Replacing the webbing on a chair seat is one of the most satisfying jobs in upholstery. It is inexpensive, it needs only a handful of tools, and the difference it makes is immediate — a sagging, tired seat becomes firm and supportive again. Whether you are dealing with a traditional drop-in seat, a Victorian dining chair or a mid-century tub chair, the principle is the same: strip out the old, stretch in the new and fix it down properly.

Why Webbing Fails, and What You Will Need

Webbing takes the entire weight of whoever sits down, so it stretches, frays and eventually snaps. Jute webbing — that familiar brown or black striped band — loses its tension over decades, especially in dry conditions. Elasticated rubber webbing perishes, cracks and goes powdery. Once two or three strips have gone, the rest follow quickly because the load is shared unevenly.

Gather your materials before you start:

• Replacement webbing: 50mm wide jute (black and white striped) or 50mm elasticated webbing for a springier seat. Allow roughly four times the seat depth for a woven pattern.
• Upholstery tacks, 13mm, or a staple gun with 8–10mm staples. Tacks suit traditional frames; staples are quicker on hardwood.
• A tack hammer, tack claw or staple remover, and a pair of pincers.
• A webbing stretcher — the spiked wooden tool that lets you pull the strip genuinely tight.
• A tape measure, sharp scissors or a craft knife, and a staple gun for any loose joints.

While the seat is bare, check the frame. Flex each corner; if it moves, work wood glue into the joint and clamp it overnight. Webbing strained across a wobbly frame will pull it apart again within months.

Stripping the Seat Back to the Frame

Turn the chair upside down and remove the old webbing completely. Do not be tempted to weave new strips over the top of the old ones — they will chafe, hold moisture and stop you achieving proper tension.

Work the tacks or staples out with a tack claw or staple remover, prising gently to avoid chipping the timber. Pincers are useful for stubborn tacks that have bent over. Take your time and pull every fragment of webbing and every stray tack free, because a single forgotten staple will tear the new strip or puncture your hand later.

Once the frame is clean, sand lightly where the old fixings sat and brush away dust. If the seat originally had a layer of hessian or a dust cover over the webbing, set it aside to reuse, or replace it with fresh hessian. Mark the inside of the frame with a pencil where the new strips will sit, spacing them evenly.

Measuring and Cutting the New Webbing

Plan your spacing first. On a standard dining chair, four to six strips running front to back and three to four running side to side gives a firm, well-supported seat. Keep gaps between strips at roughly 50–75mm — wide enough to breathe, close enough that the cushioning cannot drop through.

Cut each strip long enough to run across the frame plus about 100mm of overlap at each end for folding and fixing. For a woven pattern, cut all the front-to-back strips and lay them loosely across the frame first, then cut the side-to-side strips. Straight cuts matter: a ragged end will fray and work loose, so use sharp scissors and cut in one clean stroke.

Stretching and Fixing the Strips

Start with the strips running front to back. Fold the end of one strip over about 25mm and tack or staple it to the underside of the frame, using three fixings across the width arranged in a shallow zigzag — this grips the webbing far better than a straight line of three. Pull the strip across the frame, engage the webbing stretcher against the far rail and lever the webbing tight. Aim for a tension where you can press the strip down roughly 12–20mm with your thumb; too slack and the seat sags, too tight and you risk splitting the frame.

With the strip stretched, fold the loose end over the rail and fix it with three more tacks or staples, keeping the webbing flat and square. Trim the surplus, leaving about 20mm beyond the fixings. Repeat for every front-to-back strip, checking as you go that the spacing stays even.

Now the side-to-side strips. These are woven: pass each one alternately over the first front-to-back strip, under the second, over the third, and so on. This interlocking is what gives the seat its strength and stops individual strips rolling or shifting. Work from one side of the frame to the other, stretching and fixing each strip as you did before. Keep the weave neat and the strips flat, and give a final tug to each before you tack it home.

Finishing the Seat

Run your hand across the finished webbing. It should feel firm, even and free from hollow spots. If a strip is noticeably slack, lift its fixings and re-stretch it now rather than later. Trim any frayed ends so nothing pokes through the upholstery, then replace the hessian layer if your chair had one, stapling it lightly to the frame to protect the webbing and stop the filling working down between the strips.

If you are using elasticated webbing instead, you can skip the weaving. Fix it in parallel rows, stretched to about 85–90 per cent of its relaxed length — it should give slightly under your thumb but never bottom out against the frame. Clip or staple it according to the manufacturer's instructions and space the rows the same 50–75mm apart.

Finally, refit the seat pad or rebuild the upholstery over the fresh webbing. A chair re-webbed properly will serve comfortably for another decade or more, and you will notice the difference the moment you sit down.