Reloved Upholstery use Brother Sewing machines to breathe new life into old furnishings

Hi, I’m Simion, Creative Director of Reloved Upholstery, an upholstery firm based in Greater Manchester.

Very exciting day picking up new @brothersewinguk machines from @bambersewing for my upholstery and sewing classes. Please follow link in my bio for course details #comecreate . . . . #manchesterupholsteryschool #upholsteryschool #upholsteryworkshop #frenchbulldog @frenchie_photos

A post shared by Simion Hawtin-Smith (@relovedupholstery) on Mar 14, 2018 at 9:05am PDT

I specialise in sourcing and reupholstering vintage chairs to give them a contemporary edge and new lease of life. I work with new and established designers to find fabrics that enhance the chairs and really make them stand out from the crowd. 

Following a stint working with a TV production, I realised that my skills were in demand. So I embarked on a new venture, sharing my knowledge through a series of upholstery courses. 

The workshops are going great guns; designed specifically for beginners or those with a small amount of upholstery knowledge. Students come away from my courses having learned new or honed existing skills and get to take home one of two footstool designs, or a scatter cushion. Each student is proud that they have created a piece that they themselves have made and get to keep it.  

On the day students were introduced to their tools, materials and equipment, including the ‘Brother Innov-is F420’ sewing machine. These are great machines, robust enough for those dealing with heavier, upholstery fabric. I got mine from Bamber Sewing Machine Centre in Greater Manchester.

My courses teach even those with no knowledge at all of upholstery the very basics in traditional and modern techniques. From learning how to make and place buttons, to traditional slip stitching. We even learn paint techniques for the footstool legs. 

What I love most about teaching is the creativity of my students. Even within the brief of a footstool or a scatter cushion, their choice of fabric, paint and even placement of buttons ensures that each piece is very much individual, with no one piece the same. 

Simion is running some live upholstery sessions at Grand Designs Live on Tuesday 8th and Thursday 10th May.