Guide · upholstery in Melbourne
Whether your leather lounge should be recovered or simply repaired comes down to the hide underneath: genuine leather can often be cleaned, re-dyed or patched, while a worn frame or peeling surface usually calls for a full recover in new leather or fabric. At Dylberry Design, a family upholstery and furniture-restoration workshop in Eltham North, we assess each piece honestly and price the work on its actual scope, so you only pay for what your sofa genuinely needs. Send us a few photos and we will tell you the real options, obligation free.
Last updated: July 2026
Get a free quoteCall 0425 832 619Repair suits a sofa with a sound frame and mostly good leather that has a specific fault: a split seam, a scuffed arm, a cushion that has lost its shape, a colour that has faded in the sun. These are targeted fixes and they keep costs down.
Recovering is the answer when the leather itself has failed across the piece, when the frame has loosened, or when you want a different colour or material altogether. Recovering means stripping the old cover, rebuilding what sits beneath it and fitting new leather or fabric. It costs more than a repair, but on a well-built lounge it is the difference between another decade of use and throwing the piece out. Our in-house team has close to 100 years of combined craft between them, so we can tell you which path actually makes sense for your lounge rather than defaulting to the bigger job.
This is the single most important thing to know before you spend money. Genuine leather is a natural hide and it can be restored, re-dyed and recovered for many years. Bonded leather is not really leather in the structural sense: it is leather scrap and fibres glued onto a backing with a thin coating on top. Over time that coating cracks, flakes and peels, and there is no lasting repair for it. Patching or re-coating bonded leather buys a few months at best.
If your lounge is bonded leather and it is peeling, the honest fix is to recover it in genuine leather or in a quality fabric. We will always tell you when a piece is bonded rather than selling you a repair that we know will not hold.
When you recover in genuine leather, the type of hide sets both the look and how the sofa will wear.
We will walk you through samples and match the grade to how the piece is actually lived on.
Often, yes. If the leather is genuine and still supple, re-dyeing and reconditioning can bring back a faded or patchy colour and lift years of wear without the cost of a full recover. Restoration works well on sun-faded panels, dulled finishes and light surface scuffing. It does not work on leather that has dried out and cracked through, or on bonded material. When we quote from your photos we will say plainly whether a restore will give you a lasting result or whether recovering is the better spend.
The smart time to sort out the inside of a lounge is while the cover is off. If the frame has loosened at the joints, if webbing or springs have sagged, or if the seat has gone flat, we address all of it in the one job. We use fire-grade foam so your seating is comfortable, holds its shape and meets safety standards. Doing this alongside a recover costs far less than coming back to it later, and it is what separates a lounge that feels new from one that just looks new.
The biggest single factor is the leather itself. Leather is sold by the hide, and a three-seater sofa needs several hides to cover it, so material alone is a real cost before any labour. Beyond that, price is driven by the size and style of the piece, how much frame, spring and foam work it needs, the grade of leather or fabric you choose, and the detailing such as buttoning or piping. Because you deal direct with the maker here, there is no showroom markup in between. Every job is individually and fairly priced on its scope and materials, which is why we quote each lounge on its own merits rather than quoting a flat rate.
To protect the work, keep the lounge out of direct sunlight where you can, since UV is the main cause of fading. Dust and wipe it regularly with a soft dry cloth, and condition genuine leather a couple of times a year to keep it supple. Wipe spills promptly rather than rubbing them in, and avoid household cleaners and solvents, which strip the finish. Looked after this way, a properly recovered leather lounge will serve you comfortably for many years.
Good to know
If the frame is sound, almost always yes. Peeling usually means bonded leather, which cannot be repaired to last, so recovering in genuine leather or fabric is the fix that holds. Send photos and we will confirm which you have.
Yes. We work in both genuine leather and fabric, so if you would prefer to move away from leather, or mix the two, we can recover your lounge either way.
Send us a few clear photos of your lounge, including any problem areas. We give free quotes from a photo, so you get honest options without anyone needing to visit first.
In most cases we can get very close on both re-dyeing and new leather. Exact matches depend on the hide, and we will show you samples before committing.
Yes, and the best time to do it is during a recover while the cover is off. We rebuild frames, springs and webbing and replace tired foam with fire-grade foam in the same job.
We are a family workshop in Eltham North and we service Melbourne. Because the work is done in-house, you deal directly with the people making it.
If it has cracked right through, restoration will not hold and recovering is the honest answer. If it is genuine and still supple, reconditioning and re-dyeing can bring it back. We will tell you which applies to yours.
An in-house team with close to 100 years of combined craft, a 5.0 rating from 37 Google reviews, fire-grade foam, genuine leather and fabric work, and fair per-job pricing with no middleman.
Send a photo or the dimensions of your booths, banquettes or venue seating and we'll come back with a rough price and turnaround.
Send us the drawings or details and we'll come back with a straight quote, no clout needed, just a great job.
Enquire about a job Call 0425 832 619