Converting cloth interior into leather

I probably would be cheaper to go with a good leather kit like katzkin ( www.katzkin.com).  I dont know what make/model car you have, but there are many different ways to attach material to the foam on the seat.  If it is a newer car, then it they probably used velcro on the seams.  If older, maybe glued and hogrings.  To replace the cloth with leather on your seats it will go something like this.  Get the leather from somewhere and try to find some vinyl to match it.  You don't want to cover the entire seat (front and back) with leather.  That would cost $$$ money.  You will need some good glue (preferrably with an air tank), 1/4--1/2 foam, an industrial size sewing machine, some good thread, pack of razor blades, and a sharpie.  First, remove your seats and take the factory covers off.  Using a SHARP razor, cut the factory cloth at the seams until you have no more seams.  Then you will trace the cut off pieces onto the leather, keeping in mind where they go. Glue the backed foam to the leather.  The best way to do this is to use plenty of heat.  Have someone stretching the leather while you are applying the backed foam so the leather wont wrinkle when it cools. Now cut out the shapes with the SHARP razor until you have all of them for one seat.  Start sewing them together using tons of thread along the seams that attach to the velcro.  Get all the pieces for the top and bottom of the seat and then slide back over the foam, making sure all the lines are straight with each other.  You can change the style of the seams (tuck/roll, french seam, etc) for styling reasons.  After you are done with one seat, move onto the next seat.  Also keep in mind that some armrests are injected molded, meaning the factory slid the cover over the metal in the armrest and injected the foam into it to give you the shape.  That is a pain to do. 

You can go thru all this, or you can call katzkin and tell them what color and you will have it in about 6 days.  Installation is fairly simple.  Best of luck to you.

Go to www.autoleathers.com, they are the authorized site for Katzkin.  Call them and they will give you a price.  The prices are usually pretty good considering you are getting a great leather kit.   Not having a sewing machine isn't a huge problem??  You will have carpel tunnel syndrome after you get through hand stitching all those seams!!  I have seen them on Ebay a few times for pretty cheap.  You might look there for a little while if you really want to do it yourself. 

Do you know what a hog ring is...? It's the small metal "rings" used to hold the seat covers on.  You cannot do this cheaper yourself....it will take you forever to sew your own seat covers. Plus you will need to destroy your old covers for patern's.  Cowhyde sells by the square foot. an average hyde is 60 sq ft. @ 8 to 12 bucks a square......are you good at math? The katzkin kits are the ONLY way to go unless you got a friend in the upholstery business.

They sell a self-installation kit for $99. Is it really necessary? Don't I just pull it over the seats? You remove the stock seat covers first then recover the seat cushions with the new leather. The extra 99.00 bucks for the install help will make the job TONS easier....