One of the things I’ve done several times on the blog and around my house is change out fabric on chair seats.  It’s so easy to do and I’ve shared a tutorial a few times on how easy it it to take the old fabric off and staple on new fabric. Check out that link for all the pics and steps of how I recover my chair seats.  This set of chairs has been with me for over 10 years, they are solid wood and just keep going, so I’ll keep recovering the seats to spruce things up. Fabric works wonders!
I’ve just freshened up the old fabric on my porch chair seats recently and it really added a new and summery look to my table and chairs.
Here’s the yellow lattice fabric that had been on here for 5 years. Â It looks pretty good in this pic, but it was beginning to get dingy from being out on the porch for 2 years.
The new fabric I think came from Online Fabricstore, but now I can’t find it on their site. Â It’s lime green with black in a geometric pattern. Â They were at Haven the last 2 years and gave out yards of fabrics in the swag bags and I think that is where this came from. Â I had exactly one yard and it worked out great for my 4 chair seats.
This yellow fabric was the fabric I put on these chairs 5 years ago in my old kitchen. Â I used them on the porch here for the last 2 years and they were getting really dingy looking and it was time for a fresh look.
I had added batting to these foam cushions originally when I bought the chairs unfinished.
I used 4 chairs on my porch in the yellow geometric and the 2 black armchairs that are in my living room got new ikat fabric out of my drapery fabric in that room. Â This all happened when I moved in over 2 years ago. Â They are still looking good in this fabric.
Now, the porch chairs are looking so summery in their new fabric and I love how they turned out. Â I had painted these chairs in a glossy gray last year and this glass topped table serves me well on the porch. We sit out here all the time.
I’ll be sharing an update on the porch soon. Â I took the rocking chair off the porch and out on the patio and it opened up the porch much more, which is nice.
In the meantime, I’m loving this fresh lime green and black, a favorite combo of mine!  So happy that one yard of free fabric got me a brand new look.  I also sprayed the chairs with Thompson’s Water seal fabric spray  (they sent me some in the mail) which is supposed to protect the fabric from getting wet and from mildew, which can happen on the porch. Hoping this keeps my fabric looking good for a few years!  I’ll let you know how it works.
Happy Summer! Â I’m joining my blog friends again this month for 10 minute decorating ideas. This might take a bit more than 10 minutes, but it is certainly not a long project and how good it feels when you are done!
The fabric looks fun and perfect for the enclosed porch. Good choice Rhoda.
I love this fabric and the color is perfect for your porch. I want a screened in porch and was wondering if they are hard to keep clean? Everything looks great Rhoda!
I have a large covered porch that I want to convert to a screened in porch. For me, it will keep things cleaner since leaves and dirt seem to swirl around and pile up by the door. Fewer insects and bird nests will be a benefit. FYI, Carolina wrens nest in the weirdest places and I have to check wreaths, top of the fan, open bags of soil, etc.
The green and black fabric is available at Hobby Lobby. Nice job on the chairs.
I love the color of lime green….have it in my sunroom…The chairs just seem to come alive with the new fabric you used. Great job and great fabric selection Rhoda..
Rhoda, I recently used your tutorial to cover six dining room chairs. It was very easy to use. I love the material you used for your chairs. I have a screened in porch that I just cleaned up and it had a ton of pollen. Thompson’s Water Seal is a good idea for the cushions, I think I’ll try it.
Great, Tricia, I’m glad the tutorial was easy to follow. This is such an easy DIY project. I’m hoping the Thompson’s will work on my chairs and keep them lasting longer.
Cute! Could you tell me the colour and type of paint you used on the chairs. It’s a beautiful finish.
HI, Teresa, sure here is the tutorial I did on spraying those chairs. The color is Valspar Cobalt Canyon (which sounds blue, but isn’t).
http://southernhospitalityblog.com/furniture-makeovers-painting-embellishing-chair/
Rhoda , your porch looks nice. I love the touch of black out there. It looks very pretty. I have a very large deck and I decorate it every spring. I would love for it to be enclosed. Such a blessing for you to have such a nice place to retreat. I spend so much time on mine , it is like another living space. I’m sure going from this space outside to your beautiful new patio will be greatly enjoyed. It all looks very pretty !
Gorgeous fabric!
Love the new fabric!!
The new fabric looks great!!
Love the water spray idea. Would be great to use that in my kitchen to protect from kid messes.
Yay! A decorating post!! I think you have a great sense of fashion Rhoda, but HOME DECOR is why I follow your blog! I LOVE the fabric–absolutely perfect graphic for the shape of the chair. You have such a good eye and you got those corners nice and tight! Great job as usual! 🙂
Love the print!
Great instructions, Rhoda! I think I’ll try it with some vintage fabric that I’ve stashed for a number of years.
Hi Rhoda,
My chairs have a little trim or welt piece going around the base where the seats meet the chair, if that makes sense. If I want to replace the fabric on the seat, what can I do about the welt that is covered in the same fabric? Just leave it off?
Thanks for the help!
Dionne
HI, Dionne, yes you can just leave it off unless you want to try to add it back in your new fabric. It probably won’t make a lot of difference if you leave it off.