How to down-holster an armchair...

It all started with the fitness instructor ...

from the gym I'm going to sometimes with my neighbour / landlady - who is an interior decorator working in her family's business. He asked my friend, if she could have a look at an old chair he would be thinking of re-upholstering, if it wasn't too expansive a job to do and she'd judge the chair worthy... We had a look at it all three of us, me coming along as "textile expert". The chair in question was a small armchair with carved and painted legs and covered in what felt like a linen fabric with floral design in used look.

I loved it straight away.

My friend liked it too,...

...but our fitness instructor struggled to take a fancy to the estimated costs for re-upholstering the chair.

So he said "No thanks. I'll throw it away.".

My friend said "What a pity, it's a nice chair!".

And I suggested "Why don't I do it? Free of charge..." - in my friend's family business's workshop, with her grandpa, the professional upholsterer. I'd learn something more about upholstery, knowledge which comes in handy for a textile conservator, who is asked quite regularly to conserve furniture (covers)... and Mr Fitness gets a job done for free! And if he doesn't like the outcome of his piece, I'd adopt the chair... ?!? He must have thought he won't like the outcome, as he insisted I should just take it along to play with, prefering to give it to me as a gift, rather than having to throw it away. So I did as told [for once ;)] !

Due to grandpa being too busy first and then me engaged on a conservation job some months went by with the chair standing in a corner of the upholstery workshop - untouched. But not forgotten! On the contrary, I thought a lot about it. Mostly which kind of fabric to upholster the chair with, if the original turned out to not being enough for re-use. It was pretty worn in places ...

And one fine day I suddently had a vision: of the chair... (mind you). Stripped down to its wooden frame, strapped and filled with big cosy cushions made from the original cover fabric! ... The image of the chair made-up that way stuck with me. Problem was, this meant I wouldn't re-upholster... Just undo and strap the thing anew. Not quite what I said I would come around to do... hm...

So no wonder that grandpa (and everyone else really) was slightly ... let's say "taken aback", when I finally went over to the workshop and tried to share my vision. We agreed on me having to rip everything off and get to the core of the chair to start with anyway... so I did.

Weeks of getting to know each other (grandpa & me / me & Mr Chair), struggling with tons of crooked and rusty nails, a very nasty screw that only pretended to be a nail, yummy layers of filth and dust, hardened lumps of glue to be scraped off the wooden frame and the fibres of the old straps and pieces of fabric blocking my washing machine at home, followed. So did discussions about the to-do or not-to-do question. No-one seemed to be able to visualise the "naked chair". They tried to talk sense to me, but well - I HAD A VISION GUYS! ;) And luckily I had officially been made the owner of the chair! So I politely said "You'll see!" and stuck to my plan. I made cushions of the old straps and cover fabric, sanded the wooden frame until my arms hurt, chose linen straps similar to the originals (too worn and weak to re-use for that purpose) and put it all back together again; with the help and advise of grandpa, but also my friend and her father. Not to forget a "joint-venture" (a bit of joining, a LOT of adventure!) with a colleague from wood conservation, doing some repairs to the frame and the gluing of it with me or should I say with me standing by...?! ;)

It was: a lot of work! :o

Needed some fighting - with men and material... :s

But all in all a real good and worthy experience from which I learned a couple of things! :)

AND - last but not least - gained a lovely piece of furniture, that I love the look of and take great pleasure to sit on!

Next please!