How to Recover Vintage Dinette Chairs

Turn a vintage dinette chair upside down and place the seat top on a counter, with the seat back hanging down in front of the counter. There are pre-drilled holes where the screws that hold the seat to the chair frame can be found. Remove the screws and set them aside. Lift the chair frame off the seat and set it aside. Remove the existing fabric cover by prying the staples loose with a screwdriver and needle-nose pliers—but removal of the cover is not required for success.

Measure the dinette chair seat shape and cut a piece of hi-loft quilt batting 2 inches larger than the measurement on all edges. Lay the batting on your work table. Center the seat face down on the batting. Fold the edge of the batting to the back, on one edge of the seat. Staple the batting on the center of the seat edge. Turn the seat around and repeat on the opposite edge. Repeat on the other two opposing edges. Continue to staple the remaining space on the edges. Fold the corners into a miter fold and staple. Trim the excess batting close to the staples to remove bulk and neaten the edges.

Iron the fabric. Cut a piece of fabric using the same measurements as for the quilt batting. Lay the fabric on your work table with the wrong side up. Center the seat face down on the fabric. Fold the edge of the fabric to the back, on one edge of the seat. Cover the edge of the batting and staple on the center of the seat edge. Turn the seat around. Pull the fabric taut and staple the center on the opposite edge. Flip the seat over to the front to check for wrinkles. Lay the seat face down again and repeat on the other two edges. Continue to pull the fabric taut and finish stapling the same way as the batting. Trim the fabric close to the staples.

Place the seat face down on the counter. Set the chair frame back over the seat and line up the holes. If the holes have been cover with fabric, use a screwdriver to pierce the fabric. Insert the screws in the holes and reattach.