Re-upholstery of a Jason Recliner Chair

By Frank Parker

reupholster Jason recliner Perth
reupholster Jason recliner Perth

Transforming the Classic Jason Recliner

Jason recliner chairs are an iconic piece of Australian furniture valued for their quality craftsmanship and durability, making them sought after to this day. This restoration aimed to preserve the chair’s structure for future generations to come.

The Origin of Jason Recliners

Jason chairs were manufactured under license from Lazy Boy in Munro Michigan. The factory operated in Welshpool WA from the mid 1960s through to about 1990. These chairs were known for featuring a very robust and unique mechanism. The business was owned and managed by the Bridge family with the chairs distributed around Australia and at its peak they were also exported.

  • The chair was completely stripped and the mechanism cleaned and lubricated
  • The show-wood rocker base and the turned wing sections were sanded and re-lacquered dark walnut
  • The back zig zag springs were linked
  • New hessian was layered over the seat springs
  • New high density padding was laminated onto the body
  • New polyester encased premium cushioning was fabricated and
  • The chair was then re-upholstered to the same finish in an English Heritage Linen
This chair was also of sentimental value as it previously belonged to our client’s father. We wish her many years of memorable moments in this special chair.

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    Little information has been passed down through the industry or indeed written about the history or origin of ‘Merry Widow’ settees or lounge furniture. We can only assume it is historically linked to the Austro-Hungarian opera the ‘Merry Widow’ which had its debut in 1906 and was marathon performing during the period. This would co-inside with the start of the art-deco period which a merry widow could feel indulged on such an opulent sofa. 

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    We removed the layers of fabric stripping the suite down to the bare timber frame. The turned legs were discarded which were an addition during an 80’s revamp then the frame joints knocked apart and glued with a two pack resin then screwed. The rear legs, front blocks and timber trays were sanded then stained as the Jarrah had bleached and finished with three coats of lacquer.

    The re-upholstery commenced with fitting jute webbing and lacing coil springs into the seat, back and arms, then fabricated the sprung edge, and tied down the springs then applied hessian overlays. We then fitted synthetic edging to the sprung edge, top inside back and arms and laminated premium foam layers overlayed with bonded polyester fibre. The upholstery fabric selected suited the period being a very high quality black abstract floral velvet which looked extremely sumptuous. The outside arms and backs were also lined and padded and finished with piped trim.

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    Clients approached us as they had shifted from an older traditional styled house into a new modern mid-century styled home located in the Perth hills. They had a much loved traditional Torrance & McKenna lounge suite consisting of 2 x wing back chairs and a low back 4 seater settee. They wanted to retain this lounge furniture but re-upholster it to suit their new home.

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    Parker Furniture commenced operations in 1935 as Dagger & Parker formed by Alf Dagger and Jack Parker making chairs and cabinets fashioned from packing palettes. Post war they manufactured reproduction Queen Anne and Art Deco designs then Alf Dagger resigned and the business was renamed JW Parker and then Parker Furniture.

    Tony Parker joined the business in 1949 working in the polishing and finishing area while studying furniture design at East Sydney Technical College at night. Tony then left the business for the UK working in furniture sales management and design for John Lewis. Jack reluctantly made some of Tony’s modernist UK inspired designs but showed little commitment in promoting these designs. Tony then displayed these new designs at the Sydney Furniture Exhibition with a year’s production being sold in four days! Grace Bros. then stocked and displayed these new designs with sales expanding so did the staff and the factories. After several shifts Parker Furniture premises was situated on eight hectares at Seven Hills and the business employed over 380 staff by 1973.  

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    Restoring Sentimental Furniture in Perth

    Passing Down Furniture or Inheriting Furniture

    It is always difficult to place a monetary value on something that is of high sentimental value however when the furniture has been restored the value is evident. Furniture that is of high sentimental value is usually inherited but may also have been from an era of perceived sentimental interest or have been previously possessed by an individual of interest. However regardless of the reason a high proportion of furniture we restore is due to sentimental value.

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    Our client approached us wanting to rejuvenate two library chairs with a matching chaise initially purchased new by his wife’s grandparents in the 1920’s being made in Australia. When we inspected this furniture it was in a completely dilapidated condition due to years of storage in a damp basement.

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    Our client still insisted the furniture be restored and this was now going to be a collaborative operation. Our friend from Eachells Fine Furniture was engaged to replace the rotten carved timber rails. He ascertained the species of Eastern States Eucalypt used in construction so replacements would look identical. The resurrected timber frames were then polished looking like original.

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    The Origin of Guy Rodgers

     The ‘Manhattan’ lounge chair was manufactured by Guy Rodgers of Liverpool. They were the largest and most well known makers of contemporary upholstered furniture, in the U.K. during the 1960’s. Their designs were all named after prominent U.S destinations. The Manhattan was the most popular Guy Rodgers style designed by Eric Phamphilon and George Fejer.

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    We were contacted by a client who we had previously reupholstered a lounge suite for. She explained that she had a single lounge chair remaining from her parent’s divan suite, brought over from the U.K when the family emigrated. She now wanted 
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    1. We removed all the existing upholstery and dismantled the timber frame. – the stained and lacquered surfaces were carefully sanded back. It revealed that the chair was constructed from solid Afromosia, an African timber bearing similar characteristics to Teak. 
    2. After the preparations had been completed the timber frame was stained a mid-tone walnut and lacquered with a 30% gloss to the original finish. 
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    Our client told us her daughter in-law was ecstatic when collecting the chair and that her son also treasured the chair. These jobs are more than a monetary undertaking, we are trusted with family heirlooms just like this chair everyday – which are more valuable. 


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      This chair was part of a three-piece suite bought by my mother at a furniture store in Watford, Hertfordshire in the 1950’s. My parents were just a normal working-class 
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    What we generally recognise as Australian styled ‘club lounges’ were made from the late 1920’s through to the mid 1950’s. This design was not uniquely Australian however it was very popular in Australia during this era and the suite featured is typical of this period however many variations were available.

    These lounge suites all featured the wide arms, usually with timber trays and bases but some also had decorative timber trim on the arm facings. The upholstery finishes were also available in a wide variation of finishes. This included cord trim, contrast piping and raised panel patterns on the inside backs.

    A client approached us who is from a prominent furniture manufacturing family to restore their ‘club lounge’. This club lounge was not a family heirloom but a design from the era they had always found interesting and destined for their retirement home. It is always an honour to be asked by a contemporary to restore a favourite piece of furniture however the expectations are always as equally high.

    We stripped the 3 seater and 2 chairs down to the bare frames, removed the show-wood components then screwed the joints together. The timber arm trays were so badly damaged leaving us with no option than to completely replace them however the front base strips were sanded back and re-used have receiver three coats of lacquer.

    The bases and backs were re-webbed with jute webbing then the coil springs laced in, tied down and covered with heavy weight hessian. We then used synthetic ‘thumb roll’ to build up the edges and laminated layers of premium foam over the bases, arms and inside backs until the desired shapes were achieved. Flutes were sewn into the inside back covers and the suite was trimmed with contrast piping. The seat cushion inserts were fabricated by laminating various densities of premium foam then encasing them with bonded polyester fibre. The outside arms and outside backs were all lined padded providing a superior finish.

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