost every job starts here.

Stage two: rebuilding the base

A web stretcher, webbing, tacks, a tack hammer, hessian, a curved needle and twine. This is where a chair regains its support.

Stage three: covering

Upholstery shears, a staple gun, a regulator, skewers, a hide strainer and a rubber mallet. Plus a good tape and tailor's chalk.

Stage four: traditional and decorative

Spring needles, a buttoning needle, a double ended needle, a stuffing regulator, cording tools and a piping foot for the machine.

Mistakes that show or fail early

Recovering over tired webbing

The chair looks perfect and sags within a year. Webbing is cheap and it is the only chance to renew it.

Cutting the old cover off

That cover is a pattern that already fits. Unpick it, label the pieces, and the hardest part of the job is done.

Not photographing the layers

By the time you need to know how the back was fixed, it is in a bin bag. Photograph everything as it comes apart.

Parallel webbing instead of woven

The middle of the seat drops between the strips. Interweave, always, in both directions.

Fixing into old tack holes

There is nothing left to grip. Space new fixings between the old ones or let in a new strip of timber.

Pulling the cover tight in one direction only

It distorts the pattern and puckers at the corners. Work from the centre out on all four sides, alternately.

Skipping the calico layer

Calico holds the stuffing in shape so the top cover only has to look good. Without it, every lump telegraphs through.

Ignoring fire regulations

Upholstery filling and covers sold for domestic use have to meet flammability rules. It matters if you sell what you make.

Looking after upholstery tools

Keep the ripping chisel sharp

A sharp chisel slides under a tack and lifts it. A blunt one levers against the frame and breaks the rail.

Never use upholstery shears on anything else

Leather, hessian and heavy fabric blunt them quickly enough already. Paper finishes them off.

Oil the web stretcher jaws

The pins and the cam do the work. Seized or rounded, it slips under load and the tension goes.

Keep needles rust free and straight

A bent spring needle will not follow its curve and a rusty one drags through hessian and tears it.

Empty the stapler and check the driver

A bent driver blade half sets every staple, which then has to be removed one at a time.

Store magnetic hammers away from small steel

The magnetic face picks up everything in the drawer and stops picking up tacks, which is its whole job.

Frequently asked questions

What upholstery tools do I need to start?

A ripping chisel and mallet, a tack lifter, pincers, a staple remover, upholstery shears, a web stretcher, a tack hammer and a staple gun. Almost every job begins with stripping, so the removal tools come before the covering ones.

What is a web stretcher and can I manage without one?

A lever that pulls webbing drum tight against the frame while you tack it. You cannot manage without one, because hand tension is nowhere near enough and the webbing is what carries the whole seat.

Why is my chair seat sagging even though the cover is fine?

The webbing underneath has stretched or snapped. It carries the load, and the cover only sits on top of it. Recovering the chair without renewing the webbing produces a chair that looks new and sags again within a year.

Should I use tacks or staples?

Tacks for period pieces and for old dry timber, since they grip better in worn wood and come out cleanly. Staples for speed on sound frames. Both are correct in their place, and both destroy a rail if you keep fixing into the same spot.

What is a ripping chisel for?

Removing old tacks and staples by sliding under the head and lifting. It is driven with a mallet and it must be kept sharp, because a blunt one levers against the frame and breaks the rail rather than lifting the tack.

What is a regulator used for?

A long steel needle with a flattened end, pushed through the cover to move stuffing around underneath without taking anything apart. It is how you even out lumps and sharpen up an edge after covering.

Do I need a sewing machine for upholstery?

For piping, cushions and any seamed cover, yes, and it needs to be a heavy duty machine with a walking foot. A domestic machine will not feed heavy fabric or leather reliably and will not survive the work.

What is calico for and can I skip it?

Calico is an under cover that holds the stuffing in its final shape, so the top cover only has to look good rather than do structural work. Skipping it means every lump and hollow in the filling telegraphs through the finished cover.

How do I get the pattern right on a recover?

Unpick the old cover rather than cutting it off, label every piece, and use them as patterns. They already fit. Then work each new piece from the centre outwards on all four sides so the pattern stays square.

What is the difference between jute and elastic webbing?

Jute herringbone webbing is tensioned drum tight and provides a firm platform, which is what traditional and sprung seats need. Elastic webbing is meant to have give and provides the suspension itself, which suits foam seats.

What sort of needle do I need for upholstery?

Several. A curved needle for stitching where you can only reach one side, a long double ended needle for stitching through a stuffed edge, and a spring needle for lashing springs. Straight sewing needles are little use here.

Are there rules about upholstery foam and fabric?

Yes. Fillings and covers for domestic furniture have to meet flammability regulations, and this matters particularly if you sell what you make. Buy materials described as meeting the relevant standard rather than generic foam and fabric.