Recently I found a super cool mid-century recliner at a local shop. Everything about the chair was great, from the tilt-and recline mechanism (a way hipper precursor to the Barcalounger) to the wing back style and sleek teak Danish frame. That is, EXCEPT for the dingy blue upholstery, which had clearly seen its share of backsides in its heyday. Fortunately, the store where I bought it, Mid Century Salvage here in Charlotte, specializes in refurbishing and reupholstering their vintage finds. See what a difference they made on this chair:
BEFORE: Nursing home closeout special
AFTER: Contemporary cabin chic
The chair was slated to go in our contemporary-style mountain cabin, and I wanted to keep the fabric fairly neutral yet still have a very cozy feel. I chose this thickly textured white-on-charcoal fabric from Robert Allen, to give the cushions visual weight and a hefty tactile quality.
Robert Allen “Whitewater”
But Mid Century Salvage did a lot more than just re-cover the chair – they also re-finished all of the wood, replaced the foam and stuffing in the cushions, repaired the tilt mechanism, and adjusted the recline angle to our comfort. That’s one of the advantages in re-upholstering – you get to have a lot of input into the details of your finished piece. My husband and I had the chance to go in for a “fitting”, where they let us choose the loftiness of the seat and back cushions, and the placement and thickness of the headrest.
My husband Andy at our upholstery fitting. (I just realized this post contains not one but TWO photos of our son in the background being babysat by the iPhone. However did parents get any shopping accomplished in the dark ages before smartphones?)
Not too hard, not too soft. This amount of padding felt just right.
Here’s the chair all done and fully reclined. All set for post-turkey day naptime!
I just love how our chair turned out, and it was fascinating to go through the re-upholstery process. We probably saved over $1000 versus buying a similar style chair new (here’s an example at Design Within Reach). I strongly recommend re-upholstering older pieces whenever possible, because furniture was simply made better in the past. You have to spend a lot more to get considerable quality today. Plus: less waste, which is good for the environment! If you’re interested in checking out Mid-Century Salvage, there’s more info on their website here.
———-
Tamara Leicester is a licensed interior designer and owner of Tamara Heather Interior Design, LLC. She designs casually elegant interiors with an artistic sensibility, often drawing upon the talent of local artists and craftspeople in her work. Dreaming about updating your space? Learn more at tamaraheatherinteriors.com.