So in Part I and Part II of the DIY reupholstering of my front seats, I’ve been working on the driver’s side first…just to get it out of the way. Most folks might think that both front seats are the same in VW Buses, but they aren’t. The drivers side seat has a full back side (back side of back rest), while the passenger’s seat (at least in my 71 Westfalia) only has a partial back panel so it can lock into place with the ‘hoop lock’ attached to the van itself. I’ll post some pics of this when I get to the passenger side seat re-upholstering.
For now, I am still in the throes of figuring out the various shapes I am having to create from the very worn out, tattered, and barely there pieces of the old driver’s seat. I am hoping for the best, while bracing myself for the worst.
I’ve lost a bit of momentum, I admit, since it took over a month to receive the faux burlap I ordered from Baja California Sur, Mexico. I wasn’t very pleased when I received it, because it is quite transparent. So…with hopes of remedying this problem, I have plans to fuse a very thick layer of Pellon Wonder Under fusible webbing to the underside. I guess we’ll see how that goes.
For now, here are a few pics of the patterns I have created from newspaper. I will post more pics in the next part of this series; when I cut and fuse the fabric. If you have re-upholstered the seats in your VW Van…ever, please feel free to drop me a note or two of advice. I could use it at this point!
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*Never stop learning new, exciting, and useful things.* *Amaze yourself every now and then!*
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- Fold Back Panel Piece, Trace, Then Cut…Marking Fold on Pattern
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- Seat Side Panel Pieces – Cut 1 Pattern but 2 Fabric Pieces
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- Faux Burlap and Pellon Heavy Duty (not too stiff, but still strong)
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- Faux Burlap (feels almost plastic coated), and Pellon Fusible Webbing – Heavy Duty but Flexible
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- Close up of Turquoise Faux Burlap from Baja Mexico
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- Pellon will add strength and opacity to transparent-like faux burlap fabric
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- Back Panel (not seat back rest) Pattern Piece Cut From Newspaper
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- Seat Side Panels – Pattern Pieces
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- Allow enough room for sturdy wire insert, when hemming seat covers along bottom.
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- Seat bottom hem must have sturdy wire inserted within casing, to hook over prongs on bottom of seat frame.
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- All Driver’s Side Seat Patterns Traced From Old Seat Upholstery Scraps (guesstimation-like), and Created From Newspaper. Fabric and Fusible Webbing is Ready to Cut!
Writing & Wanderlust 