I am loving our latest furniture project…the French sofa redo!
For years, I have had an ongoing search for an antique French sofa forever, and I finally found one at an estate sale in South Alabama! I dreamed of painting it in Annie Sloan Old White paint and covering the upholstery in vintage grain sacks.
When I saw this sad looking little lady, I could hardly contain my happy dance! She was exactly what I was looking for!
The sofa is from the late 1800’s and other than wearing some really ugly cranberry upholstery, she was in excellent condition!
She was exactly what I had been looking for, so of course, she had to come home with me!
This was going to be one of my first diy upholstery projects, and I really didn’t have any idea of what I was doing. It was a case of “learn as I go”.
The first thing I needed to do was remove the original fabric, which turned out to be a really nasty job. There must have been 10,000 staples, or at least it felt like it!
French Sofa Before
Fortunately, the “stuffing” appeared to be in good condition so I wouldn’t need to replace that!
After stripping off the old upholstery, I painted and distressed the wood frame with the chalk paint. Then I finished with coat of clear and dark wax, and buffed when dry! The wood frame had such great carved details and the new paint and wax really brought them out.
Next came the not so fun part, but I just kept the vision of the end result in my head! At this point, I was definitely beginning to think that I had tackled a project that was going to be too much, but I kept going.
I upholstered the inside back in antique grain sack, and for the backside, I used drop cloths. I used the pieces of the old upholstery for a pattern to cut the new pieces and used a pneumatic staple gun to staple them onto the frame.
The sofa had a down filled cushion, so I decided to make a slipcover out of a drop cloth so that I could remove and wash it when it gets dirty since we have a little fur baby that loves to sit on our furniture.
French Sofa After
Antique European grain sacks with the farmer’s initials monogrammed on them are one of my favorite things, and I had two that I had been saving, so I used both of them on the sofa.
This project was very slow going, because I really didn’t know what I was doing. There was definitely a learning curve. It took me much longer to finish this piece than I originally anticipated, and honestly, I’m not sure I would tackle this large of an upholstery project again, but I’m very happy with the end result. It definitely has the look that I was going for.
After the sofa was completed, I added a few grain sack graphic pillows. I’m still not sure about them so they may get changed at some point.
The back upholstered in Lowe’s drop cloths
I finished all of the edges with cream gimp trim which I simply hot glued over the edges.
The sofa has such great curvy legs and details. It’s amazing how different it looks from when we brought it home. I’m not sure that a French sofa was the piece that I should have cut my “upholstery teeth” on, but I do love how it looks!
Cheers,
Cindy
I have an antique French sofa and 2 matching chairs. I love what you did! Thank you for your step by step guide. Someday…
INCREDIBLE…. especially since it was your first project. You rock!!
Beautiful transformation!
Love everything you do and share. Thank you. How did you make the long seat cushion? Did you share it? If not, would you mind sharing how you made it.
I am over the moon looking at your home! Absolutely lovely. Thank you for sharing. Love your decorator tricks too!
Planning to start my project on a very similar loveseat I bought for $25 at a Goodwill! The legs are curvy and beautiful but unpainted dark wood that give a nice contrast to the cream colored linen I chose to cover it. I couldn’t decide whether or not to leave them as is or paint and distress. I think YOUR sofa helped me decide to paint and distress for sure ! Wish me luck !
That sounds beautiful, Jessie! Good luck!!
Hello Cindy! I am FINALLY going to attempt reupholstering my antique couch…I return to your post often to try and find any detailed instructions and clues both through your post and through the comments section. You mentioned that you washed the dropcloth first and added bleach. What temperature of water did you use? How many times did you wash it? Exactly how much bleach did you use? And if you washed it more than once, did you add bleach to EACH wash? And when you dried it, did you dry it in the dryer? When you ironed it, was it completely dry first? And finally, do you think you’ll ever do a detailed tutorial on the couch? I know it’s been years but your website is the best for this style of decor. Ok, thank you and have a great week!
Hi Joel! I washed the drop cloth in warm/hot water with laundry detergent, and adding about 4 cups of bleach. I stopped the washer halfway through it’s cycle and let the drop cloth soak for about 3-4 hours, then finished the cycle. I only did the bleach soaking one time, but if you remove it and it still isn’t light enough for you, then repeat the process. Also, make sure you are using a drop cloth that is 100% cotton. It doesn’t work well if it’s a poly blend. I dried the cloth in the dryer on medium setting until dry, then ironed it. I hope this helps!
Hi Cindy, I just found your post on Pinterest. I was so excited to see how you recovered the sofa. I bought one just like yours and a chair to match for $100 about 3 years ago. It took me a while to get her recovered but I did it and yes, there were a million staples. Mine had been recovered once before and it smelled of cats so I stripped it to the bare bones. I used Lowe’s painter cloths on the front and burlap on the back. She turned out beautiful. She is a little low to sit on so I thought of making a cushion like you did. I like the way it looks. What were the materials that you used in the seats cushion if you don’t mind me asking? You can take a look at mine at my blog. Thank you for sharing.
