An entry · Work · Life
Upholsterer
The person who takes a tired old chair down to the frame and gives it another fifty years.
From curious to committed
Your first steps.
A first visit can be enough. It can also be the beginning.
Meet the craft
Bring a tired seat and take it home transformed.
Explore experiences →Give it another afternoon
Notice what you want to come back to. Ask the teacher what regular practice would look like, and what support you would need.
Keep a note for next time →See the working day
Frames, springs, stuffing, and covering, taught hands-on.
Explore ways into the work →These are starting points. A workshop is not a professional qualification. Entry requirements and recognised training depend on the work and the country.
Before you walk in
A few things worth asking the host before you book.
- Is this session suitable for someone who has never tried it?
- What should I bring, wear or prepare?
- What is included, and are there any extra costs?
- Can you accommodate my access needs?
- What could I try next if I enjoy it?
Teach this craft? Share what beginners ask you →
Showing Dublin, and 2 elsewhere are hidden
Show every city →Work it
Do the work.
Jobs, apprenticeships, and training that put a person in the room.
Ways in
- Course
Upholstery course
Frames, springs, stuffing, and covering, taught hands-on.
- Apprenticeship
Workshop apprenticeship
Traditional and antique workshops train by the chair.
- Route in
Reupholster and sell
Rescued chairs at markets are how many build a trade.
Ways in, gathered by hand.
Add yours to the atlasLive it
Live the hour.
Experiences, classes, and places where the presence is the whole point.
Ways in
- Class
Reupholster a chair class
Bring a tired seat and take it home transformed.
- Visit
Restore an heirloom
Hand a loved chair to a maker instead of the skip.
Ways in, gathered by hand.
Add yours to the atlasWhy the human is the point
A good chair is worth saving, and the upholsterer is who saves it: stripping it to the frame, re-tying the springs, and stretching new fabric taut over horsehair and foam by hand. It is craft and thrift together, the opposite of flat-pack and landfill, keeping a grandmother's armchair in the family for another generation. A factory makes a sofa to be thrown away. An upholsterer makes an old one last, and hides a hundred careful decisions under the calm of a smooth new seat.
Kept nearby
