Blog

2
Chairs became more elegant and graceful and were designed to enable the ladies and gentleman of the age to the up the elegant posing attitudes that were so popular.
There was en elegance about the whole of this latter half
the 18th century, with its finely proportioned streets, buildings, costumes and furniture.
The coming of the19th century saw the beginning of many change that were to alter not only the face of Briton, but the way of life of
millions of people. machines were to bring a new wealth, as well as
new methods of manufacture; the population was to double in less than
50 years, and the demand for cheap food, clothes and furniture, and
homes were to reach heights previously undreamed of. The first year of
the century Saw the need for more, and more inexpensive furniture being met by simplification of style, and construction without much depreciation in quality; later the fine traditions of the 18th century lost in the fight for cheaper goods .
Although we may condemn 19th century furniture as lacking in refinement, and reflecting the materialistic outlook of the Victorians
towards their leisure, as well as their work, it is difficult to find fault with the comfort of their chairs. The introduction of the coil spring for the first time at the beginning of the 19th century was to open up wide possibilities in the design of comfortable chairs, Improvements in artificial lighting must have done much to encourage people to sit and read or do some hobby rather then retire to bed. By the 1830’s the idea that relaxing was not quite the thing was dying fast.
The first deep spring chairs seem to have been installed in the men’s clubs round St.James and Piccadilly, but quickly found their way into the Victorian home. The Victorians were well aware of the fact that comfort in chairs tends to be s personal matter, and that there
Should be specially designed chairs for women as well as men. A study of Victorian furniture catalogues reveals the enormous range of styles and sizes in upholstered furniture in fact the Victorian Age can be called the Age of the upholsterer.

1
In the world of today comfort in sitting plays an important
part whether we are travelling, working in an office, visiting the
cinema or relaxing at home. The importance of sitting comfortably
has a relatively short history, in fact the history of British chairs
can be covered by some 400 years. Before attempting to solve some of
the problems of today perhaps it is as well to consider the attitude
towards sitting in the past, and the ways in which these needs are met.
Almost all chairs up to the beginning of the 17tb century seem
to have been designed on the lines of thrones; in other words, as
chairs in which one sat with dignity rather than comfort, the hardness of the framed and panelled construction possibly being relieved by a cushion of padding of wool, horsehair, and feathers.
To be chosen to be the head of a meeting, court or assembly
gave one the honour of sitting in a chair, rather than on a stool or
the floor, and so the word chairman has remained to this day. Even in
the Elizabethan theatres it was considered normal to stand when watching a play. To be seen relaxing or reclining was considered to be bad manners, as well as showing weakness of character. This attitude towards sitting remained until well into the 19th century.
The 17th century saw a big step forward in the standards of
comfort in English homes. We find chairs becoming much more common,
and upholstery an integral part of the design of the chairs. But it is
in the beginning of the 18th century that we see for the first time
chairs being thought of as truly upholstered chairs; in other words
the frame work being designed from the point of view of a Skeleton to
Support the flesh and “muscle” of the upholstery. Queen Anne wing-arm chairs are superb examples of the upholsterer’s art, but it must be
remembered that these chairs, although extremely comfortable did not allow for very relaxed sitting. The height and depth of the seat together with the angle of the back did not allow for this.
The rest 18th century saw the development of British furniture to a high level of design, and manufacture and is often referred to as the “Golden Age of Furniture”.

At Cover It Upholstery Sydney we strive to give you the highest quality workmanship and service. We service all suburbs of Sydney, including Inner West, Eastern Suburbs, Northern Suburbs, Northern Beaches, Sydney CBD and Sutherland Shire. Just send an email with a photo of any furniture to be recovered to [email protected] and we’ll be able to give you an estimate on what the cost might be and if you like can then come to see you with fabric, vinyl or leather samples and give you a written quote. Should you accept our quote and assuming the fabric is available we can generally pick up your furniture within 2 weeks and return it to you in one to two weeks depending on the work involved. See our website: http://www.cover-it.com.au.