How to reupholster a couch
Article may have affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may earn a tiny commission at no extra cost to you. Big thanks for supporting my small business.
Let’s take a look at how to reupholster a couch without sewing in just a few easy steps! If your sofa is worn, faded, or just doesn’t match your style anymore, don’t toss it out—give it a budget-friendly makeover instead.
With a stretchy couch cover or fabric of your choice, a trusty staple gun, and scissors, you can completely transform your couch without touching a sewing machine. This no-sew method is quick, hassle-free, and perfect for anyone looking to refresh their space without the stress of complicated techniques.
This project took no time at all, and I love the results. Couch reupholstery is so much easier than I expected, and it even works for different types of couches, including sectionals!
Table of contents
If you have been following the blog for a while, you know that I sawzalled an existing couch in half and removed two feet, and then assembled it back together finishing it off with new upholstery. Don’t believe me, click through this post DIY Couch to see just how I did it!
The couch has seen many modern looks over the years, but I decided to reupholster it again with an old Pottery Barn slipcover that was in the bottom of my closet.
How to reupholster a couch without sewing
If you don’t feel like tearing the old fabric off your old couch, learn how to reupholster a sofa without removing old fabric! It’s a simple way to update your sofa with a little less work.
In case you are new to our blog, this is what the couch looked like after I sawzalled it in half.
A family friend gave me this couch several years ago when I bought my first house. Over the years, my taste in fabric changed, but I couldn’t afford to buy a new couch.
The couch was also too big for my current home, so I decided to remove 2 feet from the middle to make it smaller, turning this into the best reupholstered DIY couch ever.
Kind of crazy, right? Well, this little old sofa is getting a new look, again.
Do you love the look of slipcovers but hate all the wrinkles and mess? The one piece slipcovers that you buy as-is are beautiful as long as you don’t sit on the furniture.
Do you know what I am talking about?
They come in one size, and usually, you have excessive amounts of fabric tucked everywhere. Drives me crazy!
So my solution was to reuse the existing large one-piece slip cover and cut it to size, and staple/nail it to the couch. Easy peasy!
Tools & Materials Needed
You will need:
- Slipcover or upholstery fabric
- Small air compressor
- Heavy-duty staple gun
- Fabric scissors
How to reupholster a couch with a staple gun
First step, drape your fabric slip cover over your piece of furniture.
Next step, cut the excess fabric (on the floor) off, but be sure not to cut the pleated part.
You will want to save the pleated part to re-staple to the couch along the bottom edge.
Now it’s time to cut out the middle piece of your fabric.
I decided to cut straight across, being sure to leave enough fabric to cover the back and sides of the couch.
Don’t worry; this works!
How to reupholster a couch without removing the fabric
This is such a great way to reupholster a couch without removing the fabric first.
There is no need to remove the old fabric.
This guide will save you so much time!
Now, simply tuck your fabric and staple it with your hand-powered staple gun.
I used a compressor and heavy-duty staple gun with 1/4″ staples.
Be sure to staple it to the wood part/frame of the sofa.
You just need your fabric, staple gun, staples, and an air compressor – that’s it!
Try to staple as close to the bottom and up underneath in order to hide the staple itself.
Using the slip cover excess, I cut a piece of fabric to cover the front and stapled.
I chose to leave the arms of the couch “loose” simply because I wanted a casual look.
You can always staple the fabric around the arms to give it a more tailored look. It just depends on what look you want.
If you make a mistake or don’t like it, just get a hammer and screwdriver and pry out the staple.
That is the beauty of a DIY sofa upholstery project; you can change things as you go if you do not like it.
RELATED: Easy DIY Reupholstering Tips and Tricks
Don’t worry about getting the fabric perfect.
You will be able to cover the edges and trim with the existing pleated skirt that you cut off earlier.
You can always make DIY piping for the edges if you have extra time.
Once you’ve finished this part, move on to adding a skirt to the bottom of the couch to give it a finished look.
Carefully position the pleated section from the slipcover. Line it up neatly around the base of your couch. Attach it using your staple gun.
I tried to staple where the staples wouldn’t be seen, but a couple do show.
You can purchase roping or ribbon in the fabric store and use stitch witchery to adhere to the slipcover if you want to hide the staples.
For me, they are hardly noticeable.
How much does it cost to reupholster a couch?
Many of you may be asking how much does it cost to reupholster a couch?
I already had the slip cover, so for me, the cost was minimal: just the cost of staples and my time. That’s it!
Of course, if you want it perfect, you will need to invest hundreds of dollars, maybe even thousands, and pay to have it professionally upholstered. For me, that wasn’t an option.
