For quite some time, we've been looking for a reliable, fast, talented local upholsterer...and it's harder to find all these attributes in one person than you might think. My son-in-law has decided to send me (and maybe my daughter) to upholstery classes in January. The plan is for us to do all our own in-house reupholstery, and in our spare time, we'll do small jobs for the public.
If you live in the Baltimore, Maryland, area, I envy you. In my constant quest for fabric, I visited
winterbeachmodern, one of my favorite online fabric sources, and found a link to
Modern Chair Restoration...and a person who is everything we desire in an upholsterer and
more, with the exception of being 1,400 miles away.
As the name of the company implies, owner Katherine specializes in restoring mid-century modern chairs and other small pieces. She began upholstering for herself, family and friends 30 years ago but developed a particular affinity for Danish Modern after living in Denmark for a year in the late 1990s. She works closely with the owners of
Home Anthology in Catonsville, Maryland, a shop specializing in mid-century modern design. She does work for them, meeting customers, showing swatches and talking about the possibilities for various pieces. She even goes on fabric-buying trips with them. (That's the "and
more" I was talking about!)
She sums up how she feels about her work by saying, "I pretty much just love making ratty stuff look great again. It's so satisfying." Take a look at some of her amazing work. Great it most assuredly is!
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| Danish recliner lounge chair - Before |
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| Danish recliner lounge chair - After |
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| Danish recliner lounge chair - Close-up |
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| Tall back teak lounge chair - Before and After |
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| Tall back teak lounge chair - Close-up |
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| Danish Modern lounge chair - Before |
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| Danish Modern lounge chair - After |
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| Danish Modern lounge chair - Close-up |
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| Executive office chair by Vincent Cafiero for Knoll - Before and After |
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| Executive office chair by Vincent Cafiero for Knoll - Close-up |
For me, the real treat was seeing the transformation of this Hans Wegner CH23, which was completely rewoven. Katherine did a phenomenal job but admits it's very hard on the hands.
