Author: Helen
Our Upholstery Fabric Suppliers
Here’s a look at just some of the upholstery fabric suppliers we use…
Business Excellence Forum 2016
Business Excellence Forum (BEF) & Awards 2016
Scott and Tanya took me (Helen) and Terry to the magnificent Celtic Manor Hotel in Wales this week for this year’s Business Excellence Forum. A truly inspiring two days listening to six world class speakers while networking with like-minded business owners and their management teams.
Speakers were Paul Dunn, Frank Dick OBE, Sir Terry Matthews, Allan Pease, Essex entrepreneur James Sinclair and not forgetting Action Coach’s Brad Sugars.
Hill Upholstery & Design believe an exceptional customer experience is key to an excellent business and learning from some of the best fuels and motivates us to become the best at what we do to give you, our customer, what you deserve.
Caring for your sofa
Our 5 Top Tips
YOUR sofa was a big investment so it stands to reason you want it to always look its best and get as much life out of it as you can. So here are Hill Upholstery & Design’s top tips to do just that…
Tip 1. It’s time to get plumping – Because your sofa cushions are made of soft materials (and because they continually get squished by our backsides) they need to be reshaped regularly. You should take them off, give them a whack and a squeeze until the cover is filled out and the proper shape has returned.
It’s up to you how often you do this as your eye will be the best guide, but we suggest you do it at least once a week.
Tip 2. It looks flippin’ great – It will also help boost the longevity of your sofa to rotate/turn your cushions every now and then. This helps top stop signs of wear and tear emerging because of always sitting on the same bit of fabric. We think flipping the cushions at the same time as your plumping would make sense.
Tip 3. Vac to the future – While you’ve got all the cushions off your sofa to plump and flip them, it is a good opportunity to give them and the rest of the sofa a quick once over with your vacuum cleaner. Dust and debris can build up regularly with lots of hiding places in your average sofa, so a regular hoover will help keep it clean, reduce scratching, pulls or pilling and cut the chance of bad odours taking root.
Also, the dust can weaken the fibres in your sofa, so it is best to get rid whenever you can. We suggest you do this at least once a month, but more often if you are able to.
Tip 4. Another fine mess – No one ever spills drink or food onto a sofa on purpose, but it sometimes happens. So what to do? Well, clean them immediately as stains are harder to remove once they set it. Wipe spills away, do not rub, with a dampened sponge. If you know what you’re doing, use an upholstery cleaning product specifically suited to your sofa to remove any determined stains. But if you’re not sure, seek advice from a professional. Using the wrong cleaner could make the problem a million times worse.
Tip 5. It’ll all come out in the wash – Like a teenage son, you should force your sofa to have a proper, all-over clean at least once a year. But as with stain removal, only do it yourself if you know what you are doing or will be able to accept the consequences of getting it wrong. A leather sofa won’t necessarily like a cleaner/detergent aimed at fabric sofas and vice versa. The best option is to hire a professional cleaner to come and do the job. Obviously it won’t be as cheap as doing it yourself, but you’ll get a much higher standard of work.
More top tips:
If possible, keep your furniture out of direct sunlight as over an extended period of time it can cause fading and weaken the fabric.
Pet hair and the oils contained within them can cause stains and bad odours. The regular cleaning of your sofa will help reduce this, but having a blanket for your pet to sit on top of the sofa fabric is an easy solution.
If you have any questions about sofa care or anything about helping your furniture stay at its best, then get in touch with us here at Hill Upholstery & Design.
Looking for a new sofa or chair?
Lured by the sales?
THIS time of year almost every furniture shop will be trying to lure people in with their sales. But while your existing sofas or chairs may have seen better days, buying replacements is not the only (or the best) option.
No doubt you like your existing suite. It fits your room, it fits your family and it fits your needs. But will you be able to find the perfect replacement?
And how many superstores will you have to traipse around before your luck drops and you actually find it?
There is an easier solution, of course, and that is reupholstery.
As long as your furniture has a solid frame, then it can be upgraded, rebuilt or recovered to take it back to its prime or give it a new lease of life. Think about it. Your sofa or chair, the one that fits all your needs, back again as good as new.
It must be said that reupholstery is not the cheap option. But what you get back is a real quality item to your exact specifications. You can choose the colour and type of fabric, some examples on this page. You could change the type of cushions if you wanted or have a firmer seat. How about leather instead of fabric. Any and all options are open – the world is your oyster!
