Cheating at Upholstery

[yachtorion]

The covers on my cushions are a bit past it, and some of the foams are a bit manky. All the required cushions have a flat base. I was wondering if I might be able to re-cover the cushions quickly and easily by just putting the foams on ply, folding some fabric around the edges, and staple under the ply the put some self-adhesive felt over the staples.

Where the foams need replacing, can do...

Does this approach work or will it just look awful?

 

[VicS]

The covers on my cushions are a bit past it, and some of the foams are a bit manky. All the required cushions have a flat base. I was wondering if I might be able to re-cover the cushions quickly and easily by just putting the foams on ply, folding some fabric around the edges, and staple under the ply the put some self-adhesive felt over the staples.

Where the foams need replacing, can do...

Does this approach work or will it just look awful?

I dont see why it wont be possible to make a decent looking job of it.
Youd have to fold the fabric on the corners neatly and cut away some surplus underneath to avoid too many thicknesses building up.

Not much difference to built up or drop in seats on chairs really


Only snag I can see perhaps is having not totally flexible cushions esp if they are full berth length.


You should cut the foam so that it is a little oversize. that will enable the covers to be fitted tightly.

 

[TQA]

Make sure you have stainless steel staples.

This is important.

You can ask me how I know this.

 

[prv]

If you're all right with the resulting solid base and increased weight, then yes it will probably work fine. I rebuilt some seats for a mate's motorboat this way, using an electric staple-gun which Lidl were conveniently selling for a few quid that week. Can't remember if the staples were stainless as recommended above - probably not but the crappy old motorboat disintegrated anyway before it became an issue

Pete

 

[ronsurf]

+1 on the stainless steel staples. Cut the new foam about 5% bigger for a neater job. Use an electric carving knife to cut the foam (I used a cheapy one from Tesco that did the trick). Bear in mind the top edge will be rounded, unless you put a seam in it, which looks a bit weird.

Oh, and cut a hole in the plywood about 20mm in diameter to let the air out as you sit down.

 

[Hydrozoan]

That's the way most of our seat backs (and probably many other people's too) are made so I have thought about the same thing myself. I cannot see why it could not be done neatly. One would wish to ensure that the bases didn't slide about on the underlying GRP or whatever and (ii) were not too long (as Vic notes) - perhaps if the existing ones are full length, it's an opportunity to split them for easier access?

The main downside I can see is that cleaning would be more difficult than with conventional cushions (backrests are less vulnerable to dirt and spills), and that would be more of an issue with a cloth, rather than an impervious, cover material. Again, there might be issues of moisture - typical boat cushion underlinings are breathable. So perhaps it might be a good idea, depending on the fabric, to include some ventilators (the ones that look like brass eyelets appear to be fitted in a similar way, so would not entail sewing, if that's what you're seeking to avoid).

You can perhaps tell that Mrs H and I are planning a reupholstery job this winter ourselves, but the current thinking is for cushions with fabric underlinings (in part I admit because she is good with a sewing machine). I am conscious that she is not here to consult about your question, and others more experienced than I am may give other reasons why conventional fabric-backed cushions are preferred, so I'd ask around as much as you can before ... er ... plumping.

 

[ronsurf]

You could use velcro instead of staples (well, staple the velcro to the plywood, then sew the velcro to the cover) then you can easily remove it to clean it. It won't look as neat though. One of the cushions in my boat has a plywood backing that also forms the lid of a locker.