I am the son of an "old school" master upholsterer. I had to learn to write my name in a board "spitting tacks" before my father would let sew (consew 111w) with the electric motor turned on. I started stripping furniture when I was about 8. I had a choice though, either work in the shop or work in the garden. I chose the shop. I continued through high school doing auto trim, household upholstery, and marine work.
After high school I ran as fast as I could to get an engineering degree, but 30 years later I find myself having to fall back on my skills.
I said all that to say; working with some younger guys and some older recently. We had to put an outside back on a sofa and the guy said he couldn't finish the job because we were out of metal tack strip. That's when I suggested BLIND STITCHING down the sides. You would have thought I was a comedian on comedy central, and knocking them dead! They were rolling on the floor in laughter, until grabbed a curved needle and schooled them in the art. Some of these guys have been doing upholstery for 20+ years, and didn't have a clue.
That's when I began to wonder about the art of upholstery, and things like "Diamond Tufting" without stitching, or how to move cotton around with an "ice pick" to fill out a corner on a cushion. Are there any of me still out there? I'm only 49 for goodness sake!
I'm 52. I still have to whip out the curve needle every now and then. I was sewing simple seams on my grandmother's old Singer at the age of 10. I was the official buttonmaker from 7 on.
One thing that's different now, a lot of today's fabrics really aren't strong enough to hand sew. Back in the day, EVERY fabric was. Frames were sturdier, and designs were simpler and more practical.
Speaking of button making... I used to stand on a chair to make them because I couldn't reach the handle of the button press. One day I thought I would jump off the chair while pulling down on the handle. Needless to say, the press bottomed out before my feet hit the floor, and the handle caught me under the chin, and left me needing 7 stitches, of course my father was more than willing to pull out a curved needle and take care of it!
I always hand sew the backs on (I don't use blind tacking strips)
I even hand sew on the front arm panels
I can't relate to the handstitching with respect to upholstery, but I do know that within days of getting my first job in alterations I was the only person on the floor who knew how to make a proper handstitched buttonhole! I learned to sew on a converted treadle machine (White Rotary, still own it AND the complete attachment box and original instruction manual) and so the art of hand wrought tailoring was not an option! I can hand hem quickly and evenly with a variety of "blind stitch" techniques appropriate to the sort of fabric, too; I know how to "pad stitch" and set a lapel roll line properly, and I know how to position and sew buttons securely, too!
So, yeah... there are plenty of us out there; and isn't it fun to know that all those "antiquated" skills still come in handy every so often? I love having a tailoring background; it makes solving problems in canvas work a lot easier, and it's been a real boon in slipcovering!
Speaking of spitting tacks, we were the only kids who were encouraged to put 20 sharp objects into our mouth.
Remember when Moe swallowed the tacks, and they rammed a giant magnet down his throat? Then they funneled them into a shotgun, and shot Moe in the butt.
I tried the same thing making buttons. Didn't get hurt, though. When you're a little kid, you don't always weigh enough to press buttons , so you have to improvise.
Yes there are still some of us out there. I too will darn the curved needle on most jobs. It just lends itself to certain things. I remember being able to almost keep up with the stapler with me spitting tacks. I had a good teacher. My nephews would love to come to the shop and hammer tacks into a board. Kept them busy for hours. I still spit tacks for some purposes probably always will.
Must say I do like some of the modern conveniences like metal tack strip and curve-ez. It does make things go faster. At least the original cardboard covered tack strip is history.
After 25 years in sales in an auto related business I too was forced to fall back on the old skills back on 2008. As kids, my brother and I started ripping furniture when we were about 7 & 9 respectively. Our pay was keeping all the loose change we found inside. I still fall back on the old ways a lot, things like the curved needle and the regulator. We get a great many compliments on our tailoring and attention to detail and those compliments turn into referrals. I thank my heavenly Father for giving me the skills I have and my earthly father for teaching me how to use those skills. I'm 56 years old, a third generation upholsterer and damn proud to be.
When I took my first upholstery class over 25 years ago they taught us the blind stitching method of connecting backs. It is still my preferred way of connecting back panels. With that said, my least favorite to blind stitch are the micro suedes. They produce so much resistance to the needle that my fingers are sore for weeks! :P
I learned in 1979 from Frank Antico and Harold Rasmussen. Harold was well into his 80's THEN and had been upholstering since he was 16, so the NEW furniture HE made back then would be Antiques NOW! They taught me about double stuffing over springs; hand sewing and frame repair (THAT was a good lesson~ anybody else ever made "tunafish"?)
