Why not just take it to a reupholsterer? Having to buy specialized equipment is just adding to the DYI cost, and, if you are anything like me, you’ll end up having to take it in to fix your mistakes in any event. 
@nottelling, I have a couch, a love seat and three chairs that need recovering. Having them all professionally done would cost a fortune, so I thought I’d give it the old DIY try.
I’d trust VH to do a good job. If you know how to sew, it is not complicated, rather just figuring out the steps, though tying springs seems a little hard. I took a class, in HS, though remember little.
Will be interested in your progress. That is one skill I have wanted to learn, as I love old overstuffed chairs with wood trim, but they cost a fortune to recover. I also have done the pop out seats on dining room chairs, though with only upholstery nails.
An air compressor might have all sorts of other useful options for doing things around the house.
@“great lakes mom” that might be a good idea, to begin by recovering the dining room chair cushions, then decide about tackling the six piece sectional!
Luckily, the chair I’m working on has good springs and webbing on the bottom. Nothing structural needs to be done – only replacing the fabric.
“Only.” Ha ha ha.
Check out the Furniture Guys on Youtube. One does woodwork, the other does upholstery. In between the movie parodies and bad puns there is some good information and demonstrations. Also pretty funny.
Can’t wait to hear how it goes! Given my dexterity challenges, I’d probably end up recreating that old I Love Lucy episodes where Lucy and Ethel attempted to recover the down furniture, so I’d be afraid to try. Really looking forward to hearing about your experience!
Update on my DIY upholstery project: It is definitely one of the more challenging things I’ve ever attempted, but I am optimistic that it will turn out all right. Maybe not an A+ grade, but hopefully at least a B+. I’m going very slowly and carefully and have already re-done a few things that I wasn’t happy with the first time 'round.
One important lesson learned: Don’t buy fabric that has an elaborate pattern that needs to be matched!! Easy: Lining up the pattern from the center inside back to the cushion to the seat to the skirt, as well as from the center inside back to the piece that goes across the top of the chair to the outside back. Ridiculously hard: Cutting out the arms so the top of each arm contains the same part of the pattern on the fabric, and so that the inside arms match the top of the arms. 
An elaborate pattern on dining chairs with no arms would be much, much simpler, as would a solid color!!
That said, I’m enjoying this. It is very challenging, but I’m enjoying it! I have cut out all the pieces except the skirt and I’ve sewed all the piping. I’ve attached piping to the inside back and the tops of the arms and expect to begin stapling the pieces to the chair shortly. That will have its challenges (have I used that word already??) because fitting the fabric between all the pieces of the chair and cutting the fabric so the pieces fit around legs, inside wood pieces that can’t be seen, etc., is tough to do when you can’t see things – you can only feel them.
Luckily there were no springs that needed to be tightened or internal material, other than some cotton batting, that needed to be replaced. It really is “only” replacing the fabric.
I have a new respect for folks who do this for a living, and now I’m wondering why they charge so little.
ETA: One – well, maybe two – things I did that were smart:
- I bought fabric that isn't at all expensive -- $8 per yard.
- I bought about 25% more fabric than I thought I'd need.
Both of those facts have helped considerably when I’ve made mistakes in cutting (upside down, anyone?) and because matching this damned pattern in the fabric created considerable waste. There are a lot of toss pillows in my future, once the chair is done.
Many Swedish/Scandinavian offerings in the Modern style seem to be built to last and never go out of vogue. At worst, they just become arguably “retro”. We have some 25 year old bar stools that are going for 10X and 20X what they cost.
I wish I had bought those in the '70s, but I was too poor.
OK, I finished the chair. It’s not awful – how’s that for a brag? I’m giving myself a B- grade. DH and I have decided that I will not be reupholstering the furniture in the important public rooms. The chair I did is the chair in our guest bedroom, which only gets sat on maybe three or four hours a year. I’m changing my avatar for a day or so so you all can see it. I’m very proud of what I did, but I’m going to focus in the future on easier projects.
Looks pretty cool and pro on my iPhone Most importantly, the pattern is matched on everything. Good job!
Gosh that doesn’t look like the easiest chair to do - lots of pattern! I say congrats are in order - looks pretty good to me!!
Agree, abasket! Lots of chair “body parts” to deal with. As my grandpa used to say, “first pancake always turns out the worst.” If this is your “first pancake,” VH, I bet you will get an A on the next project!
Looks like a very good job to me. That’s a very complicated pattern to match.
I think it looks very impressive!
I recently obtained reupholstery quotes and was taken aback by the prices, so you should be proud of how it looks and the money you saved.
Thank you all. It helps that the picture is small and you are far away from it. 
That’s how the visitors will see it! I bet no one will be examining the evenness of your stitching from upclose.
My daughter taught a beginning upholstery class at a local CC. It was overenrolled because there was so much interest! People did really interesting thing. Wild, patterned fabric on antique chairs, turning coffee tables into tufted, upholstered benches, and my favorite - a white faux leather upholstered storage bench with crystal buttons for a large bathroom.
I love the pattern VeryHappy, and it really looks very professional. You did a better job matching patterns than I’ve seen on some of the professionally done furniture. You should be really proud of yourself!!!