Tub Chair Reupholstery

By Frank Parker

tub chairs perth
tub chairs perth

These tub chairs were purchased three years ago from a leading WA furniture retailer. The clients paid a high price for these chairs which were sold to them as superior quality Italian made pieces of furniture. The manufacturing labels fixed under the chairs reveal they were made in China.

The covering which is a very poor quality laminated fabric has delaminated in areas of wear. The frames can only be described as having been ‘slapped together’ by unskilled labour. The poor quality elastic seat webbing was breaking down and the low density foam collapsing.

As part of the tub chair reupholstery process, a new seat frame was constructed from a single piece of structural grade plywood, laced with heavy duty elastic seat webbing then laminated with high density premium grade cushioning. The furniture recovering of these chairs was finished with a quality Australian made fabric.

The end result was that the client spent about 70% of the initial purchase price to have their tub chair upholstery problems rectified. This makes a mockery of the old saying “the high purchase price is long forgotten but the bitterness of poor quality remains” as these clients were stung with a high purchase price and left with the bitter taste of poor quality. I guess the moral of the story is “buyer beware” so do your research prior to purchase and maybe look a bit closer to home!

Similar Posts

  • Re-upholster antique chair in linen

    The use of different upholstery materials can totally transform the appearance of a chair. You may have inherited a chair or just have seen an antique chair where you admire the design but have to use your imagination regarding a suitable fabric for re-upholstery which would suit your décor.  In this situation take your time to investigate the possibilities and possibly consult with an upholsterer experienced in this area of work.   

    A client came to see us from the South West farming town of Boyup Brook as they had inherited chair from the United Kingdom made in the 1880’s. This chair had sadly resided in their shed for many years and was in a dilapidated state having been previously in leather. They wanted this chair to be re-furbished for their bedroom so a Heritage Linen with a matching soft pink cotton velvet for piping.

    The existing upholstery was completely stripped to the frame then structural repairs carried out and the legs re-polished. We then fitted jute webbing, laced and tied down coil springs with hessian overlays. The shapes were then developed utilising modern polyurethane furniture edging instead of fibre fill stitched edges and premium high density foam instead of the traditional flock and fibre. We feel that using this combination of traditional and modern methods of building the upholstery foundation gives an authentic finish with superior comfort.

    The chair was then upholstered a high quality screen printed vat dyed linen with a matching pink cotton velvet piping. This gave a softer appearance to the chair which was required by our client. This chair having been constructed in the 1880’s was now rejuvenated by descendants of the original owners and functional in 2019!

    Call us Today
  • Ramada Furniture – Reupholster

    Ramada Furniture commenced operations in the mid 1980’s and was owned by Graham and Justin Davies. Graham also owned Leather House a successful furniture retail business specialising in the sale of leather lounge furniture. His son Justine operated the factory in Canning Vale which took over a large purpose built factory from another lounge furniture manufacturer Stylecraft which had ceased operations.

    Grahame Davies sold Leather House in the early 2000’s and Ramada Furniture was subsequently sold to Lawrence Barnard. Lawrence also owned Featureline which locally manufactured more budget priced lounge furniture. He then operated the combined businesses wholesaling lounge furniture to the WA retail trade.  However due a changing market and the onslaught of inferior but cheaper imported lounge furniture the combined business failed after about 3 years.

    A couple approached us who were renovating their home which required updating their furniture. They were however mindful regarding waste and wanted to up-cycle as much as possible. They had purchased Ramada two leather lounge chairs and a footstool about thirty years ago which were looking seriously dated and if possible wanted them rejuvenated in fabric.

    We completely removed the existing upholstery from the two chairs and footstool then started the re-upholstery process fitting new heavy grade elastic webbing. High density foam was then laminated to the frame bodies and new polyester encased premium foam cushion inserts were fabricated. The lounge furniture was then carefully re-upholstered to original finish except the seat cushions were now reversible.

    Our clients were absolutely delighted with the result of their up-cycling. The chairs and footstool have again taken pride of place in their renovated upstairs sitting area.

    Call us Today
  • Club Lounge Restoration

    Restoring an Australian Club Lounge is to a furniture manufacturer as what restoring a Holden or Falcon car is to a mechanic. Various versions of this Club Lounge style were produced in Australia from the late 1920’s through to the late 1950’s. There is a special place in our hearts for this type of lounge and we always welcome the challenge when being tasked with another Club Lounge restoration.

