Reupholstery Lets You Engage in a Cover Up

Changing the look of upholstered furniture is a fine way to refresh a room. If you don’t want slipcovers, reupholstery--though more costly--may be the way to go.

Use several fabrics on the same chair, as designer Charlotte Moss did on a French bergere chair for Century Furniture Co. of Morganton, N.C. Moss covered each part of the chair--arms, seat and back--in a different pastel shade of raw silk. She used beige, aqua, pink and cream.

Virtually any upholstered chair can be treated this way.

“You may have to put up with a little skepticism from the upholsterer,” Moss says, “but the idea is easily executed in any workroom, provided the upholsterer is willing to figure out the color breaks with care.”

You don’t have to stick to solid fabrics, either.

“I covered antique French chairs at home with a stripe, a plaid and a print,” Moss says.

Patchwork lends itself to upholstery, too. It can be economical if you have fabric scraps. Choose the fabrics based on color, pattern or texture and find an upholsterer with a can-do attitude.

An upholsterer can also duplicate a fabric-covered panel screen with ribbon latticework like the one Moss designed for Century. The ribbons create a grid for tucking invitations, postcards and greeting cards, photographs and reminders. The Century screen, about $1,000, was covered in white with pink grosgrain ribbon.

“I see the screen in a kitchen, a home office, a bedroom or next to a desk,” Moss says.

Vary fabrics and ribbons in keeping with decor. You can cover the screen with plaids, stripes or floral prints. Pick out one color in the print for the ribbon grid.