What is upholstery?

It may sound like a basic question but whenever I mention that I'm an upholsterer there are always a few people who ask 'So, what do you actually do?'.

I have started this blog to help demystify the upholstery process, show more of what goes on behind the scenes, and make it easier to understand how an independent upholsterer can help to save your furniture from landfill. So defining what upholstery really is and what services upholsterers can offer seems like a good place to start!

The official Upholstery definition...

The Oxford Dictionary's definition of upholstery is two-fold. Firstly it refers to 'the soft, padded, textile covering that is fixed to furniture' and secondly, as 'the art or practice of upholstering furniture'. But what does that mean in real terms?

Essentially upholstery is all of the materials that make up the soft covering. So yes, that is the top fabric we can all see but it also includes the hidden insides - the padding (be that modern foam or more traditional fillings such as horse hair and wool), the webbing and the springs. It includes everything that sits on top of the wooden frame of the furniture to make it more comfortable.

The word upholstery derives from the middle ages English word ‘Upholder’ which meant an artisan who made fabric furnishings. In the 18th century, the aristocrats called upon ‘Upholders’ to add padding to their hard wooden benches and chairs – and so the trend for upholstered furniture in the home began.

Traditional vs Modern Upholstery

Speak to any independent upholsterer and you will hear the terms traditional and modern upholstery used but what is the difference?

I will go into this further in a future blog but at a basic level, traditional upholstery refers to the use of age-old handcrafted techniques using natural materials for the padding, such as horse hair, coconut fibres and, in some early 1930s/1940s chairs, straw. It is labour intensive due to the hand crafted nature of each spring, hair/fibre and hessian layer being hand tied and sewn and each tack to fix the padding being hammered in by hand.

Modern upholstery, on the other hand, makes use of synthetic fibres, foam and staples to attach the layers. It is the most common construction of new furniture made today and is favoured by mass manufacturing due to the cheaper cost of materials and less labour intensive construction.

Not all upholsterers are trained in traditional upholstery skills but I believe keeping those traditional skills alive is important. It preserves a historic craft and allows us to make repairs to antique furniture that are in keeping with that furniture's age and stature. Modern materials do not have the longevity of their traditional counterparts and also require treatment with chemicals in order to make them fire retardant.

So, what does an upholsterer do?

By definition then, upholsterers create and/or repair the upholstery on furniture. An upholsterer in a mass manufacturing factory setting will often have one role on the production line, for example upholstering the arms or the seat of an armchair. Whilst an independent upholsterer will be hands on with the upholstery of the whole chair from start to finish.

Going back to the origins of upholsterers being 'artisans who make fabric furnishings' though, you'll find that many upholsterers also make and create soft furnishings for the home. This could be scatter cushions for your sofa, seat cushions for both indoor window seats and outdoor furniture settings, lampshades and some even make curtains and blinds.

Here at Embrace Bespoke...

Each different chair or furniture item will require a different combination of skills to create or repair and therefore, I think it is important to be skilled in both traditional and modern methods. Here at Embrace Bespoke, you can have your chair created or reupholstered using either style of upholstery. I also offer all of the other soft furnishings options mentioned above apart from the creation of curtains and blinds.

I will be a lifelong student of upholstery and am curious to continue to learn both historic and new techniques to keep improving my offering to you; my past, current or future clients!

If you have any questions about upholstery, whether in general or about a piece of your own that you'd like to create or repair, I'd love you to leave me a comment below or drop me a message.