Leather upholstered furniture has been hugely popular over the last few years, particularly in the more trendy colours of chocolate and black and most commonly in 2 – 3 seater sofa styles. This plain leather look from all major furniture retailers has now been surpassed by a very stylish leather and luxury chenille combination giving real designer looks and sumptuous feel to cold and slippery leather.

Now Plumbs can offer you a complete transformation of your leather furniture into cutting edge looks of today with options of chenille back and seat cushions, arm covers and stunning scatter cushion combinations. A brand new look of opulence at a fraction of the cost of replacing your furniture in a similar styling.

Plumbs have combined with Wilman Interiors to offer the most up to the date featured designs of superb quality at real value for money prices. These creative option form part of the new “Dolce Vita” collection of furnishing fabrics. You can choose from the very latest metallic looks of Rossini, Carmela & Delanna in Black/Silver with Black Deco Chenille or Chocolate/Bronze coupled with Chocolate Deco Chenille. Or choose the cool contemporary looks of our Chocolate/Black Chenille Stripe and Polka Dot combinations. Finally we have the sheer elegance of our Black/Cream mini leaf and stripe options, whichever you choose, we guarantee the end result will be simply stunning.

Our double-sided and interlined “Super” throw using Deco Chenille on one side and anyone of our feature fabrics on the reverse complete with tassel trim is the ultimate in wrap around luxury.

Beautiful coordinating curtains are also available in almost all options to complete a superb new look for you and your home.

These are not just any furnishings, they are absolutely sumptuous and gorgeous furnishings.

To get a look like this, request a visit from your local Plumbs consultant who can show you our full range of fabrics and give advice on your best options.  No hard-sell and no obligation to buy, only a local friendly service!

Request your visit here…

Most people have fond childhood memories of a piece of furniture a relative once owned, just by seeing and feeling that furniture can bring back emotions. From your Great-Aunties artfully carved dining room chairs perhaps to your Grandmothers antique sofa, even the smell of a piece can evoke a memory.

When the unfortunate time comes you inherit that piece of furniture you are suddenly left with the feeling it will never fit in with the rest of your decor and in this sense inherited pieces of furniture can be a blessing or a burden. Before deciding what to do you first need to consider the following:

• Is it comfortable?
• Is it of good quality?
• Is there a place for it in your home?

If your answer is ‘no’ to these considerations then you shouldn’t burden yourself with sentimental value as you will get no real enjoyment from the piece, which is not what your relative intended. If it isn’t of good quality then it may not be a good idea spending money on something that could fall apart.

With a little bit of work however, most furniture can be revitalised with fresh fabrics and custom details to be more comfortable and fit in with your decor.

With exception, all good quality furniture is worth restoring, even if a sofa or chair is decades old. If it has a quality frame it is worth keeping. The quality of a sofa or chair is found within the carcass, this should be made of a hardwood such as Oak or Alder, have good lines and have been kiln dried so that the wood doesn’t warp or crack during changes of temperature and humidity. Most people won’t be able to know this just by looking at a sofa but there are many experts (Upholsterers) that can give you free advice such as Plumbs.

Re-upholstering can literally transform an old sofa to new, from the springs, filling and foam being replaced to the frame being reinforced if necessary. The shape of the furniture cannot be changed but the piece can be slightly re-styled or made more comfortable using certain techniques. Choosing the right fabric will really make difference to how the piece will look and fit in you home, fabric can deliver a more traditional or contemporary style. These custom details will make your furniture a one off.

You don’t necessarily need to go as far as reupholstery, Loose Covers can be equally as impressive at transforming your sofa. If the quality, comfort and style or your inherited furniture is pleasing enough then just by changing the fabric, colour and texture can give you the look you desire.

Dining chair covers can now update most sets to fit in with contemporary or traditional trends, not only can you just re-cover (or reupholster) the seat, loose covers can now fit completely over the chair with skirts that cover right to the floor.

So, if you inherit a piece of furniture remember there are many ways in which you can make it a unique heirloom to cherish for many years.

The first, called Mydeco (http://mydeco.com), was created by the founders of Lastminute.com Martha Lane Fox and Brent Hoberman.  Mydeco is currently in beta format but you can still go on and create some great room concepts, once you’ve created your inspired design you can then purchase all the elements that make up the room, from Curtains to Carpet.

