More dining chairs in Welsh wool

A set of hardwood dining chairs reupholstered in Melin Tregwynt Mondo Sage doublecloth.

The customer liked how the darker shaded spots not only match the wood colour, but mirror the carved circles on the back spindles. I rather like this too. And I love how the spots form nice straight lines - I love straight lines.

This reproduction dining set was of no real quality but now looks better than anything you can buy on the High Street. You can easily pick up a set of dining chairs at auction for under £50 - give them to me and I'll reupholster them for roughly £30 each plus the cost of the fabric. Four upholstered dining chairs in a spectacular fabric for less than £250 - even Ikea can't match that...

These were a commission.

Dolaucothi Arms dining chairs in Welsh wool

A mishmash of different dining chairs reupholstered in a variety of Welsh wool fabrics (including Melin Tregwynt and Melin Trefriw) now in the bar and dining rooms at the Dolaucothi Arms, Pumsaint, Dyfed, Wales.

This pub stood empty for years and I would often lament 'another dead pub' as I passed by when all of a sudden the door was open again. Now owned by the National Trust, the pub has had a major overhaul and is now run by young English couple, David and Esther. I went in for a few pints and suggested that their hotchpotch of dining chairs would look superb in a hotchpotch of Welsh wools, they agreed.

They have a simple and excellent menu and some really good ales - I strongly suggest you get up there and try them out. Live too far away? Don't like driving to pubs? No excuse, rooms also available.

Thanks to Jess Jones for the photos. Dolaucothi Facebook page here.

A succession of stools

I've been making lots footstools and dressing stools for sale in local retailers, all covered in Welsh wool and ready for Christmas. Here are a few:

I've been stocking up on small items at the auction houses recently, let me know quickly if you need any for Christmas presents.


(Some terrible photography/Photoshop work here I know but you get the general idea.)

Parker Knoll Armchairs in Melin Tregwynt wool

A pair of 1960's Parker Knoll 988 'King & Queen' armchairs in Melin Tregwynt Mondo Sage wool.

I couldn't quite believe my eyes when I saw these in a skip in my local recycling centre. I fished them out and was delighted to find the frames were still in excellent condition.

After a full restoration, they are now covered in 100% wool by these great people.

'King and Queen' means one is smaller than the other, but in this case they're identical chairs but one has wings. I think we'll call the one with wings the Queen rather than the King if that's ok with you?

These chairs are for sale at £1200 for the pair.

Ercol armchair in Melin Tregwynt Wool

An Ercol 203 armchair reupholstered in Melin Tregwynt St. David's Cross (Birchwood) doublecloth.

These chairs have now reached the status of Genuine British Classic and need no introduction from me.

The wool is an historic pattern based on early 18th Century Shaker weaves but carries the well-known motifs of centuries of Welsh blankets. Woven in Wales by these terrific people .

The seat cushion is a bespoke fit but I decided not to make a bespoke seat back this time because I wanted the back spindles to be visible for that Shaker look. This also makes the back cushion more versatile, allowing it to be used on other chairs/sofas/etc.

This chair is £500


The chair and the footstool below will be on show along with some of my other Welsh Wool chairs at the Llandovery Sheep Festival this weekend - they're mainly in the Red Giraffe Studio but there's also the Organic Wool Chair I made for Llynfi Textiles on their stall.

Give me a call if you're going and we could meet for a pint.

Armchair in Melin Tregwynt wool

A 1990's armchair re-upholstered in Melin Tregwynt Luna Autumn wool.

This customer spent ages looking for a comfortable armchair to replace their own slightly worn-out one but drew a blank. They gave me a call, I showed them my Welsh wool patterns - and now they have this.

Wool is such a great fabric for furniture because it is warm and comfortable. This pattern is very contemporary but looks traditional on this chair and will fit in to the customer's home well.

This is 100% wool doublecloth, woven in Wales by these fabulous people.
  

This was a commission - if you're cool enough to commission a chair in a fabric as wonderful as this then let me know, it's much less expensive than you think.