You never know when you’re going to need an extra chair or two plus you want those that you’re using on a daily basis to look and to function as best as possible. Sometimes that requires a little bit of maintenance from time to time which can lead to an entire makeover. Another possibility is to want to built a new chair from scratch which is a great project idea for anyone who enjoys crafting things and actively creating furniture and decorations for their home. In that context, we’re ready to show you some DIY chair ideas that we hope will inspire you.

As it turns out, building a chair from scratch is actually not that difficult and you don’t really need any kind of crafting experience to be successful in this task. You can start with something even simpler: a DIY stool. One with a woven leather seat like the one presented on sugarandcloth might interest you. To built it you need four wooden legs (there are no real restrictions on their shape or design), angled brackets, piping cord filler, faux leather and some cotton fabric.

Next let’s have a look and a DIY patio lounger. It’s a pretty simple thing to build and you can use the wood from a recycled pallet or some reclaimed boards if you have any leftover pieces from other projects. Building the frame is the most important and most challenging step and once you have that you can start adding the finishing touches and customizing the lounger. You can find all the details on pmqfortwo.

Sometimes building a new chair from scratch may not be the best solution, even if it might solve the problem. Maybe you’d much rather prefer to reupholster an old chair, one that you’re attached to in a particular way or one that simply has a good frame which is not worth throwing out. By reupholstering the chair you basically give it a whole new look. The process usually involves a few main supplies such as upholstery fabric, cording/ piping, a staple gun and a sewing machine. You might find it useful to use the old upholstery pieces as a template.

Dining chair makeovers are usually fairly simple, even when you decide to reupholster the chair. Usually you can refinish a wooden dining chair to significantly improve its look. There are several steps to follow: dismantle the chair, strip off the old finish, clean the frame thoroughly, apply the new finish and at the end reattach the seat (which you may keep as it was or reupholster).

Another possibility is to simplify the design of an old chair and to reinvent the piece in a fresh way. For example, you may realize that there’s no point in trying to salvage the seat off an old dining chair, not when you can craft an elegant jute seat instead. Here’s what you’ll need for that: the frame of a wooden chair, jute webbing, a staple gun and nail head trim and a rubber mallet (in case you want to include this design detail).

An old chair can be useful in many different ways. One option is to saw off the back of the chair and to use the frame for making a chic furry ottoman which can be a very useful addition to the living room, bedroom or even the office. One you’ve removed the back, take out the seat and sand down the frame. Then apply primer and paint on the entire frame and cover the seat in faux fur which you can easily staple in place. So there you have it a trendy fur ottoman in just a few easy steps.

Instead of removing the back of an old chair you could get rid of the legs and turn the rest into a cool swing for the garden. Once you remove the legs it’s all just a matter of finding the best way to hang the chair/ swing. You’ll most likely have to drill four holes into the seat and to run some rope through them. You’ll also have to find a way to run the rope through the backrest for added support and stability. You can find a few tips regarding that on thisdiylife.

We mentioned before that you can build a chair out of an old pallet so let’s get back to this idea a bit. Naturally, this is a fairly simple project and also one that’s very affordable. You can easily find discarded pallets at local hardware stores and you can get them for close to nothing. You can disassemble them and then use that pile of wooden boards to create something completely new and different, like a chair or a lounger. Check out ourpinterestingfamily for inspiration.

A cool thing about a lot of modern chairs is the fact that they have very simple designs. That means it’s quite easy to design and to build such a chair yourself without much trouble. For example, let’s say you want to build this chair featured on instructables. First you need to gather some supplies, mainly wood, some paint, some stain, screws and glue and a comfortable seat cushion. If you follow the instructions it should all be clear and easy from start to finish.

Pallets aren’t the only resource which can be repurposed into chairs. Another example which may come as a surprise is a wooden cable spool/ drum. You’ll be using the two round pieces and you’ll have to modify a bit the middle section. Here’s how you do it: first you dismantle the drum, then you drill some holes in the two wooden rounds and you insert some rods which will serve as supports for the seat. getting this right is a bit tricky so be sure to check out all details on instructables before you start the project.

Surely the simpler a chair’s design and structure are the easier the whole project becomes and it doesn’t really get any simpler than this design featured on instructables. This plank chair is nothing more than a plank of wood cut in two pieces which are then connected using a very simple technique which also makes it easy to disassemble the chair whenever required. Sure, the design is lacking in terms of comfort but it’s surely interesting and useful in its own ways.

