Upholsterer & Designer · Worcester
Forty years
at the bench.
Paul Savage rebuilds furniture the way it was always meant to be made — by hand, layer by layer, with horsehair, hessian and hand-tied springs.
Meet Paul
Paul doesn't simply cover furniture. He rebuilds it — from the frame up.
For more than four decades Paul Savage has worked as an upholsterer and designer, restoring family heirlooms, reviving antiques and making new pieces to commission. Every job passes through the same pair of hands, from first visit to final brass nail.
- 40+
- Years' experience
- 8
- Traditional layers
- 1
- Pair of hands
“You can't rush a stitched edge. The chair will tell you.”
— Paul Savage
What Paul does
Three ways to begin.
Restoration
Drag to restore.
A tired Victorian button-back, its seat collapsed and horsehair spilling out. Paul strips it to the bare frame, re-webs, re-springs and rebuilds every layer before the new velvet goes on.
Slide the handle across the photograph →
Beneath the fabric
Peel back the layers.
A traditional seat is built from eight layers, bottom to top, in a strict order. Hover over each one to see what Paul builds — and why it lasts generations, not years.
Top fabric
The cover the world sees. Chosen together, cut by eye, pleated and finished with gimp, piping or brass nails.
From the workshop.
A selection of recent restorations and commissions, each one finished by hand in Worcester.
Wingback · Restoration
Chaise longue · Restoration
Deep buttoning · Detail
Footstool · Commission
Springing · In progress
Dining chairs · Re-upholstery
Sofa · Commission
Client words
Sat on, and loved.
“My grandmother's button-back chair arrived in pieces and left looking as it must have in 1880. Paul explained every layer he rebuilt. It is now the best seat in the house.”
Helen M.
Malvern
Victorian button-back armchair
“We asked Paul to design a sofa for an awkward alcove. He drew it, built it and delivered it to the millimetre. Proper craftsmanship you simply can't buy off the shelf.”
James & Sarah T.
Worcester
Bespoke three-seat sofa
“Paul's knowledge of traditional methods is extraordinary. Horsehair, hand-tied springs, the lot. Our dining chairs feel firmer and better than new.”
Richard P.
Pershore
Set of six dining chairs
“Honest advice from the first phone call. He told us which pieces were worth restoring and which weren't. That kind of straight talking is rare.”
Margaret L.
Droitwich Spa
Wingback and footstool
Questions & answers
Ask Paul anything.
The things people most often ask before bringing a chair to Paul's Worcester workshop.
Start a conversation
Got a piece that deserves better?
Send Paul a photo, ring the workshop or pop round. Honest advice and a clear quote, always.