What to remember when re-upholstering your antique
When reupholstering your respectively old and antique furniture needs special care. What to consider when freshening vintage furniture items up? To start with make sure you need to reupholster your previous century arm chair or a sofa. Make sure you actually are ready to spend time and money on the item or simply replace it otherwise. If you are certain you want to keep the antique, think of its value. You never know but furniture restoration might cost a lot but you may also obtain a great financial outcome when finished. Look into the history of the item. If it is a very valuable item for you and you just want to preserve its beauty, you need to look into your budget. You want to make sure you are able to afford necessary materials and maybe a little more to add your personal feel to it.
When approaching your antique there are several ways of doing the job. Certain parts of your sofa or table might be in better condition than you thought; however others require urgent attention. Make a good inspection of your item checking if some joint loose or squeaky, what finish is currently on, condition of old springs and padding. Such preparation work will save you time and money later on down the track.
There are several types of materials which have originally been used in antiques: horsehair, tree moss, dried grass, cotton, excelsior and wood shavings. In the old days furniture was made with whatever was available. However nowadays the verity is outstanding and it might confuse you. Additionally many old school materials are perhaps are no longer in use and it would be harder to find them. Therefore you expenses might increase. As an alternative, leave the existing padding in place or re-use it adding extra support whether it is wedding or burlap. Finally, you could just re-fresh the padding and add new interlinings if required.
Most of the fabrics on antiques used to be fastened with tack hammer which you could still use nowadays if you like; however it is not going to be that easy to find one. Therefore you would probably get a staple gun. Most of upholsterers use a staple gun which is an easy and effective way. Unless absolutely necessarily, old school tacks will make your upholstery process longer. Preserving the frame, on the contrary is an important task. Frame is a core of your furniture so make sure it is in a good condition. Sometimes staples might damage an old frame and this is another case when tacks come in handy. However most of the upholstery job will now be done without hammering tacks in your stools or sofas.
When you own an antique you definitely have a historical responsibility to preserve it as some people would say. However you are definitely responsible for the chair you worked on to be strong enough and sofa's fabric quality to be genuine and pleasant to feel. The antique item you own has its own life before you and most likely will live after you therefore you want to make sure what whoever uses it appreciates its beauty and functionality.
When approaching your antique there are several ways of doing the job. Certain parts of your sofa or table might be in better condition than you thought; however others require urgent attention. Make a good inspection of your item checking if some joint loose or squeaky, what finish is currently on, condition of old springs and padding. Such preparation work will save you time and money later on down the track.
There are several types of materials which have originally been used in antiques: horsehair, tree moss, dried grass, cotton, excelsior and wood shavings. In the old days furniture was made with whatever was available. However nowadays the verity is outstanding and it might confuse you. Additionally many old school materials are perhaps are no longer in use and it would be harder to find them. Therefore you expenses might increase. As an alternative, leave the existing padding in place or re-use it adding extra support whether it is wedding or burlap. Finally, you could just re-fresh the padding and add new interlinings if required.
Most of the fabrics on antiques used to be fastened with tack hammer which you could still use nowadays if you like; however it is not going to be that easy to find one. Therefore you would probably get a staple gun. Most of upholsterers use a staple gun which is an easy and effective way. Unless absolutely necessarily, old school tacks will make your upholstery process longer. Preserving the frame, on the contrary is an important task. Frame is a core of your furniture so make sure it is in a good condition. Sometimes staples might damage an old frame and this is another case when tacks come in handy. However most of the upholstery job will now be done without hammering tacks in your stools or sofas.
When you own an antique you definitely have a historical responsibility to preserve it as some people would say. However you are definitely responsible for the chair you worked on to be strong enough and sofa's fabric quality to be genuine and pleasant to feel. The antique item you own has its own life before you and most likely will live after you therefore you want to make sure what whoever uses it appreciates its beauty and functionality.