Sincerely, Jo
Hi Jo! Our sofa had a long down cushion and I just made a slipcover for it. It was pretty thin, so I took two king size down filled bed pillows and stuffed them inside the slipcover with the original cushion to give it more fill and depth.
I have a set, couch and chair and ottoman in this design I want to recover Did you staple and then glue the trim mine is all tack strips? and is your seat made from feathers? I have no idea how to tackle this I guess just take off the old stuff and go from there Maybe just go for the deconstructed look 🙂 Mine was redone a few years ago before I bought it and it is still very firm and sturdy. Did you redo it too or recover and paint the trim? I love the way yours turned out I think you have the perfect design style
Hi Kathryn! I used a pneumatic staple gun to attach the fabric to the frame, and then a glue gun to attach the gimp trim over the raw edges and staples. The seat cushion is made of feathers. I painted the wood frame, and stripped all of the old fabric off of it, and then recovered with the grain sacks and drop cloths. It was a little bit intimidating, but I just took a section at a time and worked on it, using the old fabric for patterns to cut the new pieces. It’s far from perfect, and I’m sure a professional would have done a much better job!
Cindy…the sofa is gorgeous! Everything you do is fantastic. I learn so much from your blog. Did you make the pillows that are on the sofa too? Thank you.
Thank you, Maureen! Yes, I made the pillows as well.
You are so talented!! She was beautiful before, but quite stuffy looking with that dark , dated fabric. Now, she’s timeless and fresh!!! I’m so in love! I have one very similar I’m getting ready to tackle. Any advice? What weight drop cloth did you use and where did you get it? Thx bunches!! ♥️♥️
Hi Heather! I used the 10 oz Everbilt drop cloth from Home Depot!
I have a French sofa just like that in my living room in my Victorian home. Mine has a beautiful pink expensive brocade material on it. It had been reupholster when I purchased it. I wouldn’t ever take it off and do it creamy beige. But to each their own.
Wow, this is fabulous
Cindy love what you did – I just finished a french style sofa in the drop cloth fabric….my first time too….would love to get your thoughts on it as well and I have some french nesting tables I would love to paint and need some guidance please email me when you can so we can chat and come up with a plan.
de
Debbie
I know it’s not polite to stare, but…I have to!
Cindy I know that I am so late to this French sofa redo party but I love EVERYTHING that you did to it! Can you share HOW you did it? I have read your post on the sofa’s transformation but am curious as to how you applied the dropcloth and trim. Also there is a seam on the back (which I love) and I wondereded how to duplicate that. And finally, how many dropcloths did you use for the base of the couch (not including the cushions)? Ok, thanks!
Thank you! The drop cloth is stapled on with a pneumatic staple gun. The trim is applied with a hot glue gun over the raw seams and staples. The grain sacks weren’t large enough without sewing two together, so the seam you see is that. I only used one drop cloth for the base, they are quite large, and come in different sizes. Hope that helps!
Thank you so much for responding! Yes, it helps a lot.
First of all thank you so much for your blog. It’s fantastic. I’m wanting to use Lowe’s drop clothes for a sofa redo. I’m wondering if they come in different sizes or quality, which do you reccommend.
Thank you so much Susan! Lowe’s has recently discontinued the brand of drop cloth that I had been using. They have replaced it with a brand that is not as good. So I have used the drop cloths from Home Depot and have been quite pleased with them. They do come in different sizes and weight. I usually go with the 10 oz, because it’s a little bit heavier. I would recommend washing and drying before you use…..and of course they will have to be ironed because they do wrinkle. But washing will remove any chemicals that may be in them and will also remove some of the stiffness. I also add bleach to the wash to whiten them just a little bit. Here is the link to the drop cloth I’ve used from Home Depot: http://www.homedepot.com/p/Everbilt-9-ft-x-12-ft-10-oz-Canvas-Drop-Cloth-51821-4HD/203432096
Hope that helps!
Jealous much… Love this so much! Looked for one at Round top. Found a super beat up one at Round Top. Thought the guy wanted too much for the condition it was in. Wish you could pm me a range of prices that is good and wish I had asked that before I went.
Audra, I think I paid like $125 for this one, but prices can be all over the map depending on what part of the country you’re in. I’ve seen some go for ridiculous prices!
I’m in love! I’m planning to redo a tufted French sectional and am thinking of cotton canvas, the same stuff drop clothes are cut from. Haven’t committed yet because I’m sure if to go with 10 oz or 12 oz or #12 duck. I’m over thinking it I know. Anywho…beautiful job!
It looks great! What did you put in the seat cushion?
I actually just made a tie on slipcover out of a Lowe’s drop cloth for the original down filled cushion. It isn’t perfect (it was my first attempt at a slipcover!) and at some point I will remake it, but for now it works for me. The slipcover makes it easy to remove and wash and put back on.
Oh my Gosh…it is beyond gorgeous! What an unbelievable transformation.
Thank you!
Cindy, excellent job! Just brilliant. Don’t know if I’m brave enough for a sofa yet.
BTW, as a Catholic, love all the recent religious additions in your etsy shop. Especially the saints.
Thank you Erin!