I taught myself using this book https://www.amazon.com/Furniture-Upholstery-Sunset-Books-Publishing/dp/0376011831

Love the book.

Do you sew? it helps a lot if you have cut out patterns and can sew cording.

Once I spoke to someone who showed a self taught re upholstered sofa. As my jaw dropped I was told the secret was to go slow and copy what was being dismantled.

There are lots of good youtube videos for individual techniques to compare once you know what you have to do on a particular spot. Sailrite has some and lots of small independent shops do too. (Also the guys doing car upholstery...)

Thank you for all the suggestions and tips. I am now on the lookout for a good starter piece of furniture for my first attempt.

Good first attempt furniture pieces include those without channel backs and tufting. A wing back chair without a channel back or tufting is a great first project. You'll have to use all the basic techniques and it's easier to flip over as you work on it than a sofa (my first project). Dining room chairs are the easiest to start on but you won't use any of the techniques that are transferable to an upholstered project. Ottomans are also a good starting point.

Even if you don't love a wing back chair, I'd start with one. You can get one super cheap at any thrift store. Get the best one you can find, at least 30 years old. It will have better frame construction. Also, you can mix fabrics for a more funky look if that's your style and can pick up fabrics that are remnants if you mix and match. Much cheaper if you mess up.

Let us see the results !

I think that, in some ways, it is easier to upholster than it is to slipcover. The reason that I say that is because when you upholster you are often able to pull and tack any excess fabric, whereas with a slip cover you really have to be more exact.

Get yourself some of that cardboard stripping that you use to wrap your edges around and tack down . There is no way that you will get a nicely pulled and evenly taunt cover by just tacking or stapling right through the fabric, not even if you have turned the fabric under and have two layers.

I cant recall what it is called. I used to keep it to do board mounted window treatments with. It comes on a roll and is a bit less than an inch wide.

It sounds like a fun experiment for you. If you use a basic white cotton fabric for the upholstery it would cost less than upholstery fabric and you can then make a slipcover from deco fabric that you can take off and wash.

You can buy furniture like that that is covered in a basic fabric with a slipcover.

That way you get the experience of doing both upholstery with an inexpensive fabric and slipcovering with a deco fabric.. you learn both upholstery and slipcovering.

I am not a fan of anything that cant be tossed into the washing machine. If you keep your pattern for the slipcover you can make them in different fabrics and change them out once in a while, and wash them.

I used to have a commercial sewing machine that handled layers of heavy fabric easily. I am not sure that I would be as comfortable sewing all of that on my old fashioned Bernia. Just sewing on covered cording is sewing through four layers, or six layers if you have a lining.

It sounds like a fun thing to do.

I am assuming that you are talking about a chair with arms and back and the like. Dining room chairs are easy but many upholstered items can be pretty darned complicated.

I've made slipcovers and upholstered. Unless you know how to sew, making a slipcover is a challenge. If you know how to sew, making a slipcover is only half the work of upholstery cause half the work of upholstery is tearing down the old.

Whatever you choose to do, pick a piece of furniture that does not have a lot of cat or dog hair.

Good point above about a sewing machine. My best upholstery/slipcover machine is a 1960's Singer, one that is all metal inside and can sew through a lot of layers. Nothing fancy, got mine at a thrift store for $60 bucks years ago.

After sewing for many years (mostly home dec), I took an upholstery class at a local high school offered in the evening. The downside was that I had to bring my chair back and forth each week, but the class was instrumental for learning about the tools and supplies needed. My advice would be to start on a small project and choose a fabric without a pattern match. As you remove fabric from the piece, label it and use as a pattern. and take lots of pictures as you disassemble. Their are so many books and YouTube videos available. For me, every chair is different and it brings new challenges. Go for it!

This is the book that I have, and I bought it back in 1978 when it was new. It is fairly comprehensive, although it does not talk about slipcovers, which I have also made. It does have good information on making frames, in case you are interested in that.

I've never made frames, but I worked for a custom furniture company for over 30 years designing all kinds of furniture, from case goods and lighting to fully upholstered items. I worked with the upholstery department (We our own upholstery in house) to make sure that my frame drawings were correct and workable.

I haven't checked, but I would expect that you could find Youtube videos to teach you probably everything you need to know.

One thing I would add is that some fabrics have to be backed in order to be used for upholstery, and you can either have this done or in some cases use a nonwoven fusable interfacing yourself. I've used that to stabilize African mudcloth.

A company called Sailrite has videos on upholstery such as this one doing a sofa, covering such as padding and stapling down the fabric.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IZNVr7cVTNo

They sell a good long nose staple gun for only $79, I need to get one myself

https://www.sailrite.com/Sailrite-Long-Nose-Upholstery-Staple-Gun

They sell walking foot sewing machines and many supplies. If you have trouble finding supplies locally, you might find they have it but costs may be higher.

If you want to do significant sewing there is a lot to learn. I am beginning to do that. You need to figure how to do welting, welting cord edges. I am doing a slipcover for this "high end' recliner that I bought used. My cats would tear it to hell. I am making a cover out of Duck canvas. The cover for the back came out very well considering. It looks reasonably straight and importantly fits nice and tight. I use small spring clips for basting instead of pins, I learned that trick from a youtube video too.

Check out Sailrite's YouTube channel, they have a lot of tutorials on sewing furniture upholstery and awnings. But to make such items, you will need a sewing machine with walking foot, one of these.

Here are some links to my upholstery projects. On these posts, I have listed many of my favorite books, videos, and tools used.

DIY Upholstery - Goose Neck Arm Chair

DIY Upholstery of Sofa & Love Seat

8-Way Hand Tie - My Upholstery Project Continues!

Wing Chair - Completed - DIY Upholstery

DIY Upholstery - Living Room Sofa

Those are terrific, Laurie.

I noticed they're from a decade ago. Have you done anything more recently?

I have not worked on any recent upholstery projects. During the past several years, I have sewn some drapery, pillow covers and a dog sweatshirt/sweater for my son's cute little terrier mix.