Cleopatra - The Chesterfield Challenge Part 1

Hello Friends

Another interesting collaboration with Laura's Attic is currently on the trestles:

The client bought this authentic Chesterfield on Ebay for a bargain price and had it delivered straight to us.  In a few weeks she'll have a gorgeous new addition to her living room, a genuine vintage piece, renovated and updated to fit in exactly with her colour scheme.  She chose the fabric from Prints 'N' Plains in Ruthin who have a large selection of upholstery fabrics.

Laura and I took advantage of the recent hot spell to rip out the old coverings and stuffings but firstly, we had to choose a name!  Looking at the old fabric which definitely has an Egyptian theme we settled on Cleopatra.

Egyptian Fabric

It was HOT HOT HOT but we still had to wear face masks to avoid all the dust!

Health and Safety in Action

Cagney and Lacey  wanted to help out but just ended up sleeping in the shade.

We uncovered a old independent sprung edge created by lashing cane to the front springs - this makes it easier to get up from the sofa as the springs help to push you out.

Independent Sprung Edge


We removed hundreds of staples.....

and after a long, hot day of hard work we were down to the bare frame.......

and Laura was off to the tip with 12 bin bags full of old stuffing!

You'd never believe there was so much in it!

In part 2 you'll see us rebuild Cleopatra from the springs up.

If you're thinking about buying a new sofa, talk to us about having a old frame renovated - you'll be surprised how easy and cost effective it can be. 

Margaret - The Victorian Drop-Arm Sofa

Hello Friends

Allow me to introduce you to Margaret, the Victorian Drop-Arm Sofa

Margaret with her old, baggy clothes on.

I like to give the pieces I work on names so I can talk to them while I'm working....well...it's a lonely old job upholstery you know!  Margaret got her name because she's so heavy - the Iron Lady.

Margaret's owner has had her for over 40 years and she holds sentimental value.  However, she faced a dilemma.  She could buy a new sofa for less than it would cost to restore Margaret.  This is an issue that presents itself time and time again in my line of work.  With sofa's going out the doors of big warehouses for under £500 it's often cheaper to replace rather than re-cover.  However, that new sofa will last a fraction of the time a traditionally upholstered piece will last, so it's the old adage 'Buy cheap, buy twice'!

As you can see from the picture, Margaret was looking a bit worse for wear.  Her piping was ragged and her drop arm was looking decidedly saggy.  All in all she was ready for a makeover.

Things were not much better inside!  Springs were held together with shoelaces and there was a big crack in her frame.  Someone's been having a good old bounce on this sofa!

The best solution to this girl's problem is to start again from the beginning.

New stuffing for the arms

Nice new scrolls

Negotiating the mechanism of the drop arm was tricky - but I managed!

I'm so pleased the client decided to keep Margaret and bring her up to date.  She now has a solidly constructed, comfortable and stylish sofa that will last years and hold many memories.

Selling Chairs to Trendy Chorltonites

Hello Friends

Fellow Upholstress Laura from Laura's Attic invited me to join her at the Beech Road Festival in Chorlton this weekend and we had a gorgeous day for it!

Our very colourful stall

Before I started to specialise in traditional upholstery I bought several modern chairs to practice and experiment on so this was the perfect opportunity to give them the TLC they needed and find them new homes.

The trendy Chorltonites turned up in droves and almost emptied our stall!

Fresh lime, grey and cream combine to make this chair POP!

This little Parker Knoll chair sold to a lady who saw it, squealed, ran home and came back with a sample of her new wallpaper...it matched the chair exactly so she went home with the chair, a matching table and a big smile :)

This tapestry on hessian has a dusky pink colour match to the ottoman

This original Lloyd Loom by Lusty ottoman is also off to a new home....lots of people were interested during the day but it's a big piece to carry round!

My favourite sale of the day was this ornately carved kiddies chair to gorgeous little Talitha.  She doesn't look very happy in this picture but I can assure you, she was....she has great taste and she wanted everything!  The kiddies chairs were a great success - I only have two left!

Big thanks to Laura for inviting me along - maybe see you next year Chorlton :)