How To Easily Recover An Old Footstool

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 My mom and I always like to talk about how my grandma had timeless style. This darling vintage footstool belonged to her and is just one of the many pieces of hers my mom has kept. It has such great bones and we even discovered a stamp on the underside of the stool that states it’s from Italy! Today it will get a bit of a face lift and I will show you how easy it is to recover an old footstool. 

You won't belive how simple it is to recover an old footstool. No sewing involved!

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It’s that time again! I am blessed to be joining the Thrifty Style Team hosted by Julie of Red Head Can Decorate. This fabulous group of ladies posts the 2nd Friday of each month and you can scroll down to find each of their thrifty posts at the end of mine.

12 Bloggers share their Thrifty Projects all in one spot!

How To Easily Recover An Old Footstool

Here is a before of this sweet little stool.

BEFORE: an old footstool gets a new look!

Not bad but definitely in need of some color and quick updating.

Materials You Will Need

*As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. This post contains other affiliate links too for your convenience. Click here to read my full disclosure policy.

A little bit of new trim and fabric will have your old footstool looking new in no time!

Fabric: Lining It Up

The first thing you want to do is find a scrap of fabric and then make sure that you have enough of that fabric.

Then, if you choose a striped fabric like mine, you need to make sure you have it lined up like you want. Stretch it a bit to see that it will cover each side if you were to pull it down. 

I like to call this my trial run!

AN old footstool gets a new life!

TIP: If I do this again I will not pick a striped or repeating fabric pattern. It was too had to get the stripes lined up perfectly when you pulled the fabric tight.

Staple and trim your fabric before adding the trim when recovering a footstool.

I made sure my fabric was longer and waited to trim it until I was done stapling. This ensured that my stool would be fully covered.

Stapling The Fabric

Once the fabric was lined up I stapled one staple in each side to hold the fabric in place. I did this as close to the wood frame as possible. From here I moved to the corners. These were the toughest because the fabric didn’t naturally pull this way. I had to move it around a bit until it was as straight as it would go. But once I got it stapled down I was able to continue stapling other sections down more easily. Each time I stapled I would pull the fabric taught.

A fun little stool makeover in no time at all!

Here you can see that my staples are as close to the wood frame as possible and that I have trimmed as much of the excess fabric off. Stapling it takes the biggest chuck of time when recovering a stool.

TIP: Having patience will go a long way in this easy little DIY.

Now For The Trim

Finally, we are ready for the last part. It is time to add the trim and hide those ugly staples. Line up your trim for a “dry run”.   Make sure to warm up you glue gun!

Vintage footstool makeover!

Start your glue on the end of your stool in the middle. This makes it easier to hide the seam and line up the trim once it makes it’s way around the stool. Also, make sure you are covering the staples as you go.

When recovering your footstool use a hot glue gun to secure your trim and hide the ugly staples.

I used my scissors to press down the trim onto the hot glue as to not burn my fingers.

Tip: Use your scissors to hold your trim down on the hot glue so you won't burn your fingers.

Once you make your way back to that first seam cut off the extra trim and glue it down. In the picture below you notice how hard it was to lineup those darn stripes!

The details on this footstool are so sweet!

A Lovely Vintage Recovered Footstool

Now it’s ready to show off!

Hopefully you enjoyed my little tutorial on how to easily recover an old footstool. Pretty easy , right?! The best part is that there was no sewing involved.

How to easily recover an ol old footstool with no sewing involved!

A fun and quick project with a huge impact!

This vintage footstool gets a simple and quick makeover .

I think my grandma would love it and I think it turned out just darling! What do you think? Don’t forget to visit all the other Thrifty projects below as well!

I’d love to have you hang out with me some more! Feel free to follow along with me on any of the platforms linked below.

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xoxo,

Kelly

 

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How to easily recover an old footstool and give it new life!

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27 Comments

  1. Kelly – your stool makeover is perfection! We are big fans of blue and white, so we think it was the perfect fabric choice. Love that this family heirloom is from Italy. Oh the stories this little stool could tell!

  2. Hi Kelly,

    I love this and you did a great job! I can see stripes would be tricky but it looks perfect! FYI so in love with the feet on this stool! PINNED

    Cindy

  4. Your grandma would definitely be pleased with how her footstool looks now as it looks wonderful! Each time you put your feet on this pretty stool, you will think about her.

  5. I have a my grandma’s vintage vanity stool that desperately needs a new cover. Your tutorial is just in time to help me out. I love the trim for added texture. Your grandma would love the fresh look.
    Thanks for sharing.

  9. Kelly, this stool is so special! I bet your Grandma is looking down & is so proud of you. Your tutorial will help so many, too! Pinned! XO

  11. Oh how cute – and so special because it was your grandmother’s! The Queen Anne style – the legs – are very timeless, indeed.

    Well done, and something you could do together. I love that.

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