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Antique Restoration & Period Furniture

Preserving history in Cannock since 1946. Master craftsmen dedicated to the sympathetic restoration of period chairs, sofas, and heirlooms.

Heritage Craftsmanship for Your Heirlooms

Antique furniture carries a story that modern pieces simply cannot replicate. Our antique restoration service is designed to honour that history, ensuring your cherished period pieces are preserved for future generations.

We specialise in the sympathetic restoration of Victorian, Edwardian, and mid-century furniture. Unlike standard reupholstery, we take extra care to protect the integrity of the original design, using methods that respect the era in which the piece was first created.

winsor stone

Watch Tradition in Action

Restoring an antique requires a different level of patience and skill. When you visit our Cannock workshop, you can see our team painstakingly stripping back layers of history to reveal the original construction.

We treat every piece with the respect it deserves. Whether it is repairing a solid hard and soft wood frame or carefully restitching a decorative trim, we ensure our work is invisible, leaving only the beauty of the original piece to shine through.

Sewing fabric on sewing machine

The Ralvern Standard: British Made Furniture

frame repair ralvern upholstery

Sympathetic Frame Repair

Older frames often need structural attention. We use a mix of hard and soft woods to strengthen joints and replace worn rails, using our glue-stapled method to provide a solid foundation that lasts a lifetime.

traditional springing at ralvern upholstery based in cannock

Traditional Springing

We use traditional hand-tied coil springs and hessian to restore the correct profile and comfort to your antique. This ensures the piece feels authentic to its era while providing the support you expect from a premium restoration.

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Period-Appropriate Fabrics

Choose from our curated library of luxury fabrics that suit period designs. We recommend the exquisite patterns of Jim Dickens and Linwood, or the timeless textures of Art of the Loom and Ross Fabrics.

Our Restoration Process

1. Historical Assessment
We examine the age and condition of your antique to determine the most sympathetic approach for its restoration.

2. Careful Strip-Down
Old fabrics and fillings are removed by hand to avoid damaging the original timber frame or decorative carvings.

3. Frame Strengthening
We repair and tighten the solid wood frame, ensuring it is structurally sound before any upholstery work begins.

4. Traditional Upholstery
We rebuild the seat and back using traditional materials, followed by the expert fitting of your chosen period fabric.

5. Preservation Advice
We deliver your restored piece back to you and provide advice on how to care for the fabric and wood to ensure its longevity.

restored vintage chair
Ralvern Upholstery logo

Antique Leather Restoration

If you have a traditional Chesterfield or a leather desk chair, we offer specialist leather restoration. We exclusively use Crest leathers, providing high-quality hides that age beautifully.

Whether you want to maintain a vintage patina or completely refresh the look with a vibrant new colour, our leather specialists can achieve a finish that looks authentic and feels incredibly luxurious.

trafalgar leather front

Common Questions About Our Antique Restoration Service

Professional restoration, when done sympathetically, usually increases the value and usability of a piece. We avoid over-restoring to ensure the character of the antique remains intact.

While exact matches for very old fabrics can be difficult, we have access to thousands of designs from Warwick and Cristina Marrone that can replicate period styles perfectly.

Yes. Part of our antique restoration service includes cleaning and polishing exposed woodwork to remove scuffs and scratches, bringing the original grain back to life.