I recently had great luck with Second Life:
http://www.secondlife.net/
Ask for Joe Vallone and tell him I sent you

I'm not quite sure how expensive/inexpensive they may be, but Zimmans in Lynn, MA (it's about 20 mins out of the city) has an incredible fabric selection and a reupholstering service. Even if their prices turn out to be steep for the upholstering, definitely take some time to check out their fabric selection- it's unbelievable!http://www.zimmans.com/

I've heard of Zinman's. A couple I know have all their upholstery work done there, and while it isn't exactly affordable (at least not on my salary), the final results are always extraordinary. I've always been tempted. . .

Never heard of Second Life, but I'll certainly give Joe Vallone a call and let him know you've recommended him, Jeff. Thanks!

I am currently having a couch reupholstered by a man named Eddie who owns a series of second hand furniture stores in Cambridge (Sunshine Lucy's is the best well known shop). You can see how well his upholstery jobs look by checking out his furniture store. I was amazed at how reasonable his prices were (and I am having an 8ft couch redone!) and all he requires is that you purchase and bring in the fabric.

I don't know how often you use your chair, but I chose to have my couch done in a micro-suede fabric (my former couch was also micro-suede and I loved how easy it was to clean and the gorgeous colors it comes in). I bought my fabric online at Fabricdirect.com for $17 a yard which was a great deal in a gorgeous bright green called Avocado.

So many online fabric stores have gorgeous jewel tone colors, the possibilities are endless. I would suggest what JLAC7 said and send you to Zimmans in Lynn, but I find their prices to be outrageous on fabric unfortunately (especially cause the store is gorgeous and I love the fabrics they carry!)

Good luck with your upholstery project!! Please send photos of the chair once it is redone, I would love to know what you chose!

Hey Shigidigi,

Is that the same Eddie who owns Metamorphosis near Porter Square? If so, I love his work -- but I didn't know he did upholstery for furniture purchased elsewhere. That's a great suggestion! And I use that chair everyday, so a durable, easy-to-clean fabric is a must -- I'll check out Fabric Direct. Thanks!

Actually, strangely enough that is his brother or cousin, and somehow they have the same name. Crazy! The Eddie I am referring to does own a second shop though behind the Stop and Shop at Porter (or is it a Shaws?) and is right next to a pest control shop. I always remember because when I stop by Eddie's shop there, I see the huge metal bug on the roof of the pest control shop!

Oh, I have heard that the Eddie who owns Metamorphosis also does upholstery too, so you might as well check both for prices :)

Ha, prints like that one are so chic right now! I'd leave it, buy a new pillow and recover the foot stool.

@sleeping spot -- Man, I just knew someone would say that! Let's just say I decided to heed your advice -- what color for the footstool and pillow? (The room has several red accents, none visible in the photo.)

I love that print & those colors too! (Would totally buy that chair from you ...) I'd go with a pillow in a red, blue or green a shade darker than the colors in the fabric. Same for the footstool ... and I think it would look better if the wood was darker, too.

I had the same situation with a couch a while back. Most of the places I called were way out of my price range so I decided to learn to do it myself. If you're interested, check out the Eliot School in Jamaica Plain. They have an amazing upholstery class there.

@komori: Love that suggestion about darkening the wood on the footstool! Since we're expecting two feet of snow tomorrow -- how many days until spring? -- and my office will be closed, I may make that my Snow Day project.

get inspired:

http://www.openingceremony.us/entry.asp?pid=460

Hi there Yoboseyo!

I would love to help you with this project. My father (an upholsterer) and I (a design blogger, writer, and aspiring interior designer) are about to embark on a new adventure together. Custom upholstery is our passion -- we love the opportunity to breathe new life into old furniture. We are located in the Boston area (he's on the South Shore and I'm in Boston daily, living in Somerville.) I'd love to help you pick out a fabric and reupholster your gorgeous chair with my dad. We can talk privately about pricing, etc, but I assure you're we're very reasonable as we're just getting started. Also, if you're up for it, I'd love to document the process on my blog, www.scarletandsterling.com. Please let me know! You can email me at scarletandsterling@gmail.com if you're interested. And no matter what you decide to do -- have fun with it!

Best,
Nicole