Doodles & Stitches: Tufted Bench

A Step by Step Guide -

How to turn a Coffee Table into a Bench

I found this coffee table at a garage sale a couple of months back. I intended on painting it and making it into a simple, cool coffee table BUT I decided to try something different.

This was my first experience with TUFTING and I really wish I had pulled the cord tighter so the buttons were deeper in the cushion but it was a learning experience and next time I'll make them tighter. I still think it turned out lovely.

I bought my fabric at Premier Fabrics in Germantown, TN. It has a nice, tight stripe that resembles an oxford shirt. I love, love, love this fabric. I'm doing the room in multiple shades of neutral cream colors and decided that this would be perfect.

I painted the base of the coffee table with ASCP Old White paint. After it was dry, I distressed it and then finished it off using ASCP clear wax.

Now, for the UPHOLSTERY...
I got this foam cut specially at Johnson Fabrics in Bartlett, TN. I had them cut it the size of the coffee table top with an added inch in length and width. I bought the 3" thick foam because this particular table was short. I wanted to make the bench a little taller. I also purchased some cording and an upholstery needle. I used a burlap fabric for the covered buttons. I thought it looked great with the stripe. Here are the steps I used to make the tufted buttons...

First, I measured where I wanted the buttons.

I put a push-pin in each place where I wanted a button.

I used my upholstery needle to push through the foam at that exact spot and then made a mark on the underneath side of the foam using a sharpie marker.

Using that mark, I pushed the cord-threaded needle straight up through the foam and fabric.

I ran the cording through the button.

Then, pushed the needle back down through the foam, in the same place.

After it was pulled through, I used a scrap piece of folded fabric under the foam to keep the knot from pulling through. I tied it as tightly as I could and then repeated with the other 3 buttons.

After all the buttons were attached to the foam, I used straight pins to mark the edge of the fabric with the edge of the table... this gave me a guide so that when I turned the table upside down I knew where it was supposed to be placed on the fabric.

This step kept the tufted buttons straight and evenly spaced on top.