Around 150 terms in alphabetical order — included where they appear in the trade vocabulary, even where this book doesn't use them.
It's a lookup, not a read: use the letter links below or your browser's search. Where a term names a tool or material you can buy, there's a supplier link marked “(paid link)”; where it's covered in depth elsewhere on the site, there's a small cross-reference.
A
Antimacassar. A decorative cloth laid over the back of an armchair to protect the upholstery from hair oils; named after Macassar oil, a Victorian hair preparation.
Apron. The horizontal rail at the front of a chair seat, between the front legs.
Arm scroll. The curved or rolled front of an armchair's arm; a defining design feature.
Auction lot. A piece of furniture sold at auction; often the source of restoration commissions.
B
Backing patch. A small square of calico (about 50 mm) on the underside of a deep-buttoned panel, against which the button twine is anchored.
Bargello. A type of decorative stitchwork, sometimes used in traditional upholstery cushions.
Beech. A hardwood commonly used for traditional chair frames; strong, takes glue well, and accepts tacks.
Bias-cut. Fabric cut at 45° to the warp and weft grain; essential for welt strips that wrap around curves.
Blind stitch. A horizontal stitch passed through the side face of a stuffed pad without exiting the top, drawing the stuffing toward the rim.→ Stuffing
Bolster. A long cylindrical cushion, typically used at the head of a daybed or the side of a sofa.
Bottoming cloth. Black cloth tacked across the underside of a finished chair to hide the structural work.
Bridle ties. Loops of twine across the hessian, under which loose stuffing is tucked.→ Stuffing
Bun foot. A flat-bottomed, dome-shaped wooden foot, common on Chesterfields.
Buttoning. The decorative-and-structural technique of compressing the upholstery at marked points with cloth-covered buttons.
C
Calico. Plain, unbleached cotton cloth used as an under-cover before the show fabric is fitted. buy calico (paid link)
Calico mock-up. A trial fitting of the cover in cheap calico before committing to expensive show fabric.
Cambric. A light, closely-woven cotton or linen, sometimes used as a dust cover under cushions.
Cane. Woven rattan, sometimes used as a seat or back panel in lighter chairs.
Chesterfield. A deep-buttoned sofa with rolled arms equal in height to the back.→ Style guide
Coil spring. A cone-shaped wire spring used in traditional springing. buy coil springs (paid link)→ Traditional springing
Coir. Coconut-husk fibre, sometimes used as a stuffing material in budget work.
Cord. Decorative trim, similar to gimp but rope-like rather than woven flat.
Cotton felt. A loose, fluffy cotton wadding used between calico and top fabric.
Cresting. The decorative top edge of a chair back, often with carved show-wood.
Cresting rail. The top horizontal rail of a chair back.
Cushion. A loose padded element, removable and sometimes reversible.
D
Dacron. Polyester wadding, used for soft surfaces and cushion wraps; a brand name, now generic. buy Dacron wadding (paid link)
Deep buttoning. Buttoning where the buttons compress the pad significantly (25–40 mm dimples).
Diamond grid. The arrangement of buttons in offset rows, creating a diamond pattern of pleats.
Drop-in seat. A seat pad that lifts out of a wooden frame's rebate.
Drum stool. A round upholstered stool with turned legs.
Dust cover. A light cloth (cambric or similar) under cushions, to keep dust from the springs.
E
Easy chair. A general term for an upholstered armchair; the modern descendant of the seventeenth-century “easy chair” with stuffed seat and back.
Edge stitch. Stitches forming the firm edge of a stuffed pad; see blind stitch and top stitch.
Edwardian. British upholstery c. 1901–1910; light woods, refined proportions, often loose covers.
Ercol. A mid-twentieth-century British furniture maker; characteristic light-wood frames, often with elastic webbing.
F
Fabric grain. The direction of the warp threads in a woven fabric; matters for cutting and pattern matching.
Felt. Compressed wool or cotton fibre, used as a smoothing layer between calico and top fabric.
First stuffing. The structural layer of stuffing, formed into a rim by stitched edges.→ Stuffing
Float buttoning. Lighter buttoning where the buttons don't compress the pad significantly.
