Are you sitting comfortably?

I’ve fallen a little bit in love with the idea of grand armchairs brought right up to date with bright fabrics. Despite being well out of my budget, I can’t stop wishing. It’s made me wonder, is there a way of getting a statement piece like these at a fraction of the cost?

Image Credit: Winston Wingback Chair by Katie Maennle

Image Credit: Bright Pink Armchair by Graham and Green

Image Credit: Mr Bright Chair, Gold Leaf by John Lewis

With price tags starting at the £600 mark and quickly rising to around £1500, statement armchairs have statement price tags to match. It set me thinking, is this something you could do yourself within a more modest budget? eBay seems to have plenty of armchairs on offer for less than £100 and I’m sure a bit more research around local places would turn up even better bargains. I did a Google search for how to reupholster an armchair and there was plenty of online help, including a Guardian article from last year ‘How to reupholster a chair‘.

It seems if you’re willing to invest some time and patience to find a chair, some fabric (even an old pair of curtains!) and teach yourself how to do it then the DIY route will offer you more satisfaction and a fraction of the impact on your bank balance. In fact after an evening of research I have added it to my own DIY list. I’ll report back if I take the plunge!

Have you had a chair reupholstered by someone else? Or been brave enough to do it yourself? Would you give it a go? Share your thoughts in the comments below.