If you really love antiques and are particularly interested in collecting antique dining chairs, learning how to refurbish them can be a rewarding hobby. Refurbishing chairs is not a difficult task with a little time and effort. It is possible for anyone to restore antique oak dining chairs and keep them looking great with just a little 
planning and work. The main steps in the restoration process are as follows:
Gather all the tools and supplies that you’ll need for the job. Be sure to wear some old clothes and cover your floors with protective sheeting to protect them. This can be bought at any DIY or paint store for only a few dollars. Fabric scissors are also needed to enable you to remove the existing fabric from the seats of your antique dining room chairs. In addition to this you’ll need staples, a staple gun, and a new fabric that can be whatever type you choose. This is really all you need for starting out so once you have these things together you can get to work.
The first step is to remove the old fabric. Be careful not to catch the surrounding wood with your scissors and cause scratches or damage as this can be difficult to repair. Remember that you are working on antique dining room furniture that is delicate and requires a little more care.
After removing all the fabric, make sure that you have also removed all the existing staples. This is important for the process of stapling the new fabric as it will be made more difficult if there are any old staples remaining.
The next step is to start attaching the material. Start by taking measurements of any fabric covered areas of the chair. If you have managed to remove the old fabric in one piece and it is in fairly decent condition, you can use it to measure the new squares of fabric. Place the chair upside down and pull each square of fabric under the bottom side of the furniture. Make sure to have your staple gun within easy reach and as the fabric is pulled taught, fold each corner inside and staple it to the chair’s bottom. Continue this process, working around the chair taking small pieces of fabric as you go.
Be sure to make the material taught but not overly tight. This stops there from being any wrinkles in the surface of the fabric but also ensures it will not rip in use due to it being applied too tightly.
After working around the whole chair and stapling the fabric all the way round, that chair is finished and you can start working on the next one.
If you want to change the wood color of your antique dining chairs, perhaps if you would like it to go with an antique dining table or some other furniture, you should do this before upholstering the chairs. Pick an appropriate stain color and make sure it is dry before applying fabric to the seats. Then sit back and take pride in your refurbished home furniture!