Statuser Posted October 24, 2014 Report Share Posted October 24, 2014 Hello Everybody, Really basic question here. My wife wants me to build here an ottoman for our family room. She is planning on covering the entire thing except the legs with upholstery fabric so it seems to be a good candidate for MDF or plywood. The ottoman will be about 3' X 3' X 1'. I've not done anything with upholstery before so I'm a little unsure of how to proceed. is there anything special that I need to be ware of? Can I just build the box out of ¾" ply or should I build a wood frame and add a thinner layer of sheet goods over the frame? Any help would be greatly appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wdwerker Posted October 24, 2014 Report Share Posted October 24, 2014 I build frames for a local upholstery company on occasion when their wood shop is busy. They use 5/8 or 3/4 quality pine ply(Plytanium) Lots of glue, staples and or screws and usually 5/4 poplar blocking in all the corners. Seat back frames are usually 5 to 7 degrees tilted back and those are built from 5/4 poplar and covered with 1/4 ply. If you bevel or round over the sharp corners it helps the padding and fabric wrap better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Statuser Posted October 24, 2014 Author Report Share Posted October 24, 2014 Perfect. Thanks for the tips. It sounds like glue, pocket holes, and corner reinforcement should be sufficient. The tip on beveling the corners is also much appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wdwerker Posted October 24, 2014 Report Share Posted October 24, 2014 If you use pocket screws put them toward the inside, the edges of the hole can snag padding or be felt under the final upholstery. We usually just use a nail gun or staple gun ,plenty of glue and 1 1/2 or 1 5/8 screws through the face into the blocking. Build a plywood box then cut square 1" x 1" strips to reinforce the inside corners, glue and screw. We only drill pilot holes near ends and corners where it might split. The flat head screws with the little nibs drive in just fine without a pilot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jHop Posted October 24, 2014 Report Share Posted October 24, 2014 Do you use any spray adhesive to hold the fabric down first, or just start with one edge and spread the cloth every time? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wdwerker Posted October 24, 2014 Report Share Posted October 24, 2014 They glue the foam down, add padding over that, then stretch the fabric & staple. Seat frames for the nice work gets webbing stretched in 2 directions ( interweaved), then foam, padding and fabric. Always round over edges below the webbing or you can feel the corner when you sit , plus it shortens the life of the webbing. The fabric needs to be able to slide over the padding when it is compressed by use. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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