As you will no doubt of picked up on by now from our social media posts and portfolio you can see that Morris Molloy, as Interior Designers do love a bit of re-upholstery. Why? Because we love being able to provide something for our clients that has been designed not just sourced and becomes a unique piece, never to be seen in the shops or online. It allows us to really get creative (if that’s what the client wants) and helps to create that overall ‘WOW FACTOR’ Interior Designed finish that we all love.
You may have noticed when you walk into any swanky bar or restaurant the chairs or bar stools are often what blow you away and this is because they are unique and the fabrics have been carefully selected to create a cohesive often theme driven Interior.
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“I like the idea of re-upholstering my furniture but where do I start?”
There are several questions to ask yourself when deciding whether to recover or replace- jot all your thoughts down to see them as a whole picture, like doing a pro’s & con’s list.
Using an interior design service such us ours, we can help you realise what the benefits are of re-upholstery versus buying new, we will help you come to the right decision by raising the questions that you need to ask yourself, we will take you through the whole process to help you to decide what really is best for you.
Our approach is to always work closely with each client to understand their passion and own style whilst at the same time considering the essence of the space that we are working with, we will help you to decide and envisage how your existing furniture (with a new interior designed look) could work in the space or if buying new is definitely required then we will suggest and source a style that might fit the space better than your existing pieces currently do.
The Pro’s of Re-upholstering:
Reupholstering an existing piece might be a no brainer if your old furniture is looking a little worse for wear, does not go with your current or desired interior but you simply can’t bear the thought of parting with it.
There may be sentimental value, you most likely love the comfort, the size is perfect, it is of high quality craftmanship the only thing wrong is that it is looking a little shabby around the edges and could do with some tlc, maybe some extra filling to plump up the cushions once more.
In a lot of cases it is very possible that a sofa or much loved chair that you bought several years ago is of better quality than a mass produced one these days.
In this day and age more than ever we are all thinking of ways to live that can be beneficial for the environment, how we can reduce our impact on global warming when we reuse rather than replace, this in turn helps to save trees and forests as fewer materials are used. By reusing we can also reduce carbon emissions by avoiding buying new when it is not always necessary.
Timing might be a factor – deliver timescales on a new furniture may outweigh the shorter length of time to reupholster your existing sofa.
Perhaps your style of sofa is just no longer available; perhaps it was unique and custom made to fit into the shape and size of your room. So, reupholstering is the obvious option as getting another custom-made sofa is going to be much more expensive than the cost to reupholster the original.
Reupholstering gives you more freedom with the help from us as designers to decide exactly how you want the piece of furniture to look - We have an array of fabrics to choose from and we will help you to create a completely bespoke piece of furniture that you will not see anywhere else and that will create that coherent Interior Designed finish.
So now that you have read about the many benefits of reupholstering you might need to consider the following-
Is my furniture beyond repair/restoration?
If your sofa needs a complete rebuild you will probably end up spending more on the upholstery and fabric to restore it than you would on buying new.
The durability of your piece is most definitely a factor, depending on what it was made with and how well it was made . A flimsy piece will be flimsy whether it’s new or reupholstered years later.
For your sofa to be worth reupholstering you need to think about examining the frame and determining if it is sturdy enough to carry on with.
Is it sprung? Are the springs broken? If you can’t see the springs from the bottom of the sofa then can you feel them? An indication of good quality is usually a tight cover over the springs.
Is the foam of high quality? If you squash the cushions or the padded arms on the sofa, do they compress easily? If so, then its likely they are made from low-quality foam and as such, it won’t make reupholstering a good investment. However, even if the foam feels lumpy or firm this is something that our re-upholsterer can work with to make it comfortable and usable once again.
Beyond repair…
The Pro’s of purchasing new:
Purchasing new pieces gives you the flexibility to go in a completely new direction by buying a different size, shape or style to compliment a new design vision.
You may be in a position to purchase a higher quality this time around that will then last for years to come and who knows when you get tired of its original look it will still be a great investment that can be re-upholstered later down the line.
Your circumstances may of changed perhaps you need practical over comfort or vice versa and the only way to for fill your current needs are to re-select and purchase new.
Whether you are looking for a new item of furniture or re-upholstery we can help-
If you are looking for a new piece we have an array of suppliers that provide top quality craftmanship, often these can be customised to suit your requirements, size, style, colour and comfort for example.
If however you are wishing to re-upholster your existing furniture then knowing what fabrics to choose is where our expertise comes into play, whilst ultimately it does come down to budget and personal preference, we have some wonderful and unique materials to choose from and our upholstery partners that we work with are outstanding in their area of expertise.
So, if you have a well-loved sofa or chair that could do with a revamp or are looking to find something new and would like us to help bring your ideas to life, please do get in contact and we would be only too happy to assist!
