Upholstery Services
From much-loved family pieces to treasured heirlooms and design classics
Reach Out…
..to our friendly team to talk through how we can help!
With many years of experience in furniture restoration: traditional and modern upholstery techniques, we take great care in bringing every piece that comes through our doors back to life.
We always recommend the most appropriate restoration approach for the age, style, and condition of your furniture and where suitable, suggest cost‑effective upholstery options to suit different budgets, along with eco‑friendly and sustainable material alternatives.
Whatever your upholstery needs, we’re here to help—and we genuinely love every kind of project.
Traditional & modern upholstery
Generally speaking, traditional upholstery techniques (no foam) are used on furniture made before 1950 (depending on the style). Modern techniques are used on furniture made after 1950. The processes involved in traditional upholstery generally take longer: re-building a chair’s structure with webbing, springs, hessian, coir, horsehair and twine. The method of modern upholstery is a quicker and usually more cost-effective process, using foam*, staples and modern materials to refresh and reshape furniture. The method we use will depend on the period of your piece.
*FOAM is not eco-friendly due to its non-biodegradability and reliance on non-renewable resources. It can take hundreds of years to decompose, contributing to pollution in landfills and natural eco-systems. However, there are eco-friendly alternative to foam such as biodegradable foams made from materials like polyactic acid (PLA) and natural latex, which are derived from renewable resources and are more sustainable. We can go through the various options with you.
What does upholstery involve?
The term “re‑upholstery” refers to fully renewing the inner materials of a piece, such as stuffing, springs, felt, or foa; often stripping the furniture back to its original frame. “Re‑covering” involves replacing only the top layer of fabric. The level of work required depends on the condition of the furniture frame. A simple re‑cover can instantly refresh the look of your piece, while repairing and rebuilding the internal structure will significantly improve its comfort, durability, and long‑term performance.
Fabrics
You don’t need to be one of our upholstery clients to purchase fabric from us. We stock an extensive collection of upholstery fabric sample books, with options to suit a wide range of styles and budgets. If you’d like to book an appointment to browse our samples, simply get in touch.
For clients, we provide a detailed estimate that includes the amount of fabric required for your project. Keep this in mind when making your selection.
We also have an ever‑changing stash of fabric remnants in a variety of sizes, available for customers, the general public and upholstery students to browse and buy on the spot. The remnants come from a wide range of renowned and trusted fabric companies (Bute, Linwood, Designer’s Guild, ILIV, etc). If you don’t need much fabric, this is a very cost-effective source of fabric. Visit us to browse and, hopefully, buy!
Upholstery tools & supplies
We sell a wide range of upholstery tools and supplies to help you carry out your own traditional or modern upholstery projects at home. You can order essentials such as springs, webbing, hessian, calico, tacks, decorative nails, coir fibre, piping cord, twine, and laid cord.
Our tool selection includes: ripping chisels, curved needles, regulators, magnetic hammers, mallets, and double‑pointed upholstery needles. Everything you need to work confidently and professionally.
To place an order, please call us on 07554 064027.
Traditional & modern upholstery
Generally speaking, traditional upholstery techniques are usually used on furniture made before 1950. Modern techniques are used on furniture made after 1950. The processes involved in traditional upholstery generally take longer: re-building a chair’s structure with webbing, springs, hessian, coir, horsehair and twine. The method of modern upholstery is a quicker and usually more cost-effective process, using foam, staples and modern materials to refresh and reshape furniture. The method we use will depend on the period of your piece.
What does upholstery involve?
The term “re-upholstery” refers to replacing the inners (e.g. stuffing, springs, felt, foam), usually stripping furniture back to its original frame. “Re-covering” involves replacing the top layer of fabric only. The work required will depend on the condition of the furniture frame. A simple re-cover will refresh the look of your furniture, whilst repairing and rebuilding the overall structure will ensure the longevity of your furniture.
Fabrics
We have an extensive collection of fabric sample books that will suit a range of budgets. If you would like to make an appointment to come and browse, please feel free to contact us. When we provide you with an estimate, we include how much fabric you will need. Bear this in mind when choosing your fabric. Click below to read our fabric buying guide and see recommended suppliers. We also have an ever-changing stash of fabric remnants in varying sizes that customers and upholstery students can come and browse (and buy there and then!).
Upholstery tools & supplies
We sell a range of tools and supplies to undertake your own traditional and modern upholstery at home. You can order springs, webbing, hessian, calico, tacks, decorative nails, coir fibre, piping cord, twine, laid cord, etc. Tools include ripping chisels, curved needled, regulators, magnetic hammers, mallets, double-pointed upholstery needles. Please call us to place an order on 0117 924 3355
Next Steps…
- Photos: please email us some photos of the piece of furniture you would like restored or call us for a chat.
Photo guidelines: front, back and sides | cushions on/off (if applicable) | close-ups of any obvious repairs needed. We can usually provide an estimate of costs from photos. If you would like eco-friendly upholstery materials / fabrics, please mention this in your email. We can make bespoke eco-friendly (foam-free) upholstery cushion inners on request. - For more complicated jobs (e.g. if major repairs are needed to the frame) and more unusual pieces, we may need to arrange a home visit.
- The estimate we send to you will include recommended work, methods and the amount of fabric required.
- Once you are happy to proceed, we will request a 15% deposit to add you to our waiting list.
- We then notify you when we are ready to begin work on your furniture and will request a further payment of 50% and the cost of fabric (if you are ordering through us).
- On completion, the outstanding 35% payment is required. Our payment terms help you to spread the cost of the job over a period of time.