How much did an upholsterer make in 1963?

[sofadoc]

I was going through some family stuff, when I came up on an old copy of the Dallas Times Herald that was printed the day that JFK was shot.

I started looking at the ads, and saw this one:


If you could buy a whole new couch for $118, how much could an upholsterer possibly charge to recover one like that? Even if the material was only $3yd, you're looking at around 50 bucks just for material alone.

Convincing customers that recovering is better than buying new is a tough sell here in 2013. I always thought that re-upholstery was a better value back then. I guess not.

[Mojo]

I had a bucket seat recovered in my cutlass. It was worn and tore to heck. Total price was $ 40 and this was an upholsterer that was very well known for high quality and did most of the dealer work in town.

My very first upholstery job was in 1978. I recovered 4 poker chairs for a guy. I think I charged him
$ 8.00 each. That included material. :)

Chris