3c. Flip the seat right-side up and take a look.
If your fabric is misaligned, you’ll need to pull the
staples or tacks and try again. One trick is to put
in easy-to-pull “temporary” tacks or staples while
you’re placing your fabric. Do this by hammering in
your tack only halfway, or by rolling the tip of your
staple gun onto one corner, so the staple goes in
at a 45° angle, leaving a triangular opening.
3d. If you have a round seat, divide the space
between your center point staples, pull the fabric
into place, and staple (Figure H). Split the difference again so that the fabric is evenly distributed
around the rim and secured in about 16 spots. Pull
and staple the remaining areas to keep the fabric
taut and even all the way around (Figure I). Trim the
excess fabric about ½" from the staples (Figure J).
If you have a rectangular seat, work your way from
the centers toward the corners, pulling the fabric
taut as you go. Place staples in a row no more
than ¼" apart to create an even edge. Stop about
2" short of the corners.
3e. Remove any extra bunched-up batting from the
corner area (Figure K). Pull the fabric diagonally
across the corner point, and place 1 staple about 1"
in from the edge. On both sides of the corner, turn
the remaining fabric at the corner back under itself
to form a triangular pleat. Pull that straight over the
edge, and finish stapling the fabric down. Trim the
excess fabric about ½" in from the staples.
3f. Unless you have notches or welting to complete, you’re almost done. If there are any notches
cut into the seat pan (Figure L) to let in the legs,
you have some tricky cuts to make. Flip the seat
upside down again. Cut the fabric down the center
of the notch, stopping about 1" short of the bottom
of the notch. Continue the cut in a Y shape, heading toward the 2 corners of the notch, stopping
about ½" short of the actual corners (Figure M).
If you cut too deep, it can show on the chair seat.
Yank the triangle of the Y down as tight as you can,
and pop a staple into that piece, staying as far
from the edge of the fabric as possible so that it
won’t fray (Figure N). You won’t have much room
to work, so do the best you can.
Once the triangle piece is secure, yank down the
flaps on the sides of the notch and staple them to