At one point, I had a professional upholsterer near me give an estimate, and it was going to cost almost $1200 to have it reupholstered. Yikes!
I think the couch recovered in a camel-covered slip cover fits right in with our newly renovated modern cottage pool house.
How to reupholster cushions on a couch
For the couch cushions, I used the remaining fabric that I had cut off in the beginning and sewed the ends together, and used velcro to close the seam of the cushion.
I ran out of zippers but had plenty of Velcro, so that’s what I used. I may sew a zipper on the cushion cover at some point.
Be sure also to check out my how to reupholster a chair tutorial too. It’s a no sew tutorial, and if I can do it, anyone can do it.
How many yards of fabric to reupholster a couch?
This was a full couch cover so I don’t have the exact yards I used, but if you are buying fabric, keep in mind that 1 yard = 36 inches.
So you will need to measure the length, width, and height of your couch and then add extra for excess and divide that number by 36. I would definitely buy extra just to be safe.
By reusing a slipcover that cost over $300, I was able to save money on the cost of buying fabric.
Since I attached the slipcover with staples, the slipcover no longer slips around, and I was able to finish this project with very minimal expenses.
A fresh new look for a sofa that used to be two feet longer for zero money!
Related: See the really cool wingback chair I reupholstered without sewing.
How long does it take to reupholster a couch?
This reupholstered couch project only took me two hours. Be patient and take your time; the cost savings is worth it.
Get yourself a small compressor and heavy-duty staple gun (that works with a compressor), some fabric, and get busy!
Leave a comment below and let me know what you think of this project! Do you have a couch you would like to reupholster?
How to Reupholster a Couch (No Sewing)
Equipment
- 1 heavy duty staple gun
- 1 air compressor for staple gun
- 1 pair of fabric shears or heavy duty scissors
Supply List
- 1 slipcover
- 1/4 inch staples
Instructions : Step by Step
- Lay your slipcover or upholstery fabric over your sofa.
- Cut away any excess fabric (except for any pleats).
- Cut along the middle of the fabric, covering the tops of the armrests and all of the back.
- Tuck the fabric into the couch behind where the cushions go. Attach it to the wooden frame using your staples.
- Staple the fabric covering the arms of the couch. Be sure to pull the fabric taut and staple to the wooden frame. Continue working along the whole couch.
- Trim the pleated section off the bottom of the slipcover. Reattach it to the couch using the staple gun. Go from inside the pleat to hide the staple.
Tips
Tips for reupholstering a cough without sewing
- Use your staple gun to attach the fabric to the frame of the couch. It’s best to pull the fabric slightly taut and try to add staples as far down as possible, ideally below the edge of the couch or inside it. Then angle the staple gun upwards to hide the staple as much as possible.
- If your slipcover has a pleated detail at the bottom, save that to reattach to the couch later. If you don’t have a pleated section or prefer a different look, try adding your own rope or piping.
- Use either a premade slipcover or durable upholstery fabric to make sure it can stand up to ongoing wear and tear.
- To avoid issues with your slipcover slipping and moving around as you work, consider using safety pins or fabric pins to secure it in place while you work.
Meet Jessica
What started as a hobby, Jessica’s blog now has millions of people visit yearly and while many of the projects and posts look and sound perfect, life hasn’t always been easy. Read Jessica’s story and how overcoming death, divorce and dementia was one of her biggest life lessons to date.
Love how it turned out!! & it looks so cozy!
🙂
Do you think this would work if I used a staple gun without a small compressor? Thanks for your help!
Yes, you could try a heavy duty one and see how it works. It will probably depend on how “hard” the wood is on your chair. I bet a heavy duty one might work ok 🙂
No reason for it not to,but it is MUCH more difficult. A friend and I did a lot of upholstery work,both home and auto. Between the ring clamps and staples those where the days the kids had pizza for dinner.No our hubby’s where NOT the helpful types. But OUR work was beautiful. Really do miss those busy busy days.
I love the whole look and feel of this room… such a relaxing retreat! Great place to read a book.
Thank you , it’s my mom’s favorite spot!
It looks fantastic! Loved how you finished before but this looks great with the new room. What other fabrics would you recommend for reupholstery. I have a few chairs and a a Victorian bench I want to do.
Unbelievable! Love it!
Ok, Jessica! After the chair tutorial and now this, I think I can reupholster my wing back loveseat without sewing! Thanks for the inspiration!~~Angela
WOW!! what a project Jess!! it turned out fabulous!!
Thank you Cheryl!
Jessica I need u to come over and do my love seat!
