Throughout the last couple of decades there has been very little interest in reupholstering furniture. As a society we’ve been stuck in the cycle of buy, dispose, buy again. In my design business I do very little reupholstery, at least until recently. 

The pandemic changed a lot of things about the way we live and the speed at which we are able to make changes to our home. With supply chain issues causing historically high delivery times we were forced to become creative about decorating our spaces. Instead of waiting up to 18 months for a new sofa, the option of reupholstering became a viable solution. 

I did just that for a recent client and the process and results were amazing. There are some really good reasons to consider reupholstery over buying new and I think this before and after will show you why you should explore the option if you’re thinking of replacing any upholstered pieces in your home.  

THE BENEFITS OF REUPHOLSTERING

1/ Save Time 

If you haven’t ordered any furniture since the pandemic began you might not be aware of the changes to timelines. Pre-pandemic it was possible to order most furniture and it could be delivered to you in 4-8 weeks for Canadian made goods. An order placed with an American vendor could be 6-12 weeks. Now it’s likely you’ll be waiting between 12-18 months at a minimum.

While upholstering an old piece used to be equivalent it’s now become much, much faster. As I order the fabric I’ll let my upholsterer know so that he’s ready to begin when it arrives. Generally if fabric is in stock it will arrive within 2 weeks. Another 2 weeks is what’s required for the pieces to be upholstered so in about a month you can have your finished piece ready to be brought back home. 

2/ Save Money 

Previously, reupholstering was financially equivalent or more to buying new. This became a deterrent for anyone who wanted to switch up their style and have a new look. Not to mention that your furniture pieces need to be well constructed in order to make reupholstering a viable option. Since the pandemic we’ve seen furniture prices rise so dramatically that reupholstering is now a less expensive option.

3/ Certainty in Your Design Plan 

Some of my clients are uncomfortable with viewing furniture plans, even when they’re 3D. In this case I recommend reupholstering the furniture they currently own. This allows them to feel confident knowing the size and scale of their furniture will work.

4/ Environmentally Friendly

As we become more and more aware of the issues around landfill we’re starting to embrace upholstery over buying new. We’ve been throwing away perfectly good furniture for so long. Many of my clients are happy to embrace a greener way of designing their home and reupholstery is at the top of the list for options.

5/ More Options 

One of my favourite benefits of reupholstering is that we’re not limited to the fabrics supplied by furniture manufacturers. Normally these manufacturers play it safe in terms of both colour and pattern options. They also tend to carry a lot of the same core fabrics. 

If you have been shopping for furniture recently you’ll know what I mean. You end up seeing the same fabrics with every vendor and it can be a bit limiting for someone who wants to be more creative. 

When you decide to reupholster you have unlimited options. I have an immense library of fabric books to explore. If you love bold colours or strong patterns, you’ll feel like a kid in a candy store looking through these books.

It’s a simple process to order the fabric and once I receive it I inspect it to make sure it has no flaws. That way there’s no surprises after the upholsterer has begun work.

A BEFORE & AFTER

The Clients

Last year I was hired by a wonderful couple who had previously owned an Ethan Allen store in Calgary. We used beautiful finishes in this home including marble tiles, large scale porcelain in the bathrooms and custom millwork throughout the home. The furniture needed to match the luxury aesthetic we were creating in the finishes.

Most of the upholstered pieces were from their store. Although they were many years old, the furniture was still in great condition. Rather than face long timelines for new orders we decided to explore the idea of reupholstery. 

The client was looking for something light and fresh and wanted to prioritize texture and pattern rather than colour. Another important consideration was the fabric needed to be easy to clean, particularly because of the light colour.

All of the furniture in the living room was still in wonderful condition. The homeowners loved the style and they felt comfortable knowing that these pieces fit perfectly into this room. We knew that a neutral palette was in order but since we were reupholstering we had limitless options when selecting the fabrics. 

The living room needed fabric for both the sofa and the wingback chairs. We started with the sofa and selected a beautiful textured stripe. A tone on tone stripe can sometimes feel underwhelming but this fabric also has a herringbone pattern so it comes to life and feels visually interesting.

The wingback chairs are quite large and we didn’t want a fabric that would make them look like they were dominating the space. Our initial selection was an out of stock blue fabric. My client had fallen in love with the colour but after an extensive search we decided to abandon the blue and pick a neutral pattern instead. We finally settled on a light colour with a raised animal print. The pattern on this gives enough texture and interest but the colour is understated. 

The client had lots of great accessories that we were able to include. We knew they worked with the scale of the furniture items like the mirrors and coffee/end tables provided contrast.

The Dining Room

If you’ve been shopping for dining furniture recently you know that chairs fall into one of these categories - comfortable with a very high price tag or reasonably priced but not a chair you could spend an evening sitting in. 

Right away we realized that we could upholster their existing dining chairs for less than new chairs and maintain the comfort level. It also gave us the opportunity to use this fun fabric that worked with the palette throughout the home. 

Since I had seen how much she loved the blue colour we opted for the cherry blossom fabric on the chairs in the dining room.

Another huge advantage of reupholstering is you can look for fabrics that are extremely durable. The dining chairs were upholstered in an indoor outdoor fabric from JF Fabrics. Now these homeowners can wipe up any spills rather than having to have the chairs professionally cleaned.

The Family Room

This room was undergoing a major facelift and while the homeowners sofas were still in good shape we decided to go for a custom sectional instead. The shape fit into the space better than the option of two sofas. 

We did manage to save the chairs and reupholster those in this beautiful mauve Mohair to match the sectional.

Making it All Work

The living and dining rooms open up to each other so we needed to find a way to tie the neutral living room to the blue in the dining room fabric. We went for a light coloured rug in the living room that included some of the blue from the cherry blossom fabric. 

The Verdict

This was such a fun project and I loved the challenge of matching the various colours and textures of all the fabrics. This was my first time playing with a tone-on-tone palette but I’m thrilled with how it turned out.

We had no issues along the way and the upholstery went off without any glitches. We did replace some of the foam seats which had deteriorated over time but that’s to be expected. The upholsterer was able to touch up the wood stain on the sofa and chairs so that they really do look like brand new pieces.

As for the clients, they loved the experience of being able to select fabrics that are unique and they won’t see in someone else’s home or a furniture showroom. This is truly a one-of-a-kind design and they love that we were able to achieve all of their goals for the space.

The Cost Involved in Upholstering

It’s important to note that upholstering a piece isn’t always less expensive and can be the equivalent cost to buying new. There’s the cost of the fabric which generally runs about $100-$175/yard. The only exception in our space was the mohair fabric for the wingback chairs. That is closer to $225/yard.

The cost of labour for the upholstering in the Cranbrook area is approximately $600-$700 for a chair and approximately $1,000 for a sofa.

My upholster and I have done more projects over the last few years than ever before. He has gone from doing commercial work, boat reupholstery and vintage cars to focusing almost exclusively on furniture. Until now the demand for furniture upholstery just hasn’t been there and he hasn’t seen this much activity in decades. 

One of factors driving this change is that millennials prefer unique pieces and they don't mind spending the money to source something they love and reupholster it. 

My older clients like this couple prefer what's familiar, knowing it fits in their home. They come from a generation where they prefer to repurpose rather than buy new. 

Funny how it all comes full circle. It appears the tide has turned and our appetite for continually replacing our furniture has been satiated and now we look to explore new options.

If you’re interested in finding out how I can help you with the reupholstering of your own furniture, contact me to discuss more. 

Warm regards,

Adrienne