7 ways to give your sofa new life

After years of giving you support through movie dates and mid-day naps, your sofa is looking a little tired – it’s maybe time to restore your old couch. Fret not if your cat has used the armrest as his scratch post or the cushions no longer have their bounce, we are here to help.

Thankfully we have tried and tested all the ways to bring a second life to your sofa.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Bring the fluff and structure back into your sofa
2. Dye your sofa covers
3. Change/Make a new slipcover
4. Change the sofa legs
5. Restore your old couch through Re-upholstery
6. Fix a tear in the sofa
7. Remove unwanted odour

1. Bring the fluff and structure back into your sofa

It’s completely normal for pillows and cushions to start to sag after some well use and loving. Luckily it’s rather simple to fix it up.

The frame of your sofa can also get worn out resulting in your sofa to sag. It’s an easy fix, all you need to do is take off your seat cushions, cut and place a piece of strong plywood to fit the area. The Plywood acts as support to the cushions, so no more falling into your sofa.

As for the sagging cushions, these are an easy fix. Adding  polyester fiber or quilt matting will help fill out the any lumpy or saggy parts. If your cushions are foam inserts, its possible that they have decompressed over time. Replace the foam inserts and your cushions will look and feel brand new.

2. Dye your sofa covers

You’re tired of your boring white slipcover and you just need a little change or dash of colour in your living space. If you don’t have the money but you do have the time and determination, dyeing your slipcover is a great alternative to restore your old couch.

All you need is a plain white cover, a bathtub, some dye solution, time and space. From research we found that the best results were indeed from the hand-dyeing method.

It’s important to dye the covers all together, as different batches of dye may result in different colours! It can be extremely tiring but the results are well worth it.

3. Change/Make a new slipcover

Of course you if don’t have the time or patience to dye your own slipcovers, we would recommend having us help you make a custom slipcover.

Whether you’re in need of a replacement sofa slipcover for IKEA, Pottery Barn, Crate & Barrel or just about any other major sofa brand;  we can make it for you – just send a photo to us 🙂

With over 70 different fabrics, we are sure that you will be able to find the perfect colour – and in a style that’s uniquely you since we do special customisations to truly personalise your slipcover and give your a sofa a new life! Get some fabric samples here to check out what we have!

4. Change the sofa legs

Personally, one of my favourite ways to revamp your sofa is by changing the sofa legs. Updating your sofa with small touches create personality, like adding a throw pillow or blanket – and it doesn’t take long, nor have to cost much.

If your sofa legs are screwed in with a M8 bolt, then our replacement wooden sofa legs will fit perfectly.

5. Restore your old couch through Re-upholstery

High quality furniture is difficult to come by these days and it would honestly be a shame to throw out a beautiful piece.  Though reupholstery is the pricier option on this list, it is also the perfect solution if you have a sofa design that in intricate and requires a lot of details (think Parker Knoll or Chesterfield sofas).

Having your sofa reupholstered locally will help revive your sofa to its former glory. The process can be a little long but the fit will be beautiful.

The IKEA Tidafors below is an example of a sofa that would be best reupholstered due to the attached cushions on the armrest. However, the Tidafors can be hacked so a slipcover can be made for it.

6. Fix a tear in the sofa

Your car keys accidentally made a small tear in your sofa? No worries we have the solution, you will just need 3 simple materials which you can find at any local craft store:

• Seam sealant
• Curved needle
• Nylon Thread

Make sure you understand the tear in your sofa, how deep, how frayed, etc. Once you understand place some the seam sealant around the edges. This sealant will prevent the fabric of fraying and possibly ripping more.

After that you will need the fold the edges and secure it with pins. Folding the frayed edges will prevent possible sewing along these parts which may result in more damage.

Once you have secured the edges you just need to take your curved needle and strong nylon thread; and start weaving tight stitched along the rip. Check out our more detailed tutorial on the best way to fix a torn sofa here.

Voila! Good as new!

7. Remove unwanted odour

Everyday smells can start to stick on your sofa after a while but it can still be fixed! To get rid of unwanted smells on leathers, the easiest way you can tackle it is with a mix of 1 part water and 1 part lemon juice.

Lemon juices help get rid of odours and will leave your sofa with fresh scent. It’s important to note that this mixture does contain bleaching properties, so just be sure to rinse the mixture off with a damp cloth and never to use it on fabric.

For fabric sofas you can sprinkle the sofa with baking soda and let it sit for an hour before vacuuming up the powder. Baking soda works as wonderful neutraliser and can combat almost any stench! Also if you opt to go with a slipcover, you can just throw your covers in the wash machine when they need to be refreshed!

Fun fact: Did you know baking soda kills 90% of pesticides i.e. making it the best solution for cleaning your vegetables?

And there you have it – our top 7 ways to restore your old couch, hope this helps! For more ways to rejuvenate your couch and bring it back to life, consider giving us a visit:

REDISCOVER YOUR COUCH!