How to Clean Bar Stools: Care for Steel, Oak, Leather, Velvet and Bouclé

Start with the frame, then the seat. Wipe steel and oak frames with a dry or lightly damp microfibre cloth and dry them straight away. For the seat, wipe vegan leather clean; blot velvet and bouclé and vacuum them. Test any cleaning method on a hidden area first, and never use abrasive pads or strong solvents.

The table gives the method for each material. Most of the time, a weekly wipe and a quick response to spills is all a stool needs.

Wipe it with a dry or lightly damp cloth and dry it straight away; add a drop of mild washing-up liquid for grease. Powder coating is hard and non-porous, so dirt stays on the surface. Avoid abrasive pads, scouring powder, metal polishes and strong solvents, which dull or scratch the finish.

The footrest collects the most marks from shoes; a damp cloth removes them without harming the coating. Indoors, an intact powder coat protects the steel from rust, so simply dry off any standing water. Our guide to powder-coated steel explains why the finish is so easy to keep.

Wipe it with a dry or lightly damp cloth, following the grain, and dry it at once. Our oak is sealed with a matt lacquer, so it never needs oiling or waxing. Wipe spills quickly rather than letting water stand, and avoid silicone polishes and abrasive cleaners, which cloud or strip the lacquer.

Keep oak stools away from direct contact with radiators, where very dry heat can open fine cracks in any solid wood, and do not put hot or wet items straight onto a wooden seat. If a lacquered surface is ever deeply scratched after years of use, it can be sanded and relacquered. See our oak bar stools guide.

Wipe it with a cloth dampened in lukewarm water with a little mild soap, then dry it straight away with a clean cloth. Our vegan leather is treated to resist stains, so most spills and fingerprints lift easily. It does not need conditioning and will not dry out like animal leather.

Avoid solvents, alcohol-based cleaners and leather conditioners made for animal hides, which can damage the surface. For a stubborn mark, repeat the mild soap method rather than using anything stronger. Our upholstery guide explains why vegan leather is the most practical seat.

Blot spills immediately with a clean, dry cloth, working from the outside in, and never rub. Vacuum both fabrics now and then with an upholstery nozzle; brush velvet gently in one direction to lift pressure marks. For a mark that remains, dab with a cloth dampened in lukewarm water and a little mild soap, then blot dry.

Avoid soaking, hot water, bleach and strong detergents, and do not scrub bouclé with a brush, which can pull the loops. Our velvet has a water-repellent finish, which gives you time to blot. For a stubborn stain on a light colour, a professional upholstery cleaner is the safest choice. See bouclé bar stools and velvet bar stools.

Fit felt pads under the feet. They stop metal and wooden feet scratching wood, stone and tiled floors, make the stools slide quietly, and are cheap to replace. Check them a couple of times a year and replace them when they wear thin or pick up grit, which would otherwise scratch the floor.

We sell felt furniture pads with a nail-in fixing that stays put on busy stools, and plastic feet for harder use. Clean the floor under the stools regularly too, since grit trapped under a pad is what does the damage. See the furniture pads in our shop.

Wipe frames and wipe-clean seats once a week, and deal with spills the moment they happen. Vacuum fabric seats every week or two in a busy kitchen, and check the felt pads twice a year. That routine is enough to keep stools looking new for years.

On Freja and Svea, the cushion is fixed with two screws and can be replaced if a seat has been through too much, so a worn seat does not mean a new stool. Our care advice page covers the rest of our furniture.