Costs for reupholstery
So, how much are we talking?!
Let’s use a three-seater sofa as our example:
The fabric
For an average three-seater, you could need anything from 14m to 18m of fabric.
That’s when you need to start making choices as fabrics come in different qualities, and that quality determines the price.
But for our example let’s say our chosen fabric costs £40 a metre.
To buy 12m of £40 per metre fabric you can expect to spend £480. If it’s 16m you need then your spend will be £640.
When you’ve looked at your available budget, you may decide to go up a level. So for example, choose a fabric that costs £60 a metre. For 12m that will be £720 and for 16m that will be £960.
It may seem like a big investment just for fabric. But what you can be confident about is that the more you can spend, the better the quality and the longer it will last. So it’s worth spending as much as you can afford, and thinking of it more as an investment than a ‘one-off’ purchase.
Remember…
If there is a pattern on the fabric, you may require more meterage to pattern match.
Additionally, fabrics used to cover modern furniture needs to be treated with Fire Retardant – so if it isn’t already that will need to be factored into your budget. The laws on older furniture are different – check out our article Furniture Safety Measures; what’s the law and what isn’t?
Please note: in most cases, if a fabric has not been chosen then a fabric price will NOT be included in your quote.
Upholstery costs
These costs will vary, of course, depending on the size and condition of the sofa.
But if we take the same three-seater sofa used in the fabric example, we can break down the time your upholsterer is likely to spend on each section to give you an idea of the work involved:
Step One – Removing existing covers
When working with a modern sofa, this stage can sometimes take several days – but usually, about a day and a half is required for this step.
Staples and fabric must all be removed before the new covers are put on to ensure a clean final piece.
There can sometimes be the removal of glue involved. And always an abundance of staples bedded deeply into the wood frames, especially with high-quality sofas. These staples are often the longer variety, so quite tricky; and each needs to be carefully removed.
Step Two – Cutting new fabric to fit
The time taken at this stage will depend on the sofa design.
If it’s complicated, this can take another two to three days. Simpler designs will take less of course, but usually a day and a half at least is required for this stage.
The process involves measuring and cutting the new fabric to fit the sofa. It requires concentration and precision as any mistakes could be costly (for us!).
Step Three – Covering (the upholstery)
Covering the sofa is next.
This process can vary widely from one sofa to the next, but a realistic time is two or three days. This must be done with care, and usually, one upholsterer fits all the parts of the sofa to ensure consistent quality.
Step Four – Sewing fabric
Making cushions, arms, backs and piping, plus sewing covers together can easily be a day’s work – even more, if there is a complicated pattern to match!
You won’t regret the time and cost to reupholster a treasured item of furniture
So as you can see, on average it can take about eight days (often more) focussed work for a skilled craftsman to breathe new life into your old sofa.
Which means a budget of approximately £1,000 (2020 estimate) – plus the cost of fabric is a realistic figure to work to.
In most cases, you will find the upholsterer will make a considerably better job than the original piece produced in the factory. And whether this works out cheaper than buying new depends entirely on the quality of your sofa to start with. Plus its sentimental value of course – there can be no price for the value of that.