My husband has a staple gun and compressor
Perhaps u could supervise me while I do the work
Sure, let me know! 🙂
Thanks for linking up to I’m Lovin’ It Jessica!! I featured your post in my wrap up http://tidymom.net/2013/creative-projects/ have a great rest of the weekend!
Yay! Thank you so much Cheryl 🙂
You make it look so easy, Jessica … love it … thanks for the tutorial! And, it was great meeting at Haven … hope to see you again. 🙂
Thank you Becca and it was fantastic to meet you also!
Great idea on using an existing slip cover to start. I need to update a chair and was going to start from scratch with fabric but this sounds like a better idea;)
This is so amazing and so much easier than the process i was going to do. You saved me a lot of time and money. Thank you so much!!
Good luck Jasmine!
This looks amazing. My couch has seen better days. It was an older couch when I got it and the fabric was already in rough shape and then the kids made it rougher. The fabric on the arms are basically shredded so I put a slipcover on it. Yes, the dreaded slipcover that has to be put back on it EVERY day because with the kids jumping on it, its gets completely askew. From being tossled and pulled (because it does not fit properly) even the slipcover now has a couple of holes in it…which leads to my question….Let me say this before I ask my question: I HATE MY COUCH!! I rarely even sit on it because of my hatred lol Now for my question, because I do not want to spend a lot of money (dont really have it to spend), I wonder if the canvas painters drop cloth could be used to recover the couch. Would the canvas be thick enough? just wanted other’s thoughts. Thanks in advance!! 🙂
Yes, I have heard of dropcloths being used. Just make sure you look at it before you buy it. Open it up and make sure it is in good condition.
Can you do the same on a sectional? The pillows & cushions dont come off
I love this! Thank you so much for sharing.
You have inspired me 🙂
Thank you!
hi I have 5 cats and want to recover my loveseat. I need a to know what fabric ( and can it be a bedspread or drapery fabric ) will hold up the best to the cats. The loveseat also is tufted with the elastic material from inside the sofa holding the buttons, should I just skip these or take them out.Please help
I would suggest going to your local fabric shop and ask them what fabrics would be best. I personally would use a cotton/poly blend so you can vacuum it easily. There are so many different types so your best bet, head to the fabric shop 🙂
Where did you find the slip covers for the couch? Do you happen to know if you can find slipcover’s for ottomans? My fabric is outdated but nice quality furniture. Thank you for your help,
Jennifer Pritchett
That fabric is actually an old slip cover that I had purchased (I think it’s pottery barn?) and then I cut it to fit my couch and stapled. 🙂
Wow! This looks so simple and would be really nice to recover our couch that the dog, cat, and kids have made their personal playground over the past three years!
Thank you!!
Thank you Rebecca!
Thank you for your instructions. Your piece turned out pretty. I have never thought about taking off some of the lenghh of a couch!!! And all without sewing..
Amazing…..Good job
haha I never did either until one day when I decided to sawzall it in half 🙂
gonna, try this live on budget and its a great idea!
My sectional is the older kind with the lumpy type head rest if that makes any sense how can I cover it and keep the look without uneven fullness
You could try buying new filler (kind of like a batting for quilts) at the fabric store (down or polyester). Apply the new stuffing and then recover. The batting works wonders to smooth stuff out 🙂
Such a neat idea!!
Plan on reupholstering my couch in the near future! This is a very informative tutorial, I already bought my fabric at Canvas Etc.
What a project! The color is definitely an improvement, and overall it looks better, but the fabric looks a bit disheveled for my taste.
Thank you! Yes the pattern isn’t for everyone 😉
Hi there! My sofa is L-shaped, but the L part is attached. I’ve often wanted to saw it off to make it easier to cover with a sofa cover. Now, I’m just sick of it and want to reupholster the whole thing, but I still want to saw that part off to make it easier. How did you put your sofa back together? Also, my back cushions are attached. So I want to detach them for reupholstering purposes. Will I need to put something where is detached them or will the new fabric suffice?
Thank you!
I know the feeling! ha. I ended up putting mine back together with 2×4’s across the back. It wasn’t pretty but after I covered it with new fabric, it was hidden. haha. Good luck with your couch 🙂
I had this idea because I have a sofa and a chair that both need attention. (The day I crack is getting closer by the minute. We once came home to find my mother taking a sledge-hammer to the pantry, so this sort of thing is in my blood.) I have a slipcover that was never used, but is a stretch material and was wondering whether it was likely to hold up to the staples. I am still not sure, but your post may have just given me the inspiration to test it out. Thanks for the post. Have a lovely day!
I am not sure but let me know how it came out!
💖🌸💖 Super cute… Great Idea for reusing the slip cover… especially cutting it and reattaching the skirt… turned out great ❣️❣️
thank you 🙂