I had a Rose Bowl party at my place in January, and someone ripped my couch by accident. I havent gotten around to getting it fixed, but anyone have know how to fix this, or someone who can fix it?!? Any suggestions? It is a leather couch. I was %^$&% pissed when this happened, they were not cheap! Oh yea, an idea of how much it cost to fix would be good too.
Interesting. It doesn't say if it will work on a tear like this. The example they showed looked like a cat scratch or something small. I will call them. Thanks
I had similiar tear in my 80 Corvette (ya im gloating but dont worry its totalled now) a few years ago, it only cost like 35 bucks at a car upholstery place. Looked like new. So just lug that thing in to a car place and see what happens. Why wouldnt they fix it? Money is money right...
Is that some kind of ethafoam bunting underneath? If so, you can't really do any leather consolidation because you won't have an interior surface. It looks like it was stretched over and stapled in underneath the cushion. If so you could have some trouble and it would be hard to get it looking like new without replacing that whole bottome strip which would cost some money. Or you could put the sofa on it's back, lay the tear back into place, and slather that whole bottom section with an acrylic adhesive (something like Klucel G because it is water or alcohol soluble) to create an external shell of sorts to keep it in place. But then wetting it would break down the surface...
Why do those in the Art world always know about upholstery? My sister's friend used to run a gallery and pretty much upholstered their whole home.
Ok, you gotta break it down in simpler terms. I was lost after the 6th word, ethafoam. You seem knowleadgeable on this subject. What would you recommend? It doen't have to look perfect, but them again not just black duct tape I just want it sealed up and not oviously torn. Perhaps, good enough that someone who doesnt know about the tear wouldnt notice it unless it was pointed out.
You can do this yourself. A cheap, workable way to fix would be to glue and sew on a large patch over the entire area (with faux leather black vinyl - you can get this and glue at a fabric store like JoAnn's - I learned about this place while building my projection screen). You can disguise the patch by glueing and sewing an identical patch on the opposite side that isn't torn. The idea is to restore symmetry. Obviously, the big ugly tear destroyed it. If done right, bilateral symmetry of the the two identical large patches should make the job look like part of the original design. No one should notice that they're patches.
Well I am a little different in that I know my way around a conservation lab. One of my many hats. I have done uphostery but only on 18th and 19th century pieces...I try to avoid it at home. Benign, Ethafoam is just snythetic padding. In the old days they used horse hair or other organic materials. If that bottom section is padded underneath (ethafoam bunting) then the best kind of repair would be impossible unless you cut away the section underneath the tear and then rebuilt it with thin foamcore or museum board...but that would probably look odd because it would be flat while the rest was curved/padded. As I said, a flawless look would be to replace the leather on that whole section. It was fabricated in sections so most likely it would not be that hard (but would have to be done by someone who knew what they were doing and would cost a bit for that much leather). This would most likely be what any place you took it would do. Wigmans' idea is interesting and would certainly be a cheaper solution. Then you could lay the tear flat and seal it with a patch and an acrylic adhesive. That would be very noticeable, though, so you would have to get creative in your attempts to minimize it. Maybe one long strip of vinyl/leather that is curved upwards on the ends so it ends just past the outside top of the tear? That would fit with the exisitng stitching. How old is the sofa? That could also dictate how much you want to do. Beyond that I don't really have any suggestions because I don't see a sure-fire way to fix the tear without doing something expensive or something to change the look of the sofa (and be time consuming if you were to do it). It is just a nasty tear.
One more thing I forgot - if that area is an section that takes any stress - pressure from sitting, feet touching it alot, people leaning against it in any way, then a simple patch would most likely fail over time. Sewing it might help but I am not sure. If you want a professional, though, just go to a design shop and they will have business cards of upholsterers there and they can usually give you an estimate if you email them a picture. I also have a connection to one if you want his number.
A phone number would be great. Ill give him a call ASAP. The couches are only 2 years old. this blows!
I am an idiot. Looking at the picture more, even with the ethafoam underneath, I think there could be an easier solution - a bunch of hot melt glue and some acrylic paint. The glue could be used to solidify the foam and fill in gaps and then you can glue the flap to the more solid support. From there the leftover scar could be inpainted with acrylic paint (mixed with a gloss medium to try to match the leather's shine). It could definitely work. Hot melt glue is better than the type of adhesive I was originally thinking about because it is very durable and allows for some stretch. Hell, maybe I could even do it if you didn't want to. Otherwise, a really good upholsterer is Quang Tran - 713.524.6231. I don't have his email.
