Bench collaboration with Rebecca Connolly for Cambrian Wool

In addition to the Inside Out Chair I made for the Cambrian Wool Exhibition, I was asked to collaborate with handweaver Rebecca Connolly to use the fabric she would weave for the same project. After I'd seen her work I was delighted to accept and she asked me if we could make a simple bench to showcase her fabric. And here it is:

Rebecca was supplied the wool undyed by Cambrian Wool and sent on to Triskelion Yarn for dying. The colours were inspired by the domestic architecture in Reykjavik and the pattern inspired by traditional Icelandic folklore symbols. I loved this idea because it echoes the motifs found in traditional geometric Welsh wool patterns that I love to use in my work.

Rebecca wove the upholstery weight cloth on a traditional 8 shaft counter march floor loom.

The red section was designed specifically to form the front edge of the bench, giving it a deliberately non-symmetrical design.

For my part, I wanted to use waste materials from my business to make the bench, so a plywood offcut was reinforced with a hardwood beam on the base. I added some screw-in legs prised from a 1950's chest of drawers in a skip.

I then cut and stuck together waste foam offcuts from other projects for the seat. For this I use my trusty 1970's electric carving knife.

Here's the non-red side.

We're both very happy with the result so you're probably going to be seeing a few more of these on these pages in future.

For the time being you can see the bench among lots of other itmes at the Cambrian Wool Challenge Exhibition, stopping at Hay Festival, The London Welsh Centre, Llandovery Sheep Festival, Made by Hand Wales and Wonderwool Wales.

Drop-arm Sofa in Bute Tweed

A 1920's drop-arm sofa traditionally reupholstered in Bute Fabrics tweed 0404

I've got an excellent set of customers who I often refer to as 'brave' because I'm regularly surprised by the brightness and coolness of the fabrics they choose. After reupholstering this sofa I've changed my mind - you're not 'brave' to choose a strong colour like this, you're MAD if you don't.

Kermit once sang 'It's Not Easy Being Green', but what did he know? and anyway, look what happened to him.

This was a commission.

Tub chairs in plain linen

A pair of blonde tub chairs reupholstered in Vanessa Arbuthnot plain Linen.

 Not sure if these might be French? Certainly not British anyway.

Very smart eh?

This was a commission

'Inside Out' chair for Cambrian Wool Challenge

I was delighted to be selected for the Cambrian Wool Challenge with one of my traditionally upholstered 'Inside Out' chairs, and here it is

The 'inside out' concept came about because I hate having to cover up hand stitched upholstery, it takes so long to complete and then it’s just smoothed over with wadding. Most people have no idea what’s underneath the fabric of the chair they’re sitting on and certainly no idea how complicated it can be, so I started incorporating the top cover into the process, displaying a little bit of the inside on the outside

This was originally a cane chair came that from a skip. It was in poor repair with heavy woodworm in the seat but not in the rest of the frame (I thought it was mahogany but I now think it's another hardwood, rose maybe?).

I cleaned, stripped and French polished the wood and inlay, removed the cane and started reupholstery.

It's stuffed with vegetable fibre and stitched up to the first stuffing stage.

To preserve the shape of the edge-roll and to give the chair its inside-out look, the top cover is then stitched directly into the seat (after a layer of felt and skin wadding to give the seat shape and finish).

I had actually expected a flat-weave fabric rather than twill (because I didn't read the entry form properly) so was concerned that it was too light to take the heavy stitches in twine, but it worked great - the herringbone weave helping to judge the stitch length as accurately as I could.

And so here it is, another 'inside out' chair - a concept that one journalist called 'the Richard Rogers school of upholstery' in reference to the architect’s famous placement of building services (lifts, ducts, pipes, etc) on the outside of his buildings. 

I'll take that as a compliment.
  

This chair will be touring with the Cambrian Wool Challenge Exhibition, stopping at Hay Festival, The London Welsh Centre, Llandovery Sheep Festival, Made by Hand Wales and Wonderwool Wales.

Armchair and ottoman in Bute tweed

Here's a 1990's Laura Ashley armchair and ottoman reupholstered in Bute tweed.

Lots of furniture made in recent years is not worthy of the cost of reupholstery, but much of it is. This set was made by the Laura Ashley company in 1995. Twenty years later the foam cushion needed replacing and I made a new feather and poly mix for the back. Now covered in a very strong Bute tweed it's probably better than new.

The frame is beech and the sides are plywood. Lots of cheap new furniture from the likes of DFS is made of chipboard, and it will crumble and break in a few years, but plywood is super-strong and may well last better than some solid wood. If you're in any doubt, here's artist Tom Sach's "Love Letter to Plywood" film that explains so much better than I could.

