Re-Upholstering an Egg Chair

A few years ago I re-upholstered an 1973 egg chair… sadly not the Arne Jacobsen original but a Swedish version by a company called Lystolet. I’ve seen these things go for up to £600 in online auctions so i would never have re-upholstered it if it wasn’t for the irreparible state of the original cover. As far as i can discover these chairs were sold in the UK as if produced by a company called Greaves and Thomas. This particular chair came from my Grandmothers in Lancashire though my parents bought a similar chair from a shop in Derby, failing memories prevent me from telling you much more. The original cover is a heavy plain weave in Emerald Green, to be frank it was always quite “itchy” no doubt thanks to whatever man-made material is in the thread. Sadly the fabric has lost colour over time, another good reason to re-upholster it.

Upholstery and Foam

 

(Apologies for the image quality but these were taken on my mobile phone) Not only was the cover in a bad state of repair but the upholstery foam was beginning to crumble, given that the chair was over 30 years old and had seen some pretty hard going use from two households and three sets of grandchildren this was to be expected. So the first expense was £30 on some uphosltery foam (cut to size) and some spray contact adhesive. It’s pretty much essential to get someone to cut the foam to shape for you, it can be done with a sharp carving or bread knife or ideally a hot wire but there is a knack to it and the hot wire can release nasty fumes. It’s likely that you’ll have to make the odd cut here and there and its best done with slow long cuts – let the knife do all the work and apply as little pressure as possible.

 

Fibre Glass

The structure of this chair is made from coarse unfinished fibre-glass, its a good idea to wear gloves and a long sleeve top to prevent getting itches and splinters. Generally the body was in great shape with only one dent (which may well have been made in the factory) I patched this up with a bit of scrim and some neat PVA glue, in this case it was about preserving the shape rather than a structural repair – otherwise i’d have used a resin.

Glue

The best glue to use with upholstery foam is Contact Adhesive its pretty nasty stuff so make sure you wear a mask or at least work outdoors or with good ventilation. The important thing to remember with contact adhesive is that it works “on contact” so always figure out in advance how your going to lay down the two surfaces – if possible it’s worth gradually fixing together surfaces. Also remember to apply the glue to both surfaces and give a minimum of 2 minutes drying time for foam (ideally 4 minutes) If you mess it up it’s virtually impossible to “unstick” your surfaces without ripping something. Getting Stuck – if you get glue all over yourself don’t try peeling it, rub your skin with vegetable oil, then washing up liquid, then water – the same process works on most glues.

Fixing the Foam

As already mentioned try to fix large sections gradually. Also avoid over-stretching the foam (something that i do all too often) When you make your pattern don’t forget to allow for foam thickness but don’t give too much allowance – i didn”t give any for this pattern and it’s quite an organic shape. Making nice joins on overlapping foam, in this case where the back and front meet, is perhaps the hardest part of fixing the foam and it’s where you may want to use a tin of contact adhesive instead of the spray (though that often leads to hard edges) I made my edges by applying glue to the edge of the thinner foam and then gently pushing it into the foam underneath it, it’s time consuming but does produce a good edge.

Fabric

The hardest part without doubt is covering the chair, its essential to have a good pattern and to test and adapt it before you take your scissors to your final fabric. I must have fitted the cotton pattern numerous times before the real cutting began. Fitting the fabric is just as painful, there is a balance between over-stretching and slack too far either way and its all a mess.

Final Chair 

Not to your taste, maybe i’ve ruined it? Perhaps, it’s kitsch and i love it – ultimately it’s not an item of furniture i’d have sold even if it had been in good condition and when i’m tired of this cover i can easily do it all again with something… “more tasteful”? For now it makes a great Playstation chair and my niece loves sitting in it with her favourite book.

Costs and Skill Level

I spent around £75 on this project, £25 on fabric, £30 on foam, £20 on glue (too expensive) and about £0.50 on new buttons. Skill Level: Subjective… I trained in theatre design and worked in theatre props/scenic art/ scenic construction before that – so it’s not the first time i’ve re-upholstered a chair, but that was for theatre, and theatrical lights hide a multitude of sins. A pro up-holsterer would laugh at my efforts but despite it’s shape this chair was pretty easy – the fact that all of the fixing is done underneath the seat helps too!