ANYHOW, in my experience all that experience and $3.00 will get you a cup of coffee at Starbuck's
>sigh<
I am opening MY shop again after 3 years taking care of Dad in his declining years. Wondering whether there is more money in Auto Trim than Living Rooms. any ideas THERE?
Throw., just wanted to say that I cared for my mother for about 4 yrs. and it was terribly hard to work at the same time. Until you've done it, you really have no idea how much work and time are required to care and "think" for another person; and do it while allowing them to maintain a sense of dignity, independence, and freedom. In those years I had to let my alteration business really slide and now that I'm "free", it's like starting out all over again.
Bless your heart. It's hard.
sign me up for the blind stitching club! Just did a love seat recliner in not "microsuede" but a heavy cotton backed suede. Sweet!!! Everytime I strip those metal thingys, I rip a finger. Thank God for old school.
All the furniture I make and reupholster is blind stitched, except for the cushions of course. I can't stand tack strips, yes some fabrics are difficult and I have relied on needle nose pliers to push the needle through at times. All the furniture I build is upholstered using traditional methods and materials. IE horse hair, cotton, jute, down and feather etc. I cant compete with price, so high end quality construction and materials is the only way for me.
It seems that the general consensus of this discussion board is that blind stitching is better than nail strip, or pli-grip. So why is 90% of the furniture that I strip down not hand sewn?
I agree that some micro-suedes are difficult to pli-grip. But they're not much better to hand sew. I only hand sew when it's in an area that just isn't feasible to use nail strip or pli-grip, or a fabric that would bruise if I used a mallet or hammer. I can do just as good a job with nail strip in a fraction of the time.
I certainly don't mean to offend anyone that respects and employs the " Old school ways", but I'm afraid that I don't get it.
Quote from: sofadoc on September 24, 2010, 04:23:19 pm
It seems that the general consensus of this discussion board is that blind stitching is better than nail strip, or pli-grip. So why is 90% of the furniture that I strip down not hand sewn?
I agree that some micro-suedes are difficult to pli-grip. But they're not much better to hand sew. I only hand sew when it's in an area that just isn't feasible to use nail strip or pli-grip, or a fabric that would bruise if I used a mallet or hammer. I can do just as good a job with nail strip in a fraction of the time.
I certainly don't mean to offend anyone that respects and employs the " Old school ways", but I'm afraid that I don't get it.
I definitely agree. I'm sure there are some that do antique restoration that would lend itself to the old ways but I myself do mostly residential furniture that lends itself to speed. If I have a product that does a job as well or better that and old school way I will use that product. There are many newer products that I don't care for but this is one that is high on my good list.
The furniture that I build has a maple frame, very hard to hammer in a tack strip without bending the prongs and cutting, or marking the fabric where it folds over. I also find it difficult to get just the right amount of stretch on the fabric without making several test runs, adding additional holes to the fabric.
Many of the furniture pieces I reupholster use tack strips and very often they are coming loose and my customer complains about catching a nylon, or a good pair of slacks on the sharp edges. Blind stitching eliminates both of these complaints, although taking a little longer. If tack strips work for those who are using them than that is fine, but for me and the level of workmanship I aspire to achieve, blind stitching is essential and is one more way of separating my work from the masses. I am not trying to imply that using tack strips shows less quality of workmanship, it is not my intention to offend anyone who prefers using them. It is just one method I use to market my product, like I stated in an earlier post, I cant compete on price, so high quality is my selling point and the blind stitch vs tack strips is one area I can do that.
Mike: From looking at your website, I can see that your work is definitely first class. If you can get a enough people to pay a "high end " price, then I am certainly not going to question your methods.
I've seen SOME blind-stitch jobs that look like they were done by a man who really WAS blind. :D
Most of the re-upholstery work that I get in ranges from "very low end" to mid-grade. I only occasionally get in a piece that is comparable to the quality of your work. I did have one "high end" furniture store that I did work for, but they recently closed.
Two of my main local suppliers don't even stock curve-needle thread anymore (one of them has never even HEARD of it).
Given my customer base, I have to go with speed methods in order to keep my prices in line with what the local market will pay.
I wish that I COULD hand-sew some of the back panels on the vinyl/leather recliners that I repair for a local retailer. They have a plywood frame, and like you said, the nail strip pops up and snags all passers-by.
In many cases, the store's delivery guys are going to rake it across the door jamb anyway. I make some pretty nice extra income just because of knucklehead delivery men.