So bring me your plywood furniture in its tired fabric and allow me to make it great again.

This was a commission

Dressing Stool in Welsh wool

Here's a Parker Knoll stool reupholstered in Melin Tregwynt fabrics - very nice.

This was a commission.

Wing-back armchair in Melin Tregwynt fabric

Large wing-back armchair reupholstered in Melin Tregwynt St.David's Cross Cassis Welsh wool.

Here's another customer with strong enough conviction to choose a full-on fabric from Melin Tregwynt. She wanted something that would make a statement and she certainly got it. Just look at it. I think the term is Eye Popping.

This fabric is a traditionally woven wool in an 18th century pattern based on Shaker weaves. It is 100% British (Welsh) and cool enough for Matthew Hilton (with SCP) - here it is on one of their Balzac chairs.

And because of a brave decision, this customer now has one in her living room.The only one of its kind anywhere.

I had it in the window of my showroom for a day before it was collected and a couple stopped the car and came in to ask me how much it was. 'Not for sale' I told them, 'but I could reupholster one of your chairs in the same fabric.'

'Hmmn,' they said, and went away chattering like sparrows.

This was a commission.

The Guerrilla Upholsterer in 'Do The Bus Stop'

Here's a brand new daft guerrilla upholstery video

And a link to a better quality version with possible adverts

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2gc4oz_the-guerrilla-upholsterer-in-do-the-bus-stop_creation

Victorian Armchair in Bute tweed

An 1860's open-arm chair traditionally reupholstered and covered in Bute tweed.

This contemporary fabric works really well on such a traditional chair. I like to use strong semi-plain fabrics on traditional furniture in colours that echo the flamboyance of the velvets, etc that would have been used on the originals. The strong colours in the Bute tweed range are perfect.

I only wish I had the patience and equipment to photograph furniture and fabric properly because this fabric is actually this colour:

I love the sweep of the back of the chair.

This has been reupholstered using traditional methods as outlined in this one-minute film - it actually took 30+ hours.

Riverside Bench at Abermarlais, Dyfed.

Upholstered bench in the woods by the River Marlais near Llangadog.

The bench was rotten on top and broken to one side so I upholstered a piece of discarded wood in green vinyl (100% waterproof) and fixed with upholstery nails. This was then screwed in to the existing bench top. So now you can have a comfortable sit-down when walking the dog.

I added some ducks (Indian Runners of course)  - appropriate for the river location.

Well, someone's got to do it.

Parker Knoll Armchair in Sanderson fabric

Here's a 1990's Parker Knoll 720 reupholstered in Sanderson Trilby Malachite fabric.

The Parker Knoll 720 is probably familiar to every reupholsterer in Britain - for everyone else, have a look in your grandmother's house, there's probably one in the living room.

Recognise it? They retail at around £1000 new but if you find one second hand (look for the fire certs underneath to save money on the reupholstery) I can re-do it for about £500. Made by hand and cheaper than DFS.

What are you waiting for?

This was a commission.

Footstool in Melin Tregwynt wool

Here's a nice one in Melin Tregwynt Luna 100% wool.

Despite appearances in this photo, the stool does have four legs...

This was a commission.

Small armchair in Welsh wool

Small oak armchair reupholstered in Welsh wool plaid by Cambrian Mill in West Wales.

This chair was rescued from a skip by the customer and was in a poor state. It's a 'small armchair' but really amounts to a decorative item or for use by kids/teddy bears. The fabric was bought by the customer many years ago from Cambrian Mill in Llanywrtyd Wells. It is nowhere near upholstery weight but fine for use on a chair of this size/use. Fabric of this weight (not much heavier than a shirt) is not easy to line up - this took a lot longer than anticipated.

Worth it though eh?

This was a commission.

Victorian piano stool in Welsh wool

Victorian rosewood adjustable piano stool reupholstered in Melin Tregwynt St. David's Cross doublecloth.

Really nice.

This was a commission.

Bus Stop Chair at Kittle, Gower.

A 1970's bedroom chair saved from landfill, now available to bus travellers on the B4436 at Kittle on the Gower Peninsula.

This chair was remaindered at auction and heading for landfill before my wife intercepted it and brought it to me. It was in very good condition and would have gone to a charity but without fire certificates these things cannot be re-sold (because apparently they spontaneously combust).

As it was in excellent condition I decided rather than reupholster it, I'd simply adorn it.

I added a posh fringe to the base (ripped from another armchair) and wrote Take The Weight Off Your Feet in upholstery nails.

Rather than the usual plastic toy, I stitched on an arm from Wile E. Coyote (Looney Tunes) that my dog had been slowly ripping to death over the past year.

I also found a neat way to make my mark with a staple gun.

And why not eh?