Friday in the workshop...

a little staining...

a little sanding...

a little sewing...

Have a wonderful weekend!

Custom Chesterfield Sofas

We just finished a set of two Chesterfield sofas for a client in New York. Due to the space restrictions in the installation of these pieces in a typical New York apartment (i.e. stairwell & elevator limitations), we had to be very conscious of the dimensions, as well as making the legs removal if necessary.

Comfort was also tantamount here, and the single seat and tufted back do not have the usual hardness that is generally typical of the Chesterfield style. The wool fabric used (Wool Flannel by Holland & Sherry) also helped a great deal.

Chesterfield sofas are a complicated style, with all the folds and tufting. Take a look at a corner, and I think you'll agree! It gets tight working in those quarters! We hope the client is thrilled and enjoys the sofas for years to come.

Custom Full Size Bed

We recently finished this full size upholstered headboard & bed base.

The floral pattern is matched seamlessly from the ramp of the headboard border to the body; a detail that really looks beautiful.

Edible Mid Century Modern Chairs!

How amazing are these cookies?! We had a special birthday and I thought these would be such a fun surprise for Julien, our resident Eames & chair restoration specialist! They are made by Kelley Hart, who as you can see, is an amazing artist. Here are the images she worked off of, and really, it's hard to tell the difference:

She's located in San Pedro, California, but ships nationwide. Let's see, I wonder what other challenges I can dream up for her....

Completely restored: Pierre Paulin Tulip Chairs

We just finished a complete restoration (and reupholstery) of these two Pierre Paulin Tulip Chairs. I wish I had been able to snap a photo before the work started, but they were quite eager in the workroom! I did, however, get a shot of one of the chairs completely stripped down:

These chairs were in pretty bad shape, so we removed everything and replaced it, all the while staying true to the original technical specifications. Pierre Paulin designed this chair in 1965, like a flower, with the petals opening around the sitter. It's quite comfortable, and quite complicated to reupholster (but we like that!).

Custom Sofa

We just finished this custom sofa for a project. The fabric the client chose has a distinct bohemian vibe, but it really resonates well with the design of the sofa. The details on this piece are beautiful, and you'll notice that the fabric is aligned perfectly on the seat to the base so the pattern appears almost seamless. Here are a few fun workshop photos of it in production:

The exposed tapered legs are fitted with antique brass casters in the front, and yes, it is as comfortable as it looks!

Before & After: Jacobsen Egg Chair

We just finished the restoration of this Egg Chair, shown above when it arrived at our workshop. The Egg Chair was designed in 1957 by Arne Jacobsen, and many believe the inspiration was taken from Eero Saarinen's Womb Chair (which is somewhat similar). One of the traits the Egg Chair has in common with the Womb Chair is the use of molded foam. While this adds to the beauty, practicality and comfort of both pieces, it has its' drawbacks.

The above picture shows the foam after the fabric has been removed. Many times, if the chair is older than 2 or 3 years, the foam almost always has to be replaced during the reupholstery of the chair. This is because the foam actually adheres to the fabric, making the removal of the fabric alone nearly impossible.

Another issue is that oxygen destroys and dries out the foam as it breathes through the fabric. Think about it this way: each time you sit in the chair, the foam compresses and when you get up, it decompresses. The oxygen breaks down the foam and after a while (granted, usually a long time!) the foam has dried & deteriorated. Interestingly enough, this does not happen if the chair is covered in leather - the foam will remain intact.

After a complete restoration & reupholstery, the chair is back to its' original condition! I love the way it looks in white boucle!

The Egg Chair is still in production and is available through Fritz Hansen.