Anyone had sofa reupholstered?

[hellcatspanglelalala]

We have a leather suite that's about 12 years old. I've totally gone off leather anyway but it's really worn in certain places - that said, it's really comfortable and very solid.

I've been shopping for a replacement but have also considered having it reupholstered in fabric. Has anyone had this done...if so what did it cost and are you pleased with it? There's a company called plumbs online but they don't have any price guides, you have to book a home visit.

I got slipcovers made for my armchairs, which has worked out quite well. I had previously reupholstered them but it was expensive. If the bones of the couch are good, it's worth looking into. I used Comfort Works for mine.

Yes, the springs in the base units went and had to be replaced and it wasn't that much - nowhere near as much as a new sofa. We have a loose cover so that didn't need replacing, the cost of the fabric will be the major cost in your case I would think.

We used a small local family firm of upholsters, and I would recommend seeing if you have one near you rather than use a national company.

Yes! Cost £700 to recover a huge 5 seater that cost £2500 twenty years ago. That included collection and return. It’s so big it comes in 2 pieces as well and they did all of that. Local firm in Leicester.

Yes ! I'm very pleased with it. It was a local man. It was quite expensive, but I love it, and it's better for the environment.

I have used Plumbs and they made a shocking job first time around then redid it at their expense and it is beautiful but... for the cost of reupholstering I genuinely could have bought a new sofa.

I suspected as much!

I have used Plumbs and it was the same price as a new sofa (but very nice job!). The home visit is free and not contractual as far as I remember, so you could have them over to see if they have any deals on/fabric you can’t live without?

I currently have Comfort Works slipcovers on my old ikea sofa and armchair which were a few hundred pounds and have really changed the look of the room.

I work in the trade.

Get recommendations from other locals - or use google and read reviews. There are a lot of craftsmen out there and an equal amount of cowboys. We've had some appalling work brought in that we've had to put right and some of it downright dangerous in terms of not replacing old foams that won't meet standards.

A decent upholsterer will strip down to the frame, replace springs/padding/cushions, and then recover. A 3 seater will take one of our staff the best part of a week to work on, and also a machinist to put the new covers together.

Stretch/loose covers won't work on leather - it'll just slip constantly.

@hellcatspanglelalala , did you go on to use plumbs? When people say they are the cost of a new sofa, what kind of new sofa as there is quite a difference in price depending on type of sofa.
I can’t find anything like our current suite, everything new looks badly made and basic in comparison, but don’t know if reupholstering will be too much fuss and expense.

I had a mid century chair reupholstered by a tiny local firm. They did a stunning job and charged me £265 which I thought was very reasonable. They replaced the webbing, the cushions, reupholstered in navy blue velvet and restained the wood, it looks beautiful.

That does sound very reasonable. Maybe looking for smaller firms is an idea.