Thanks Sofadoc and thanks for visiting my site. We all have to find our niche and cater to it in the best way we can. We did a trade show this weekend in Woodstock Vermont, a very rich town and venders there were not selling much. I had a lot of tire kickers telling me how beautiful everything was, gave out lots of cards, got some people to sign my guest book, but no immediate sales, or commissions. I talked to a few of the people who did sell some stuff and it was 5 to 10 dollar items, or they had to practically give the item away. I am booked to do another show next month, it is an out door show which I hate doing for obvious reasons, but it is an invitation only show with a good reputation, so I didn't want to turn it down. After the Woodstock show I am not looking forward to it. Hard to tell where things are going in this economy.
Mike!
t'would be a sin to use ply-grip on a Victorian Rococo Armchair such as the one you show on your site! I worked near Albany, half-way to Pittsfield, MA. I MISS all that antique furniture! In Tennessee there are fewer such antiques... but MANY antique cars... so I am transitioning in THAT direction...
I have read all of your posts and feel a little left out. :)
I have had no family involved in upholstery. I started sewing when I was real young. I had no sisters which meant I got stuck with doing dishes and learning how to cook. My Mom made sure I also knew how to sew.
My Mom started me sewing by hand making puppets out of socks. I can remember sewing buttons on them for the eyes and nose and then hand stitching the mouth. She later taught me how to darn socks. I can remember asking my Mom why I had to learn how to sew that it was womans work. She told me she is teaching me in case I never found a woman who would put up with me. :)
One interesting facet of my life was a type of sewing that I am sure no one on here has ever done. I served an apprenticeship as a mortician and did a lot of sewing on bodies. I always got stuck doing the reconstruction work on accident victims as it was tedious and took a lot of patience. Most of the guys hated doing it but I enjoyed it myself. I turned on the music and got lost in what I was doing. My next door neighbor was a surgeon who taught me how to stitch bodies. I can remember sitting in the back yard in lounge chairs and sewing bananas and oranges. I never could find any live people willing to let me practice on them. :)
I wished I could have learned this trade from someone. Those of you who were taught by others really do not know how lucky you are. It has been a very rough road getting to where I am now and I admit, there were times I wanted to quit. One of the biggest problems I have is learning new techniques. One can explain them to me but I am a visual kind of guy and need to sometimes see it done before
I " get it ".
Still, your explanations have done a world of good for newbies like myself. But I still have days I wished I could sit down next to some of you and watch and learn. Heck I would even wind bobbins for you as payment for the instruction. :)
Chris
Let's see if Gregg from Keystone replys with the latest in sewing machines designed for sewing bodies back together after fatal accidents. LOL
I taught my self upholstery also Chris. I would have loved to have had a mentor. 6 1/2 hours on a boxed cushion once is the example that I give to tell folks what it is like to teach yourself.
This forum, Carrscorner, and Merv's DVD's are like old friends.
gene
25 years ago I worked next to a guy in his late sixties. He said he used to bring a banana to work every day. If he swallowed a tack he'd take a big old bite of that banana to help push it on down.
55 years old here. Started learning upholstery from my Grandfather, who learned it from his father, who was the mortician and casket maker back in MN. He came over to America from Sweden as a cabinetmaker, which automatically made him the casket maker.
I still spit tacks from time to time. Always spit hog rings. Curved needle is essential for certain jobs.
Never swallowed one, but we still keep bananas around. Now I know why, thanks!
Just don't bring them on a fishing boat.
OK I'll bite. Why don't you want to bring a banana on a fishing boat.
Well you can, ... but you won't catch any fish. Very old superstition but most fisherman know that bananas are bad luck.
June
I have enjoyed reading about all of your experiences in old school and envy those who had someone to teach you hands on and in person. I am also one of those that can read how to do something, and still scratch my head until I've actually SEEN it! :D At the time you were being made to work in the shop alongside your Dad...or whoever, you probably didn't realize how lucky you were, that they were teaching you something that would become a lost art!
I would LOVE to be able to blind stitch. I've watched videos about how to do upholstery, but never seen one that showed it close up enough to understand. I would think that would make repairing a torn seam in a car seat much easier than having to pull it off and stitch 4 or 6 inches with a machine.
It would really be a great service to the trade and members of this board, if some of you that can blind stitch in the dark, would take the time to put together a little "How-To" with some close up pictures for us visually impaired learners. ??? Even those that can do it, may learn something new from each other.
I think hand sewing is one of those things that will be a lost art unless those of you that learned from a master is willing to share your knowledge with us.
Hmmm, does this sound a little like begging? ;D