What lies beneath the fabric?
Many people think that upholstery is simply replacing the fabric; the truth is we actually strip back and re-build the piece of furniture. The product you receive at the end of its journey has basically been re-born. There are several stages to rebuilding any piece. This process takes time and is very labour intensive and is primarily achieved with experience, a few tools and hard work using your hands.
I thought it would be interesting to share a recent journey of a client’s antique sofa transformation with beautiful oak framework and scrolled detailing on the front – thought to originate from the Edwardian period. Here are some of the stages which will take you below the surface.
Design & consultation
Before we start any work on a piece of furniture we will have a consultation with you to understand your design needs and wants. It’s good for us to see the piece in person but if not possible pictures. Like we did for our client Barbara. She was refurbishing their snug/study which had a ‘smoking room’ theme with rich dark colours – a warm comfortable room to relax in the winter months.
She had done some research before our meeting and had a good idea of what they were looking for. They selected a beautiful fabric from Warwick sequoia range which we used in the reupholstery of their sofa, along with a contrasting wool piping from Linwood Lana range.
The transformation
We arranged collection & delivery of the sofa from our clients home. The sofa is stripped back to the frame by Ian. He’s repaired & strengthened some of the joints. The sofa rebuild starts with the seat, then inside arms, then the inside back.
We got Barbara back mid build to test out the comfort of the seat & back before we finished. We had discussed this at the design meeting as it had been uncomfortable. All signed off we finished off the arms & outside back. I think you will agree it looks completely transformed from the original. We love it even more when clients send pictures of it in situ, it’s been teamed with one of other wing back chair creations
So why bother with upholstery?
-You get to give your favourite piece of furniture a new lease of life, a new identity that you can decide on.
-Your piece of furniture will be one a kind like no other
-You and your family can cherish and enjoy your furniture for many years to come
-You are recycling and making use of old rather than buying new.
As a small family run business we will ensure you receive a truly personal service, be it for your own home or business. If you have a piece of furniture that deserves a new lease of life then we can be trusted with the transformation. If you wish to find out more and to discuss your requirements, then we would be delighted to hear from you, book a consultant or complete the quote form. We love our creations and we hope you will too.
