How to reupholster a couch with attached cushions? (grr)
 

So four years ago I bought a microfiber couch, not realizing it had attached seat cushions or that microfiber is pretty much not cleanable. And I've tried everything, believe me.

It's time to cover it (although it would be much easier to buy new furniture but I still have messy people and animals at home) but because the seat cushions are attached to the sides of the couch and don't come out, I have no idea how to recover them. I'd like to do something neater than tossing a sheet over them, or making a giant slip cover, but have no idea where to start.

The cushions actually have a zipper in the back - one of which is broken and I cannot rezip - so its design concept has escaped me.

If anyone has any ideas on how this thing comes apart or how I can recover it (or from it, haha) I would LOVE to hear them.

attached to the sides of the sofa, not on the bottom. well my idea just went out the window. i was going to say cover each seat and have elastic around the edges to go over the seat areas. Can you attach a photo?

Get rid of it and buy leather...and threaten those messy people with pain if they don't behave and forbid animals on furniture....maybe a new lifestyle, but better in a long run.......worked for me...going on 8 yrs now with leather......no food near furniture, and pets on their own beds on floor!

What you have to do is sew the cushions with the front band as one big unit. Next sew some pulls onto the sides and back. Stuff the cushions and get them how you want them to look. Attach the whole thing to the deck and frame of the sofa. Recover the inside back, arms, then the sides and finally the back. Flip the sofa over and attach the dust cover (the fabric looks like weed fabric for the garden) on and you are done.


Does the sofa have attached back pillows or separate throw pillows? If they are attached the back pillow cushions are done the same way. as the seat

We have microfiber couches and they are cleanable. The easiest way I have found to do it is to use just a few drops of Dawn dishwashing soap in water and a drill. Seriously! The 4" or 5" white drill brush from this website works great, assuming you have a drill at home it will fit:
http://www.drillbrush.com/soft-white/

You may need a stack of white cloths too to pick up loosened dirt (depending on how dirty the sofa is). I get those at Walmart. Instead of Dawn, a foaming upholstery cleaner would probably work very well with the drill bit too.

Edit: Here are a couple of Youtube videos that show how it works.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yNmCb96uF1g
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cVKlObA1QGY

You might also check out You Tubes on how to clean suede. I didn't keep the link, but there was a vid of a man cleaning a light colored sofa...not hard, just time consuming and you have to use a light touch.

I have used Capture cleaner, available at Sears on almost everything in the house; it is cheap and it works. Just follow directions.

I have a Bissell carpet cleaner with an upholstery attachment. I used the carpet cleaning soap and warm water and my microfiber couch came clean. I also have fur kids, grandkids, and a husband that all like to use the couch as a lounger, dining room table and play mat. I've had vomit, juice, milk, wine, peanut butter you name it on the couch and it comes clean luckily. I also bought some "scotch guard" like stuff from Home Depot and sprayed it not the couch. I think it has some silicone type stuff in it to make it less likely to absorb moisture. When the grandkids grow up I'll have to retrain the pets and hubby and then get a new couch.

I woke up this morning thinking that the only thing I didn't try was laundry soap, so using an old washcloth with warm water, I poured laundry soap on the washcloth and rubbed it into the loveseat. It is now almost dried and I can see that for the most part, it worked! On the other loveseat I sprayed Shout! - hadn't thought of that either - and that also worked, but not as well, and the scent is a bit overwhelming, so I'll stick with my All.

To all: I have tried dish soap, upholstery cleaner, rug cleaner, Kids-n-Pets, baking soda and water, and shampoo.

To Chasing Hawk: everything is sewn together. It's almost like this giant suit was made, stuffed with foam and batting, then pulled tightly over a frame. The cushions are sewn together then sewn to the back of the sofa, the sides are sewn to the sides of the couch and the bottoms are sewn to the bottoms. It's crazy. I did take pictures but since I was able to clean them, I won't post. Thank you though.

I HAD a micro couch ---After looking at ulpholstering fabric to redo it then comparing prices on a new couch it came out that fabric was $50 cheaper -so I checked to see what a shop would cost to redo it- With my fabric labor would run $200 to $250- I bought a new couch. Made sure it had detachable seat cushions-always wash these inside out on gentle with Dawn in cold water and the water level is set for a large load to give them lots of room to swish and this helps to retain their shape and I never throw them in the dryer. I made several pairs of arm protectors from some rubber backed curtains for extra protection and they are long enough to tuck into the area where the TV remote always hides this extra length keeps them in place.