Visit Stanton Furnishings & Interiors Website

Thursday, April 28, 2011

Throw out or recover?

I find my clients often face a dilemma when their sofas or armchairs start to look tired and worn and the springs are sagging.  They wonder whether to throw out and buy new or rejuvenate and update a well-loved piece.


My advice is that if an armchair or sofa is well built and comfortable then it is worth recovering.  Often to replace the piece to the same standard will cost more than to reupholster. 


One just has to drive around our suburbs on household rubbish collection days to see the folly of purchasing cheap furniture.  It may seem cheap at the time but it doesn't last.  (I won't get onto the topic of wasted resources and our throw away society!)


Here is a chair which was comfortable but dated:




And here is the chair recovered.  It is covered in a raw linen and the cushion fabric matches a Roman blind in the room.  The fabric is also linen, hand blocked from Galbraith & Paul.



Here is another armchair in a quite different style.  It sat in a corner of an apartment which was flooded with early morning sun and had faded badly.  My solution was to use a fabric designed for outdoor furniture:  fade resistant, tough and washable.

The old faded fabric




The recovered chair


This old chair was a much loved family heirloom which was recovered in a beautiful JAB cut velvet.  My client wanted the buttoned chair back changed and the result is a smarter look.





The recovered chair