Foam. Polyurethane upholstery foam, sold by density (kg/m³) and thickness. buy foam (paid link)
Footstool. A small upholstered stool intended for resting the feet; see also pouffe.
French seam. A seam where the raw edge is enclosed inside the seam itself; a premium loose-cover finish.
Front rail. The horizontal rail at the front of a chair seat.
G
Gauge. Wire thickness (a lower number means thicker wire); 9-gauge is standard for seat coil springs.
Georgian. British upholstery c. 1714–1830; restrained design, often with show-wood and gimp trim.
Gimp. A decorative woven braid covering the join between fabric and show-wood. buy gimp (paid link)
Glue, hide. Animal-protein adhesive, used for traditional joinery on chair frames.
Glue, PVA. Modern wood adhesive, suitable for non-heritage frame repair.
H
Hammer, magnetic. A tack hammer with a magnetic face for picking up tacks one-handed. buy a magnetic hammer (paid link)
Hessian. Coarse jute cloth used as the spring-cover layer; 12 oz weight is standard. buy hessian (paid link)
Horsehair. Animal-hair stuffing; the gold-standard traditional material. buy horsehair (paid link)
Howard chair. A specific wing-back design from Howard & Sons, late Victorian.→ Style guide
I
Inside arm. The fabric panel facing inward toward the sitter on an armchair's arm.
Inside back. The fabric panel facing the sitter on the chair's back.
Italian feed. An obsolete term for sewing-machine feed; not relevant to modern upholstery.
J
Jute. A natural plant fibre used for webbing, hessian, and twine.
K
Kapok. Tree-fibre stuffing, sometimes used in cushions; less common today.
Knole. A specific settee design with hinged sides, originally from Knole House in Kent.→ Style guide
Knot, clove hitch. The knot used to secure laid cord around spring tops in eight-knot lashing.
Knot, slip. An adjustable knot used during buttoning, locked off with a square knot afterwards.
L
Laid cord. Twisted hemp cord used for spring lashing. buy laid cord (paid link)→ Traditional springing
Lashing. Tying spring heads together with laid cord in the eight-knot pattern.→ Traditional springing
Leather. Animal hide used as a show cover; sold by the hide (about 5 m²).
Linen. A natural fabric sometimes used for loose covers and upholstery.
Loose cover. A removable, washable cover that slips over an upholstered piece.
M
Magnetic hammer. See Hammer, magnetic.
Mattress twine. Strong waxed twine used for stitching, bridling, and buttoning. buy twine (paid link)
MDF. Medium-density fibreboard; used in modern factory frames, and not appropriate for heritage repair.
Mortise and tenon. A traditional woodworking joint used in heritage chair frames.
Moquette. A heavy pile fabric, often wool, used in traditional and transport upholstery.
N
Nail, decorative. A brass-headed nail used as a visible trim along leather and Chesterfield edges. buy decorative nails (paid link)
Nail, gimp. A tiny brass nail used to fix gimp braid where glue is inappropriate.
No-sag. A trade name for zigzag (sinuous) springs.→ Modern springing
Nylon webbing. Synthetic webbing; used in modern outdoor furniture but not in heritage work.
O
Ottoman. A low upholstered seat or footstool, often with a hinged top for storage.
Outside arm. The fabric panel on the outward-facing side of an armchair's arm.
Outside back. The fabric panel on the back of the chair, fitted last to cover all other panel edges.
P
Padding. A generic term for stuffing; usage varies between traditional and modern shops.
Pattern matching. Aligning a fabric's pattern repeat across panel boundaries.
Piping. See Welt.
Pleat. A fold of fabric, usually creating a clean line at a corner or between buttons.
Plywood. Engineered wood; used in modern factory frames and as headboard backings.
Pouffe. A soft, low upholstered seat without legs, often deep-buttoned.
Pratt's spring. The 1822 patented coil spring that created modern upholstery.→ History
R
Rail. A horizontal structural member of a chair frame.
Ratchet strainer. See Webbing strainer.
Rebate. A rectangular notch cut into a chair's seat rails to receive a drop-in pad.
