Danish cord chair weaving: how to weave a paper cord seat
The short answer
Danish cord is hard-twisted paper cord, the seat on many Danish design chairs. It’s woven in one of two ways. Chairs with small L-shaped nails on the inside of the rails get a flat weave: first a warp from front to back, hooked over the nails, then a weft woven from side to side. Chairs without nails, like the Wishbone Chair and the J39, usually get the rush pattern, woven corner by corner.
Use the same thickness as the old seat (3 mm or 3.5 mm), let the cord rest at room temperature before you start, and keep the tension even from the first row to the last.
- Material
- Paper cord, 3 or 3.5 mm
- Two weaves
- Flat weave on L-nails, or the rush pattern
- Level
- Beginner
- Free videos
- CH25 seat and back, in full
What Danish cord is
Danish cord, papirgarn in Danish, is paper twisted hard into a cord. It sounds fragile, but woven tight it makes a seat that’s comfortable, slightly springy and lasts for many years. It became common in Denmark around the war years, when other seat materials were hard to get, and designers like Hans J. Wegner and Børge Mogensen made it part of the chairs we still weave today.
It isn’t one weave, though. Before you buy anything, find out which of the two your chair has.
Flat weave or rush pattern?
Turn the chair over and look at the inside of the rails.
| Flat weave (planflet) | Rush pattern (kuvertflet) | |
|---|---|---|
| Look for | Small L-shaped nails on the inside of the rails | No nails; the cord is wrapped around the rails |
| The seat | A flat, even weave of straight rows | Four triangles meeting in the middle |
| Chairs | Niels O. Møller’s dining chairs (made by J.L. Møller), Wegner’s CH25 | Wegner’s Wishbone Chair (CH24), Mogensen’s J39 |
| Guide | This page | Wishbone Chair and rush pattern guides |
If your chair has the rush pattern, go to the Wishbone Chair guide or the rush pattern guide. The rest of this page is about the flat weave on L-nails.
What you need
Rule of thumb: always use the same thickness as the original seat. If in doubt, measure the old cord before you cut it away.
Materials
- Paper cord, 3 mm or 3.5 mm the same thickness as the old seat. Sold in rolls of about 150 m or 625 m; buy enough for the whole seat.
- L-nails (angle nails) also called hook nails. We use 2 × 20 mm with a 9.5 mm angle. Only to replace bent or loose ones.
Tools
- A good knife
- Clamps to hold the tension while you work or take a break.
- A weaving needle for the last rows, where there’s little room.
- A small hammer and pliers for straightening, removing and setting L-nails.
- A flat stick to push the rows tight together.
How to weave a flat Danish cord seat
The order we follow in the workshop. You can watch every step on a CH25 in our free videos: warp first, then the weave.
Step 1: Photograph and remove the old seat
Photograph the old seat from above and below: how many cords lie side by side in each group, and how the weft goes over and under them. That’s your pattern. Then cut the old cord away, and lift it off the L-nails.
Step 2: Check the nails and the frame
Straighten bent L-nails and replace any that are loose or missing, so every hook can take the strain. Glue loose joints and sand away sharp edges while the seat is off.
Step 3: Lay the warp from front to back
Fasten the cord at the first nail, then wrap it around the front and back rails, cord tight against cord, and hook it over the L-nails on the inside of the rail as you go. The nails hold each group in place and keep the tension, so the warp doesn’t slide.
Keep every cord equally tight. A slack cord in the warp shows as a dip in the finished seat.
On a seat that’s narrower at the back, the groups sit closer together on the back rail than on the front. Follow the spacing of the old nails.
Step 4: Weave the weft from side to side
Now weave across the warp: over and under the groups of warp cords, following your photo of the old seat, then around the side rail and hooked over the nails there. The pattern comes from shifting where you go over and under every few rows.
Step 5: Push every row tight
After each row, push it firmly against the last one with a flat stick, so the rows run straight and close. Check from the front now and then that they’re still parallel to the front rail.
Step 6: Add cord where it won’t show
Work with a length you can handle, and make every join underneath or at the nails, never on the top of the seat. Plan ahead so a join doesn’t land in the middle of a visible row.
Step 7: Finish the last rows
The last rows are the tightest. Use the weaving needle to pull the cord through, and fasten the end on a nail on the inside of the rail. Then turn the chair over and check: even rows, no slack cords, and every nail covered.
Mistakes we often see
The wrong thickness
The rows won’t fit the nails or the pattern. Use the thickness of the original seat.
Uneven tension in the warp
Every slack cord becomes a dip in the seat. Pull each wrap equally tight before you hook it over the nail.
Weaving over bent nails
A bent or loose nail lets go under load, and the seat goes slack. Fix the nails before you start.
Joins on top
Knots on the visible side wear and catch. Keep every join underneath or at the nails.
Cleaning with water
Paper cord doesn’t tolerate much moisture. Dust it with a soft brush, and dab a spill with a barely damp cloth.
Questions we get a lot
Is Danish cord the same as paper cord?
Yes. Danish cord is twisted paper cord, papirgarn in Danish. It’s the same material on the Wishbone Chair, the J39 and the Møller chairs; the weave and the thickness differ.
3 mm or 3.5 mm?
Whatever the chair had. As a rule, 3 mm on finer, denser weaves such as the Wishbone Chair, and 3.5 mm on sturdier seats such as Mogensen’s J39.
How much cord do I need?
A dining chair with the rush pattern takes about 150 m. A 625 m roll does about four such chairs. Lounge chairs like the CH25 take much more, so buy for the whole job to avoid extra joins.
What does it cost to have it done instead?
At the Kurvemagerne workshop in Denmark (2026 prices, incl. VAT): a new flat weave on selected Niels O. Møller chairs from DKK 1,500, and a new seat on the CH25 from DKK 3,000.
Weave your Danish cord seat with us
The Danish cord course takes you from bare frame to finished seat: preparing the frame, setting up the warp with L-nails and weaving the pattern row by row, so the seat ends up tight and lasts for years.