Chair seats are either upholstered–padded or sprung, drop-in or overstuffed, or left as plain wood, cane-worked or stretched fabric. Seat pads–squabs–sit upon hard surfaces to make life more comfortable.
The lasting chair styles are the ones that work–both in terms of looks and comfort. However comfortable a chair is, if it’s ugly it won’t sell, and the most beautiful, uncomfortable chair will only be bought if it makes a corner look good. Whilst there are many styles of chairs and from every period, there are only a few seating styles
Upholstering a chair seat requires less than a meter of fabric, even as little as a quarter, so it makes sense to invest in the best quality you can afford to jointly realise a chair that gives the greatest pleasure for the longest length of time. Any fabric at all can be used.