How to Hand-Tuft Upholstery
Tufted furniture was extremely popular during the Victorian era. The tufted furniture provides a bumpy surface that is sometimes uncomfortable to sit on. The tufts in the furniture add visual interest to otherwise boring furniture, and give modern furniture an old-fashioned appearance. You can hand tuft any piece of furniture that you own if you use a few everyday upholstery supplies and work carefully to complete the project.
Things You'll Need
- Upholstery fabric
- Scissors
- Upholstery foam (optional)
- Quarter-inch plywood
- Table saw
- Upholstery thread
- Large needle
- Upholstery buttons
Instructions
-
-
1
Remove the foam from the seat or back of the upholstery that you want to use for tufting. Carefully peel back the foam with assistance of scissors, as necessary. If you cannot remove the foam without tearing it, then cut new foam pieces to match the original pieces.
-
2
Draw a pattern onto the front of the foam with a permanent marker. Most tufted fabrics use a diamond pattern, a square pattern or four dots around each corner and one in the center of the cushion.
-
-
3
Cut a thin piece of quarter-inch plywood to match the size of the foam piece. Glue the foam to the plywood.
-
4
Drill through the dots on the foam and through the board underneath.
-
5
Thread the needle with upholstery thread. Place the fabric over the foam and staple it to the back of the board.
-
6
Pull the needle through the foam around the hole, pulling the upholstery fabric into the hole. Thread the fabric through the hole in the wood, then across the wood to another hole. Use the thread to pull the fabric into each of the holes, creating the tufted pattern. Tie the thread in a knot when finished.
-
7
Sew a button to each tufted area, if desired.
-
8
Glue the board in place onto the furniture frame using wood glue. Allow the glue to dry for 24 hours before using the furniture.
-
1
References
- Photo Credit Stockbyte/Stockbyte/Getty Images