There are currently around 500 retailers such John Lewis and Argos collectively offering over a one million products.  You will be able to build 3D models of your own Living Room and add your preferred decor as well as 3D models of 20,000 items of real furniture to buy.  You can then save your room design then by adding it to your online profile will allow others to comment and give advice. This will form the basis of a social community which will eventually be shareable to other Social networks like Facebook & MySpace.

Hoberman hopes to, “help users make the right decisions about their home’s decor, and get validation from others regarding their taste, in order to avoid room style disasters”.

The second tool, Design My Room (http://www.designmyroom.com/), is a very similar US based version but equally as fun and useful.

Have fun playing with the different designs, hopefully you may see our products appearing in the near future.

How do you decide?

On the one hand there are some tempting credit deals out there to replace your furniture.

On the other hand you might not want to throw a perfectly good suite away, and anyway how would you do it. Who is going to physically remove your sofa from your house?

If you just hate your sofa or it doesn’t fit in your home then the best option is probably to try and dispose of it in an environmentally responsible way and buy new.

If you already have a well made piece of furniture that is comfy and fits in your home then the best option is probably to cover or reupholster, as your sofa will look like new for half the cost of a new one. With landfill sites filling up fast this is also a good choice for the environment.

Recover:

Pros

• If the sofa is looking tired, and it’s time for an update, then loose covers are the least expensive option. Probably about a quarter of the cost of a new suite.
• From an environmental point of view, loose covers are also a great choice as you are effectively recycling your sofa or suite.
• Washability is also a big plus point. Being able to remove wash and refit loose covers is perfect for any household where stains pose a threat.
• Massive choice of fabrics. You can probably choose from hundreds of options.

Cons

• Fit is bit of a pro and a con. Loose covers do move and are not fixed to the furniture.
• For many people they simply wouldn’t know it as traditionally made cotton loose covers fit so colsely to the furniture that is almost like reupholstery. There are however some of us who simply prefer the sofa covering to be fixed
• An extension of the fit argument is detail. Covers do not always respect every single detail of a piece of furniture no matter how well made. A good example is furniture with exposed show wood.

Reupholster:

Pros

• Price wise a reupholstered suite will be around half the cost of buying new but this is a more expensive choice than loose covers.
• Another good choice for the environment – you are keeping your furniture out of landfill
• Comfort and sentimental attachment are not affected. You are making the furniture you already have quite literally look like new.
• Fit and attention to details are better than for covers.
• Again a vast choice of fabric.
• Finally reupholstery is a traditional craft. By choosing this option you are helping to support traditional British workmanship by genuine local craftsmen and women.
• Usually come with replacement seat cushions
• Service is a big plus as with this type of craftsman product the service is typically excellent.

Cons

• The big downside is having to do with out your furniture for 2-3 weeks while the work is done.
• Not exactly a con but reputation is important. Whoever you choose to do the work has to be trustworthy. You need to be sure that you are getting a hight standard of workmanship.
• Not cheap although certainly less than buying a new suite
• You can’t see the finished article before you buy – i.e. your own suite reupholstered.

Replace:

Pros

• New furniture is untouched, unstained has never been sat on and it’s exciting to have brand new
• You can see and sit on lots of different styles before you buy
• There are some fabulous credit deals to be had

Cons

• The hassle of moving and disposing of your existing furniture.
• There is an environmental price to pay in throwing away your old furniture. Typically it will end up in landfill unless a charity shop or similar will take it. Occasionally for very good furniture you may be able to sell it.
• Interest free credit is not free, but is built into the price. Furniture is already the most expensive of the three and credit just makes it more expensive.
• Quality is a big issue as there is such a wide range. By buying quality recognised brands such as parker knoll multiyork, wesley barrell or bridgecraft you can be sure that you are investing in quality furniture. However there has to be concern over cheaper furniture which is imported. If you remove the VAT delivery cost, shipping cost from overseas and the sellers margin or cut then there often is little left. This raises a question mark over durability and quality

If you are tired of looking at the furniture in your front room or you just fancy a change then you can recover, reupholster, replace or do nothing. Think about price, comfort and the environment and the way forward should become clear.

Good luck