Regulator. A long, needle-like tool used to ease stuffing into shape under scrim. buy a regulator (paid link)
Ripping chisel. A wide-bladed chisel used to lift tacks during stripping. buy a ripping chisel (paid link)→ Stripping
Roll edge. A defined, slightly raised edge along the front of a stuffed seat; see stitched edge.
Rolled arm. An armchair arm with a curved or scrolled front, characteristic of Chesterfields.
S
Scrim. Light hessian, used to cover the first stuffing before the edges are stitched. buy scrim (paid link)
Seat rail. The horizontal rail at the seat level of a chair frame; receives the webbing.
Second stuffing. The softer top layer of stuffing applied over the scrim-covered first stuffing.→ Stuffing
Show fabric. The visible top cover; the fabric the customer sees.
Show-wood. Visible polished or carved wood on a chair, where the upholstery doesn't extend.
Sinuous spring. See Zigzag spring.→ Modern springing
Skewer. A long pin used to hold the cover in place temporarily before tacking. buy skewers (paid link)
Slipcover. The American term for a loose cover.
Spring clip. A stamped-steel U-bracket that fixes zigzag springs to a rail.→ Modern springing
Spring-up. The compressed working height of lashed coil springs.
Squab. A loose seat cushion; an archaic term, occasionally used.
Staple gun. A pneumatic or manual tool that drives staples; standard for modern construction. buy a staple gun (paid link)
Stiles. The vertical members of a chair back frame.
Stitched edge. The structurally-stitched front rim of a traditional first stuffing.→ Stuffing
Stuffing. A generic term for the material that fills upholstery; usually horsehair, foam, or coir.
Stuffover. A chair where the upholstery wraps over the seat rails, rather than sitting in a rebate.
T
Tack, fine. A small (6–8 mm) upholstery tack with a small head, used where the head will be visible.
Tack, regular. A standard 13 mm upholstery tack, used for most structural tacking. buy tacks (paid link)
Tack hammer. See Hammer, magnetic.
Tacking rail. A rail to which the upholstery is tacked; usually a seat or back rail.
Tape, jute. See Webbing.
Top cover. See Show fabric.
Top stitch. A through-stitch along the top edge of a stuffed pad, locking the rim shape.→ Stuffing
Trade supplier. A wholesaler selling materials to the upholstery trade at lower prices than retail.
Trim. Decorative finishing work — gimp, welt, nails, and so on.
Tufted. Buttoned with regular spacing; the buttons may sit on a separate tufted sub-panel.
Twine, mattress. See Mattress twine.
U
Underside. The bottom face of a chair, covered with a bottoming cloth.
Upholsterer's needle. A long, curved needle used for stitching pads and edges. buy needles (paid link)
Upholstery. The craft of fitting padding, springs, and cover to a chair frame.
V
V-cut. A V-shaped notch cut into a cover panel to fit around a back stile.
Velvet. A piled fabric with a characteristic light-reflection direction; needs careful pile-direction handling.
Victorian. British upholstery c. 1837–1901; deep buttoning, heavy materials, many design variants.
W
Wadding. Soft fibrous material between calico and show fabric; cotton felt or Dacron.
Walking-foot machine. An industrial sewing machine used for upholstery; the foot moves with the fabric.
Webbing. Strong woven strap (jute, in 50 mm width) used as the bottom support of a seat. buy webbing (paid link)→ Webbing
Webbing strainer. A bat-shaped tool for tensioning webbing strands during fitting. buy a webbing strainer (paid link)
Welt. A fabric-wrapped cord sewn into a seam for reinforcement and decoration.
Wing. The vertical or sloped panel rising from the arm-back junction on a wing-back.
Wing-back. An armchair with vertical wings rising to nearly back-height.→ Style guide
Worshipful Company of Upholsterers. The London livery company that has governed the upholstery trade since 1465.
Z
Zigzag spring. A sinuous wire spring used in modern factory upholstery.→ Modern springing
Zip. A modern fastening for cushion covers; standard YKK #5 or equivalent.
Vocabulary in hand, you can speak the trade's language. The next chapter is the materials reference — every material this book mentions, with its specifications, costs, and trade-supplier guidance.