After solving my great-price-but-bad-upholstery used furniture problem, I wanted to share with you my solution—my favorite white slipcover to hide dated upholstery. On separate occasions on Facebook Marketplace, I found two sets of older, upholstered furniture with curvy lines that caught my eye. One was a vintage couch and chair set. The other was a pair of used, reproduction French chairs. My original thought on the couch set was to leave it as found, but the nighttime garage lighting I inspected it in versus the lighting in my house revealed that my white and tan couch was actually grey and gold. My initial thought on the chairs was always to find a slipcover solution. I like that the flame-stitch upholstery reminded me of a rocker my grandparents had. The colors were right for my house, but I worried the pattern would read wrong with my décor style.
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Is It Worth Reupholstering an Old Sofa?
For each set, I began making calls to local seamstresses and upholstery shops. After getting some high numbers from the larger upholstery shops in town, I reached out to a friend, who was a self-taught upholsterer, in hopes of a lower amount. Her figure was $1000 to $1200 for labor, plus the cost of fabric, on the couch. The chair total was $775 plus fabric costs.
Once various quotes were gathered, the question became if the old sofa and chair were worth reupholstering. I am an advocate of reupholstering old furniture because older furniture is made of better materials, like solid wood versus “wood product.” (Typically, I would recommend evaluating the age of the piece of furniture before you reupholster it; make sure it is not antique, rare, and original fabric that could devalue the couch if removed.) Plus, recycling the furniture is better than it ending up in a dumb somewhere. Even with these higher quotes, the end product would have been hardier than a new sofa of the same price. Even still, the cost of new couches can run beyond the all-in cost of this project, making the cost differential worth considering.
However, I had to ask myself—do you like this couch enough to invest over a grand in it? I did imagine eventually finding a set that had not been painted, was maybe French, had its original historical fabric, had lots of carvings on the frame, and a slightly smaller matching chair. The short answer was no.
I considered experimenting with reupholstering this couch myself as a secondary option for lower costs. Plus, my friend offered to give me tips, but I kept coming back to the fact that another, more-perfect couch and chair could be in my future. Then, there was the time factor. I did not think I had the time to invest in reupholstering the set, even if I could find a cheap and hardy fabric and provide my own (free) labor. Therefore, I opted to get a slipcover for the couch and chair set, just as I was planning on doing for the reproduction chairs.
How Much Does it Cost to Have a Slipcover Made?
To my surprise, the seamstress quotes I got for a custom slipcover for the sofa were also $1000, plus fabric. That was for a standard fitted slipcover, not including the cute bows for the exposed frames that I wanted.
At this point I decided to search out ready-made white slipcovers. There are many on the market, ranging in price from $70 to $400.
The white slipcover that caught my eye was from a small business, and it had a cozy feel to it. The ruffles felt romantic and feminine. The style was unfitted and lent itself to multiple design styles including French Country, shabby chic, and cottage or farmhouse style.
For me specifically, I liked that the loose fit would communicate to my house guests that I wanted them to make themselves at home and get comfy. They were perfect, and with the variety of sizing options, I could get ones to fit all four pieces of my Facebook Marketplace upholstered furniture.
My Favorite White Slipcover
For my vintage couch, I ordered the ruffled slipcover in the STANDARD SOFA size. For its matching chair, I ordered the STANDARD CHAIR size. These were perfect fits, once I realized that the shorter ruffle goes in the front!
The slipcovers for the reproduction French chairs required some tweaking, which this small shop made very painless. (Exceptional customer service is another reason I had to share these slipcovers.) Because of the chairs’ low-profile arms and thinner cushions, we had to do some thinning out of the fabric bulk. I ordered the STANDARD CHAIR size and had 10 inches cut off of the ruffles. If you are looking to cover a more petite antique chair, I would message the shop owner before ordering to get her thoughts on the size needed or adjustments required.
I am thankful to have found a ready-made, white slipcover that I love and that was a lower investment than reupholstering or getting a custom slipcover made. I was able to get three chair slipcovers and one sofa slipcover for less than the price of having one chair reupholstered!
I get to enjoy these white slipcovers in our bedroom on the sofa and chair set and in our family room on the reproduction French chairs. In each room, they add such coziness. I am very happy with my purchase, and if you are looking for a white slipcover to hide dated upholstery like me, these slipcovers come highly recommended.
Tell me, friend. Where could you see these white slipcovers being used in your home?
If you like these slipcovers and want to see other décor solutions I have used in my home, be sure to check out my Home Tour, as well as my décor favorites on my Home Décor Shop Page.
