DIY : Upholster a Wooden bench

DRAFTED 06/21/2016

Hey guys, here's a little project I did for our office. We already owned a lot of benches for our business (Sugbo Mercado, click here to know more), so I just stained it and "upholstered" it.

What you need for the staining:

1. Bench (can be an old one lying around)

2. Sand Paper

3. Paint Brushes

4. Wood stain or in my case, I experimented with making my own:

-Container

-Paint Thinner

-Brown Enamel Paint

(glue is not for this part)

First, sand it. All of it. This isn't the most fun part but it is a must, especially with raw wood. Getting rid of splinters and rough areas will make it easier for you to paint/stain and will make the finish more pleasing especially if you're using it indoors.

Next is staining it. I did not need to stain the top part but I wanted to check how it dries first and the top part is the easiest to stain since it's a big flat area (it actually dried darker, which was what I wanted since our other office furniture were all in chocolate brown). Brush the stain everywhere (especially the legs), let it dry and you're done!

Next is upholstering it, here's what you need:

1. Foam (I used a 2" thick foam)

2. Batting (It's basically really thin foam)

3. Fabric of Choice (I chose an apple green leatherette since our color scheme was orange, brown and apple green and leatherettes are easy to clean)

4. Tape Measure

5. Glue (wood-friendly)

6. Brush

7. Staple gun (tacker) & wires

Forgot to take photos but basically, here's what I did:

1. Cut the Foam to the size of the bench.

2. Put some glue on the bench and spread evenly with a brush.

3. Put the foam in and put in some heavy things to let that sit in.

4. Once its dry, get some batting, cut it to shape adding at least 4 inches each side (more if you have a thick wood or using a thicker foam)

5. Lay your batting on the floor and flip your bench putting it over your batting.

6. Start tacking the batting under the bench, pulling it tight (but not too tight since batting is quite thin and might tear easily)

7. Next, do the same with your leather. Lay it down right side down and lay over your bench and tack.

And done!