Why not design your own upholstered furniture from scratch – to fit perfectly in the spot you have in mind, ticking all the right boxes.
So, if you have a unique personality that your average store doesn’t cater for or you just want your chair back to its former glory, then an upholsterer is your perfect choice.
Get in touch with us today and see how Hill Upholstery & Design can help you.
Feel inspired by these photos, let us send you some fabric samples to consider…
- Title image: Yarwood Leather, Tribe Collection
- Image top right: Swaffer, Panache collection
- Image bottom left: Osborne & Little, Maude Check collection
- Image on News page: Swaffer, Fitz collection
Pantone Colour Upholstery Projects
Every year, Pantone, a global authority on colour, choose a new colour shade that will influence interior design, fashion and beauty, our upholstery projects and they have just announced their colour of the year 2016.
Today they have announced not one but two new shades that they predict will influence our homes in 2016. We are looking forward to incorporating these colours in our upholstery projects in the new year!
Introducing Serenity & Rose Quartz – colour of the year 2016
Pantone says “The pairing of Serenity and Rose Quartz bring a feeling of calm and relaxation into the home environment. Like a serene sunset, Rose Quartz encourages reflection on one’s surroundings while Serenity, a transcendent blue, provides a naturally connected sense of space.”
“An ideal choice for rugs and upholstery, Serenity and Rose Quartz also work well in paint and for decorative accessories. Coupling solid and patterned fabrics, throws, pillows and bedding in these shades provides a comforting respite and feeling of well-being in the home. Incorporating texture enhances the duality and kinship of these hues.”Pantone
Upholstery Fabrics Osborne & Little
Stockists of luxurious upholstery fabric from Osborne & Little
We are now excited to announce we are stockists of Osborne & Little upholstery fabrics which include ranges from Matthew Williamson, Orca and Nina Campbell.
Osborne & Little is one of the world’s leading names in fabric design. Cherishing its reputation for innovation and quality, it has grown into one of the great British brands, globally renowned and respected.
These exciting and luxurious designs can boost the character of your much loved furniture that needs a re-vamp – why not turn it into a statement piece, something to get the neighbours talking! Mention Osborne & Little when you call us and we’ll send you some upholstery fabrics samples to consider.
What is reupholstery?
What is Reupholstery?
Here’s a thought, inspiring interiors are an essential ingredient to a happy life.
Whether it’s an occasional chair that’s been passed down through generations of the family, or a feature piece in the reception of your business, it is something that has become uniquely yours.
Whatever it is, there will ultimately come a time when a question mark hangs over its future. There’s a tear in the fabric, for instance, or the webbing is way past its best. Perhaps the pattern just doesn’t go with how you want your room – any of your rooms – to look these days.
Sometimes buying new furniture is not an option – the wrong colour or perhaps the wrong style – perhaps it just doesn’t tick all the boxes.
Quality furniture is not always easy to come by, but the good news is that as long as your existing piece has a solid frame to work from, then it can be given a new lease of life.
A simple recovering is the thing that will come to most people’s minds. That’s when an upholsterer changes the fabric on the outside, while leaving the rest of the chair alone. This can just be a straight replacement for an existing fabric that has seen better days or something entirely new totally suited to your lifestyle, your personality or your room decor. You can now spend many more Christmases entertaining your family on your newly recovered chairs or the change in colour scheme in your business can also spread to your office or restaurant seating.
It’s like when Doctor Who regenerates. He gets a new face and character, but is essentially the same dependable chap you know and love underneath.
Quite often, though, other things can go wrong with a piece of furniture on the inside. It may be the webbing, springs, fillings or a combination of all that go wrong. But as we said before, as long as there is a good quality solid base to work from, an upholsterer can strip the piece back to the frame and build it back up again to mint condition. That there is the art of reupholstery.
That family heirloom can be restored to the glory that your ancestors enjoyed it in, or it can take on your personality for many more years to come.
But an expert upholsterer’s skills can go even further than that. So once that occasional chair has taken pride of place in the corner of your bedroom, they could manufacture an identical one for the other side of the room or maybe a padded headboard for your bed to match.
Of course Hill Upholstery & Design can help with all of these examples and many more. So get in touch with any queries about what we do and what we could do for you on 01375 361155 or email [email protected]