If you MUST DIY here's some tips.

Last week we talked about  deciding whether to bring in a professional upholsterer or if you should try doing upholstery yourself.

Well if you have decided that your piece is ok to have a go at yourself, then here's a few tips to get you started.

Fabric

• If this is your first time out, don't spend lots and lots of money on your fabric. You will make mistakes, and it may not look as good as you hoped. So minimise any disappointment by not spending too much. As you get better, you can splurge a bit more.
• Having said that, make sure you love the fabric since you will be seeing it everyday. So even if fabric is on sale, it doesn't mean that you need to buy it, only if you really love it.
• Use the right fabric. Make sure it's tough enough to handle some rough treatment. You will have to pull and yank hard on it, the last thing you want is for it to rip, or not stand up to daily use.
• Buy more than you need. Since you are no expert you will likely make mistakes, better to have a bit extra up your sleeve. 
• Buy a simple fabric pattern, especially if you need to match it. You don't want to have to spend hours trying to figure out how to make a complicated pattern work.
• Pull it tight! Really tight before stapling it.

The Mental Game

• Roll with it. You are going to come across problems that you don't know how to fix. Make sure you have an attitude that you can figure it out one way or another - plus of course there is always Google and Youtube to answer your questions.
• Enlist a helper. It will make it a bit easier for you to have someone to help you staple and pull fabric. Plus of course it's more fun too.
• Get on with it. Yes it's intimidating, but that chair sitting in the garage is not going to cover itself. You won't know if you enjoy doing it or not, if you don't start. If you have a helper and the fabric isn't all the expensive then a mistake won't be the end of the world. You're going to make some anyway, so don't panic.
• It will be different every time. Every time you upholster something you will come across new problems so again, roll with it.

Have you attempted to upholster something before? How did it turn out? Would you do it again? If you have decided that the professionals would be a better option, give us a call on 0800 698 746 and we can help you out.