The Anatomy of a Chair
Most upholstered furniture available today is mass produced either in China or here in the United States. Ours is not. We make each frame individually by hand and upholster every chair, sofa, and ottoman specifically for a client. Even the pieces shown here as a part of our furniture line can be altered dimensionally to specifically fit the needs of the person for whom it is being made, because each is made one by one.
As a rule of thumb, you can simply pick up a piece of furniture and the sheer weight factor will tell you something about how it is made. Hardwood, coil springs, appropriate padding and stuffing.... all add to the substance of an upholstered piece. These are the “innards” that you can’t see. Hence, it is often difficult for today’s buyer to discern what they are getting.
Our frames are made of assorted hardwoods, with turned legs made of cherry or maple.
The joints are mortised, pegged or screwed together... never stapled.
All coil springs are hand tied.
And, whatever combination of foam, down and feathers, or horsehair we are using it is of the
highest quality.
Many of the finish details, like decorative trim and nail heads, are hand applied. And, hand stitching of seams is still done to create the very best final product. All of this takes time and it results in a stellar piece when complete.
At Jessie Davidson Interiors we not only make our Signature Line of furniture, but we create custom pieces for clients when the need arises. One example is the Shield Back side chair shown in these images. We recreated the elements from an antique Shield Back chair for the back and legs of these side chairs, then added a fully upholstered seat large enough to accommodate today’s level of comfort. The final product has the look and patina of the original antique chair which inspired this project; and, captures the comfort and practicality desired by our client.
We are continually being challenged by the development of new furniture styles for our line and for our clients. And, it is gratifying to witness the pleasure people get out of truly well crafted, comfortable and visually arresting pieces in their homes.
