How long does it take? 

We ask clients to expect 4 - 6 weeks to complete a project. We don’t “re-cover” furniture. We completely reupholster it, stripping each piece down to the frame and rebuilding. When you receive your furniture back it will be a new piece of furniture, with new components, built on your existing frame and (if possible) original, rebuilt springs.

First We Strip!

No. Not that kind of stripping. Though we strip, WE remain fully clothed – the furniture gets naked!  It’s important the furniture is stripped down to the bare frame components. This allows us to inspect and make repairs as needed, and to inspect and re-tie the springs. 
Depending on the size and complexity of the piece, stripping the furniture can take a day or even more. We remove every tack, every staple, and every bit of padding. If it’s a unique piece of furniture even more care is involved in stripping so we can make note of unique design elements, photographing as we go. If the old fabric may be needed for a template, even more care and time is required to strip a piece.

Repair -

It is not unusual to find cracked or broken frame elements inside a piece of furniture. Once the furniture is stripped, we repair these pieces as necessary. For furniture that has been reupholstered multiple times, filling old staple and tack holes may be needed to shore up the integrity of the piece. 

Foundations-

Though not every piece has springs, every piece has a foundation. Once the furniture piece is stripped, cleaned, and repaired as needed we rebuild the foundation. This can take the form of retying springs, or for a piece without springs (e.g. an ottoman or some dining chairs) it takes the form of rebuilding the jute web foundation that creates the seating structure. Depending on the size of the piece and the number of springs this can take a couple hours, or a couple days. This happens before the upholstery process can begin.

Matching prints and plaids - 

One hallmark of a quality upholstery job is matching prints and plaids. If you choose a fabric with a large pattern you can expect it to take up to 20% more fabric to allow for pattern matching. The pattern on a piece should flow seamlessly from one component to another whenever possible: seat, to seat back, to arms, to skirt. (See photos - Penelope plaid chair, red floral sofa) It takes time and expertise to achieve this kind of pattern match. Pattern match is a hallmark of care and attention to detail. 

What’s with the Brass Buttons?  

On each piece we upholster we leave a shop “Easter egg” in the form of a small, single, vintage brass button. Because we use vintage brass buttons, they’re not all the same. Often the brass buttons are located on the back, on a corner, or in a hidden area. Where did you find yours?

Why do you name furniture?

It’s expedient. Currently I’m working on a pair of chairs. Though these chairs are similar, they are not quite identical because they were created by human beings. Humans introduce a delightful level of variance into what we build. The human touch that originally created your furniture, by hand or in a factory, introduced some subtle variances, even in seemingly identical pieces. Those variances become apparent when a chair is stripped down to the frame. We sometimes find one component is ¼” longer than a component on a similar chair, or a support piece is in a slightly different location in one chair than the other. Though I could call these chairs chair A and chair B referring to them Elsie and Everett is more expedient and more fun. Secondly, referring to a piece as “Mary’s plaid club chair” is unwieldy. It is much easier to call her Penelope. Finally, every piece of furniture I’ve upholstered has its own personality and its own quirks. I admit to talking to furniture as I’m working with it, and yes, some pieces are more cooperative than others! So, when you bring me your furniture, tell me its name, or I’ll name it for you. ;-)