Upholsterer
Quick Facts
Median Salary$44,489
Most Common EducationHigh school or GED
Projected 10-Year Growth+4.11%
Assessment MatchTake the Assessment
What They Do
An Upholsterer designs and sews fabric and materials and applies upholstery to furniture or to seats in automobiles, planes, or trains.
Core Tasks:
- Fit, install, and secure material on frames, using hand tools, power tools, glue, cement, or staples.
- Measure and cut new covering materials, using patterns and measuring and cutting instruments, following sketches and design specifications.
- Build furniture up with loose fiber stuffing, cotton, felt, or foam padding to form smooth, rounded surfaces.
- Read work orders, and apply knowledge and experience with materials to determine types and amounts of materials required to cover workpieces.
- Make, restore, or create custom upholstered furniture, using hand tools and knowledge of fabrics and upholstery methods.
- Examine furniture frames, upholstery, springs, and webbing to locate defects.
- Adjust or replace webbing, padding, or springs, and secure them in place.
- Sew rips or tears in material, or create tufting, using needles and thread.
- Remove covering, webbing, padding, or defective springs from workpieces, using hand tools such as hammers and tack pullers.
- Attach fasteners, grommets, buttons, buckles, ornamental trim, and other accessories to covers or frames, using hand tools.
- Repair furniture frames and refinish exposed wood.
- Interweave and fasten strips of webbing to the backs and undersides of furniture, using small hand tools and fasteners.
What to expect as an Upholsterer
1Earn a High school or GED Diploma
36% of people achieve this level of education.
2Gain skills and experience
See Upholsterer related courses on Tallo
3Land a job
848 openings for Upholsterers
Career Progression
in United States (Nation)
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