How to Repair Ripped Fabric on a Couch or Chair Yourself

You can try your darndest to buy a piece of furniture that is indestructible. The truth is, there really is no such thing. If your furniture has fabric on it, then that fabric can rip. It’s a horrible thing to have a lovely piece of furniture with even the smallest rip in it – you know that’s where everyone’s eyes will focus. It’s no longer that gorgeous couch. Luckily there are ways that you can repair that rip yourself, without spending a lot of money.

If it’s just a small rip on your couch or chair fabric, the best thing to do is to get to it right away, before the rip gets any bigger. Match up a spool of thread as best you can to the color of the furniture fabric. Then you can do a very tight sewing job on it. Once you think you have sewn enough, sew a little more for added strength. You will be surprised at how little you even notice it’s been sewn once it’s fixed. This is the most inexpensive way to repair the rip. All you need is a needle and thread, making the cost of repairing this rip only a couple dollars.

If it’s a larger rip on your couch or chair fabric, then you will want to sew them if they can be pulled together. If the material is too separated, you can try cutting a piece of matching material from the bottom of the piece of furniture and sewing that in place under the rip. If the material is cotton, then you can also iron the piece on with a piece of fusion tape. This is also a very inexpensive fix. The cost of the thread, needle and fusion tape will run you just a few dollars. You will also need an iron for this repair. If you don’t own an iron, you may want to just borrow one for this project. Otherwise, you can purchase one for as little as $10.

If the rip happens to be on a chair or couch cushion, you may want to flip the cushion over if possible. This will give the weak spot, where the rip occurred, less wear and tear. It will also allow you to forget that the rip was ever there, so you can enjoy your furniture. If the rip was on a specific side of your couch or chair and it is possible to switch that part of the furniture to a less traffic area, you may want to consider that. For example, if you have two chairs and the one you have repaired gets sat in more, switch the placement of the two chairs. The less activity the furniture sees after it has been repaired, the longer the repair job will hold up.