Is it worth reupholstering, or should you buy new?

Somewhere in most Melbourne homes there's a sofa or armchair that's sagging, worn or just the wrong colour now, but you can't quite bring yourself to throw it out. Maybe it was expensive. Maybe it was your grandmother's. Maybe it's just really comfortable and nothing in the shops feels as solid.

The good news: more often than you'd think, that piece is worth saving. The honest news: not always. Here's how we'd help you decide.

When reupholstering is worth it

As a rule of thumb, if the bones are good, recovering it costs about the same as replacing it with something of the same quality, but lasts far longer, and you end up with a better-made piece than most new furniture on the floor today.

• The frame is solid. Hardwood frames, dovetailed joints, nine-way hand-tied springs, this is the expensive part, and it's usually what lasts. Fabric and foam wear out; a good frame doesn't.
• It's quality or antique. Older and antique furniture was often built to a standard that's simply not economic to buy new anymore. Restoring it keeps that quality, and its character.
• It means something. An heirloom chair or a lounge with history can't be bought again at any price. Recovering it is the only way to keep it.
• It fits your space perfectly. If you've finally found a sofa that's the right size, shape and comfort, reupholstering lets you keep exactly that, in any fabric you like.
• You want something specific. A particular fabric, a firmer seat, a custom finish, recovering gives you control that off-the-shelf never will.

When it might not be

We'd rather tell you straight than take on a job that won't serve you. Reupholstering is usually not the call when:

• It's cheap flat-pack or particle-board furniture, the frame won't outlast the new fabric, so you're spending good money on a poor base.
• The frame is genuinely beyond repair, badly broken, rotted or riddled with borer that can't be treated.
• You don't actually like the piece. Fabric can't fix a shape you've never loved.

Even then, it's worth a quick photo first, frames that look "gone" are often very fixable, and we re-glue, re-web and rebuild more than people expect.

What drives the cost

Every job is different, which is why we quote from a photo rather than a price list. The main things that move the number:

• Fabric. By far the biggest variable. The same sofa can be recovered in a mid-range fabric or a designer one, and the difference is significant. We'll help you choose something that suits how the piece is used.
• Size & complexity. A tub chair is quick; a deep-buttoned Chesterfield with piping and a skirt is a different job entirely.
• Condition. If the frame needs re-gluing, the springs re-tying or the foam replaced, that's added to the recover.
• Detail. Buttoning, fluting, contrast stitching and piping all take hand-work, beautiful, but they add time.

How it works with us

• Send a photo (and rough dimensions) via our quote form, you can upload the pictures right there.
• We come back with a rough quote and honest advice on whether it's worth it.
• You choose your fabric, we'll guide you, and we firm up the price.
• We recover it in our Eltham workshop and get it back to you, built to last. Pickup and delivery across Melbourne by arrangement.

Common questions