Our Restoration of a Manhattan Lounge Chair

By Frank Parker

Reupholster Van Treight Chair
Reupholster Manhattan Chair
Reupholster Manhattan Chair

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.

Our Clients Story

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 
to have the chair completely restored for her son and his family.

Transforming the Chair

The Reupholstering Process

  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. 
  3. Completely new cushioning was fabricated from laminated premium foams then wrapped with bonded polyester fibre to replicate the seating comfort.
  4. The upholstery fabric selected by our client was a plain blue chenille, Wortley ‘Domo Capri’. This was reupholstered differently to the previous upholstery but was tailored to replicate the original finish
Stripping back the chair
A before of the manhattan chair
A manhattan chair ready to be restored

The End Result

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. 

  • “Looks Absolutely Brand New”


    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 
     family with not much cash left before the next pay day, but we needed a new three- piece. Mum and I in the exciting outing finished up in the hoop which I believe was Calle Grange. We both fell in love with this particular suite, which was quite pricey. We committed to paying for the suite on hire purchase, paying a deposit then paid a fixed amount on a regular basis until it was fully paid. It was a rather unusual suite, the settee could become a single bed simply by turning the back over. The back panel was hollow designed for storing the bedding. We brought this suite with us when we immigrated to Perth in 1981. Mum had 
     it re-covered at some stage then after several years she decided it wasn’t needed and only kept one chair. When she passed my son said he would like the chair which 
     now required serious attention. Having seen the excellent job Parker Interiors had done in re-covering my armchairs Christopher asked them to restore this chair. Everything was done to perfection including the timber parts being restored and polished. In fact, it looks absolutely brand new and strangely enough the original upholstery was blue. Thank you all the craftsmen that had a hand in the restoration of a much-loved family heirloom, one that holds many treasured memories.
     

     
    Valerie
    Morley W.A. 
Call us Today to Get Your Precious Family Furniture Transformed

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    • Well done to Frank and the team

      I had come across this Tessa T9 which required restoration. Being a rare piece of furniture, I needed an expert to complete the restoration. From the moment I met Frank I knew he would do a fantastic job, he is a rare gem that loves his job and appreciates mid-century furniture. Old school service was outstanding and the restoration far exceeded my expectations. Well done to Frank and the team, we will enjoy this chair for many years to come. As the old saying goes; we never really own these pieces, we merely look after them for the next generation.
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