Furniture thrown out on the streets is being lovingly restored to its former glory by upholstery students at City of Bath College.
Claire Thomas is giving new life to what was a mouldy, falling-apart chair that had been abandoned outside a house.
She is painstakingly repairing and restoring the chair after discovering it was made by Swedish designer Carl Malmsten between 1920 and 1960 and is worth around £1,000.
Under the watchful eye of an industry professional, Claire has stuck the chair back together, re-varnished it and is now in the process of re-covering it with new fabric.
The ten-week practical evening course, which is part of the College’s Love2learn programme, examines the basic techniques and methods of the traditional craft of upholstery.
Students are encouraged to work on their own item of small scale furniture as part of the growing recycling culture of re-using rather than wasting.
Claire, who recently moved to Bradford on Avon from Sweden, said: “I just saw this abandoned chair poking out of the snow in Sweden.
“It looked absolutely disgusting; the legs had fallen off, the arms were wobbly, the springs were poking out and it was covered in mould.
“I couldn’t believe it when I did some research, looked at similar chairs in online auctions then found the Carl Malmsten trademark.
“I bought the chair to England when I moved house and it’s been a labour of love ever since. I’ve taken something old and given it a whole new life; it’s now a lovely chair which will take pride of place at home.”
Susie Macleay is working on restoring a large tired-looking wooden chair she bought at a house clearance for £10 about eight years ago. The chair was ‘in need of some TLC’ so she is stripping it and re-building it.
Susie said: “When I first moved to Bath there weren’t any upholstery courses so I’ve been patiently waiting for one.
“It’s a great course to take as it’s so enjoyable. It’s a chance to get creative, making something quite functional using a mixture of sewing and woodworking skills.
“I’m creating something new from something old and I can’t wait to have the chair in the sitting room. It’s been in the corner under a sheet, but soon people will actually be able to sit on it. It’s going to look wonderful.”
Upholstery tutor Simon Watson, who is a partner at Walcot Upholstery & Furnishings, said he hoped the upholstery course would keep alive a dying industry.
He said: “It’s really nice to be able to pass on what I know and I hope the students will gain the enthusiasm to continue to develop the skills they have learnt.
“People are generally coming to the consensus that we can’t keep throwing things away so it makes sense to restore what we already have. Traditional Edwardian furniture was built to last and is ideal to re-upholster.”
Upholstery classes are on Wednesdays from 6.15pm to 8.45pm with new courses starting on October 1st, 2014 and January 21st, 2015. Saturday courses and four-day workshops in upholstery are also available.
Upholstery courses take place in a fully-equipped workshop at City of Bath College and each student is provided with their own tools.