For this next project we’re returning to the idea of repurposed pallets. The Viking Chair is super easy to make using only a few basic tools such as a handsaw, a jigsaw, a nail gun (or a hammer and some nails) and some sandpaper. Pallets are the raw material but of course that’s simply a suggestion meant to make the project more budget-friendly. Once you’ve built the chair, you can choose to stain or to paint the wood but you can also just preserve the raw finish and to customize the chair in a different way. {found on instructables}

Chances are you can probably find an old chair with a good frame which you can use in your next makeover project. All you need is a good frame. You can take care of the rest in creative and practical ways, a solution being described on alwaysrooney where you can find a very inspiring transformation of an Acapulco chair. The new seat and backrest are made of a bunch of leather strips.

We’ve seen how other objects can be repurposed and transformed into unique chairs and at this point we should mention that the opposite is also possible. Check out muyingenioso to find out how you can turn a simple stool into a charming side table with a solid wood top. It’s a very simple project which requires very few and very basic resources.

Remember that trendy fur ottoman we showed you earlier? We liked the idea a lot so we’ll finish this project with another quite similar project. This fur-covered stool can look very posh just about anywhere. Put in one of the corners in your bedroom, in the living room by the sofa or anywhere you want. You can even have several of these scattered around the house. Check out the video tutorial to find out all the details related to the project.

This cute lounge chair is easy to build and has a nice design which gives it a classic feel. If you want to make an exact replica of the chair featured on instructables you’re going to need 3 pine boards that measure 1 ¼’’ x 3 1/2’’ a panel that measures 24’’ x 4’, some trim head screws, pocket hole screws and your choice of finish. Check out the full tutorial for instructions and more details.

The Adirondack chair is an iconic piece with a classic and super versatile design. A lot of different versions based on the original can be created, like this one from instructables which is a great DIY project. They have this industrial feel due to the materials and the finishes used and that’s a great look for a modern deck or a patio. If you want to also add a rustic twist to the design you can use reclaimed wood.

If you’re a fan of modern and sculptural designs with quirky geometric shapes you might enjoy this cool-looking chair that you can build yourself from scratch. It’s made out of plywood and all the pieces are held together by zip ties. The design is very interesting and the whole thing is a lot of fun to make and especially to assemble. You can customize it in lots of different ways by using different types of zip ties in different colors. Check out the tutorial on instructables.

What could be nicer than building a simple chair that you can take outside and place underneath a beautiful tree? Well, that’s just one of the many different ways in which you could use this stylish outdoor chair featured on instructables. We really love the woven seat and back and the overall simplicity of the design.

You may have noticed that a lot of iconic designer chairs have these sinuous and curved shapes and they look really beautiful and elegant that way. Although you won’t be able to use the same techniques and tools that they have at their disposal, you can take inspiration from those designs and build a pretty nice chair for yourself. This one is a lovely example. It has a slightly curved back and straps that hold it up. Check out instructables for more details.

Makeover ideas

You may feel it’s not really practical or environmentally-friendly to build new chairs when you already have some old ones that could still be useful. That’s entirely true and in that case a makeover makes a lot more sense. You can revive old chairs by giving them a fresh new color, a change of color and fixing some of the issues they might have. A new and improved seat can also make a huge difference. Check out 2thesunnyside to see how you can transform old bar stools and give them a second chance.

A simple dining chair that’s old but still in good shape structurally can be easily recovered and transformed and the process is not difficult or expensive. You can give the seat a makeover and reupholster it using an inexpensive cotton rug instead of fabric which would give it more texture and cooler look. Check out myhappysimpleliving to find out all the details and come up with your own version of this project, one that suits your own style.

Sometimes it’s not the seat that’s the main issue but the frame of the chair. Those made of wood can start to look dated and boring after a while. An easy way to change that is with paint. You can go ahead and paint the entire frame of a chair white and then use a bit of sandpaper to add a distressed finish so it still looks old but not out of style. Check out the before and after on thepainteddrawer for more inspiration.

If you’re having the opposite issue – a chair with a good frame in need of a new seat – there’s a really cool and interesting design idea on readingmytealeaves that you might like. This project shows you how you can make a beautiful woven seat for a dining chair using cotton clothesline and furniture tacks. It’s very easy actually and the design looks magnificent. You can experiment with different patterns and colors if you want to add more flair to your chair.

Upholstered armchairs can be a bit more difficult to work with and more complex. They can still be transformed, repaired and reinvigorated with new upholstery and a new finish. First you need to remove the old upholstery and to expose the frame, then you can trip it down to the raw wood using sandpaper. Apply the new finish and in the meantime cut out the fabric (and foam if needed) for the seat and the back. A cool idea can be use a light rug instead of fabric. Check out amandasmercantile for directions and more inspiring ideas.