    A young lady from Geraldton approached us regarding restoring a club lounge originally belonging to her grandparents from a farm in Mullewa which had been stored in a sheering shed for several decades being home to the resident rodents. Her parents who had since run the family farm for many years transported the lounge suite to the factory then upon arrival we could see it was basically in good structural condition and still partially covered in the tattered original upholstery fabric.

    We removed all the upholstery stripping the lounge suite down to the bare frame. The frame joints we then partially knocked apart and re-glued with a crosslinking PVA and then screwed. The timber trays and base blocks sanded back with the cracks and dents being filled with two-pack resin. They were then finely sanded and given three coats of clear lacquer.

    The upholstery started with fitting heavy weight jute webbing, lacing in the coil springs then tying down the springs and fitting hessian overlays. We then fitted synthetic edge trim and laminated high density foam to the bodywork. The back flutes were fabricated from premium foam then encased with bonded polyester fibre back to the original shapes. The seat cushions were fabricated using the same method and the outside arms and backs were all lined and padded. The fabric covering was a ‘W’ pile velvet suitable for heavy use with the upholstery finish detailed back to original finish.

    Our client was elated upon receiving her re-upholstered furniture with a comment from her parents on our Instagram “who is a lucky girl” which said it all!

    Call us Today
  • Reupholster Chesterfield Settees

    The Chesterfield sofa was developed by skilled furniture artisans in the mid 1700’s for Lord Philip Stanhope, the third Earl of Chesterfield. The Earl was known as a trendsetter and commissioned local artisans to produce an upholstered piece of furniture to which gentlemen could sit on without creasing their suits.

    Chesterfields would become the most renowned sofa design in history defined by the scroll arms, low back, deep buttoning and studded trim. They were usually upholstered in dark traditionally toned leathers. However over time this design has been modernised and is often now upholstered in velvets.

    A couple approached us with two 2 ½ seater Chesterfield settees purchased in the mid 1980’s being made by Moran of Melbourne. These settees were over forty years old and attracted constant use but had stood the test of time well which was a display of their quality.

    We removed the existing upholstery then started the re-upholstery process by fitting new jute webbing and fitting new spring units. The foundation of the inside arms/backs were fine so we just laminated and thin foam layer with a polyester overlay and new seat cushion inserts fabricated from premium foam then encased in bonded polyester fibre. The upholstery fabric selected was again a quality plain velvet which is suitable for this design sofa while also being very durable and serviceable.

    The result spoke for itself and we often find clients select fabrics similar to their original selection because of favourable performance and design suitability. This was no exception and our clients seemed overjoyed with the result.

    Call us Today
  • Refurbish TV Chairs & Daynite sofa

    “TV chairs” and “Daynite sofas” became popular from the late 1950’s and remained in production through to the early 1970’s. This coincided with the introduction of television and the modern appliance age. Today we generally refer to TV chairs and Daynite sofas as mid-century furniture which has regained popularity amongst novices and enthusiasts of this era. This furniture setting was made in W.A. by Condor Furniture in Osborne Park owned by the Trethowan family.

    This set of TV chairs and Daynite sofa were presented to us by our client who wanted them completely refurbished to original condition. The existing upholstery was striped to the frames then the frames sanded back to raw timber. The timber frames were constructed from Nyatoh, a Malaysian timber which is ideal for this type of furniture. The frames were then stained brown teak and three coats of clear lacquer applied.

    The new upholstery started with replacing the no-sag springs then fabricating polyester encased premium cushion inserts. The upholstery fabric selected was similar to the original covering being a flat woven rust coloured fabric.

    The result was a refurbished classic mid-century lounge setting that took our clients back to the time of their initial purchase. We have no doubt that just as nostalgic memories will be relived good times are still to come for our clients to enjoy their furniture.

    Call us Today
  • Modern Antique Chairs

    It is becoming more common to re-upholster antique furniture using bright modern fabrics. At first this may seem sacrilege to connoisseurs of fine furniture but if quality antique furniture is being saved no one can complain.    

    A client approached us saying she had found a pair of identical ‘Grandfather’ antique chairs beside the railway line in York W.A. At first we just assumed these were nothing but discarded antique reproduction chairs however upon inspection our client was correct, they were indeed genuine antique chairs from the mid to late 19th century.

    We completely removed the existing upholstery and carried out some structural repairs then touched up the polish work. We then used traditional methods to re-upholster these chairs only compromising by using premium foam seat and inside arm/back overlays. A modern teal velvet with black velvet piping was used to cover the chairs and trimmed with black gimp.

    Well what could we say, the clients were elated and the chairs looked stunning! The chairs were saved and our clients can enjoy their rejuvenated furniture for many years.

    Call us Today